Guitar Workshop Plus!

Weeklong music camp Guitar Workshop Plus returns to San Diego from June 25–June 30 at the Sheraton Hotel in Mission Valley. Based in Canada, GWP was founded in 2002 by Brian Murray, and is now being held in five cities: Toronto, Nashville, Fort Lauderdale and Seattle, with San Diego added to the roster in 2015.

Long considered one of the top opportunities for a performer to hone their craft, each year GWP has a stellar list of instructors, with sessions available on blues, jazz, acoustic and rock guitar, bass, drums, vocals and even songwriting. The secret to GWP’s success is the caliber of the teachers involved. This year will include iconic bassist Nathan East, whose discography includes work with everyone from George Harrison to Eric Clapton to Daft Punk; and guitarist Alex Skolnick, perhaps best known for performances with a long list of well-known bands such as Testament, Trans-Siberian Orchestra, and Savatage. Also on hand will be award winning guitarist Wayne Riker, recipient of the 2017 Lifetime Achievement SDMA. Additional instructors will be announced via the Guitar Workshop Plus website.

How was San Diego chosen as a location? “Having spent quite a bit of time in Southern California over the years, I fell in love with the city of San Diego,” Murray said. “If I was going to relocate and live somewhere in the U.S. it would be San Diego. I just think it’s a beautiful city with great weather, scenery, a healthy music scene, and the people there are real. They feel genuine. So, when we were thinking of opening a session in SoCal, obviously we looked at various potential places around LA and OC as well but ultimately decided on San Diego.”

How immersive is the camp? How full are the student’s days? “Basically, the student is living, eating and breathing music for five days,” Murray said. “We always get these positive comments on the evaluation forms at the end of each session saying how much they loved the complete immersion and how they learned so much, took so much away to practice with a complete understanding of HOW to practice the material, as well as huge inspiration from being surrounded by their fellow students, teachers, and guest artists.” During the day students have their main course, where they have hands on instruction covering technique, applied theory, concepts covering various rhythm and lead topics, etc. Additionally, they have a one-hour rhythm section class where they are coached and play with the band in a real-life application of everything they are learning in class. “They also have an ensemble that they rehearse and perform with,” Murray remarked. “Then in the evenings, they can attend other clinics covering various topics such as improvisation, slide guitar, scales and modes, songwriting, vocals, etc. Each evening wraps up with a concert ranging from the faculty performances to the guest artists performances to the student performances.”

With more than two decades of experience behind him, what’s his favorite thing about Guitar Workshop

Plus? “For me personally, although it is a lot of work throughout the year to put everything together and cover all the little logistical details, it is very rewarding to see the students develop,” Murray said. “We have many, many, returning students each year. In fact, many have been attending annually for years and years and even attend multiple locations each year. Me and my staff really only get to see and hear these people annually, so it is great to see how much they improve and grow as musicians over the course of those twelve month,” Murray continued. “We’ve seen everything from beginner to professional players and everything in between who learn and develop their skills and musical knowledge and become better and better musicians,” he said. “They get into new styles of music and broaden their horizons while at the same time honing their skills on their main musical focus. They get together with other students they meet at the workshop during the year and jam or play in bands. We’ve also had quite a few who have gone on to very successful careers in music winning awards and playing alongside some of the world’s biggest musical stars,” Murray said. “So for me, that is a very rewarding feeling.” www.guitarworkshopplus.com