Gerald Veasley’s Bass Bootcamp

Even if your bass playing experience includes only a short stint on the washtub back when skiffle was all the rage, you’re still qualified enough to attend Gerald Veasley’s Bass Bootcamp for three days of rigorous bass guitar training. Those already schooled and skilled on the bass are welcome too, and despite the event’s name, you won’t have to wear fatigues. Veasley (pictured left) might make you drop and give him 20 push-ups, however-that depends on how serious you are about the bass.

Bass Bootcamp will be held next weekend, Mar. 15-17, at Albright College in Reading, Pa., during the Berks Jazz Festival. So, in between attending workshops like “Playing the Killer Solo” and “The Ultimate Groove,” there might be some time to go AWOL for a couple hours and check out a festival act or two. But Bootcamp has its own roster of stars as well. Bassists Victor Bailey, Gary Willis, Michael Manring, Doug Wimbish will all join Veasley in teaching this year’s class of Bootcampers how to pluck, slap and thump their way to success on four (or five, or six) strings.

Charges for Bass Bootcamp are a $50.00 non-refundable registration fee and $450.00, which covers all workshops and lodging. To register online, visit www.geraldveasley.com or call the Bass Bootcamp Registration Office at: 215-472-4093 for a registration form.

Originally Published March 8, 2002