top of page
.png)
A seasonal music camp for adults - DASC leads the way as a non-competitive, non-auditioned, educational orchestra for adult string players.
STATISTICS AND REPORTS
FINANCIAL AID GRANTED
NUMBER OF PEOPLE SERVED
SESSIONS HELD
Our Mission & Values
The Spirit of DASC
Denver Adult Strings Camp exists as an inclusive, educational space for beginning - intermediate adult string players. Our mission is to serve adult musicians by providing fun and goal-driven programming that is rooted in community. We firmly believe in compensating our staff and coaches fairly for their teaching and planning time and letting their unique teaching styles shine through. DASC strives to support local businesses; we believe in buying local goods when possible and supporting and advertising local luthier businesses and music shops. We seek to build community by facilitating camaraderie in rehearsals and through outside events and by encouraging participants to utilize local music shops and attend music events in the area.
DASC is committed to fair pay, transparent compensation principles and a diverse and inclusive workplace.
Origin Story
Denver Adult Strings Camp (DASC) started as just an idea in the spring of 2021. DASC Director, Sarah Jylkka, had grown up a violinist and converted her love of music into a profession in music education. As many musicians experience, she found herself chatting about her instrument with everyone from coworkers to friends to strangers over the years and a common theme emerged. Most folks wanted to share that they too had played an instrument at some point in their lives. Not only did they used to play, but most also expressed regret that they no longer played their instrument or hope that one day they would get to play again. After a tumultuous year and a half following the initial COVID-19 pandemic, creating a program for intermediate adult string players seemed like a great way to spread joy and inspire much needed community in the wake of a bleak worldwide event. With a background in camp counseling and teaching and an amazing network of friends and colleagues who were highly-skilled musicians and teachers in their own right to draw upon, DASC came into existence.
The first DASC session was held near Washington Park in Denver, CO during the summer of 2021. The expectation was that 12, maybe 15 players would sign up. In a real stroke of luck, maybe 20 people would want to participate in the program. With just two months of advertising, registration numbers kept climbing and the session started with over 50 participants! Over the three weeks of programming, many things took place: coaches dispensed valuable information and bonded with their groups, adults who hadn't played their instruments in 5, 10, 30 years were able to make music again, friendships were made, an orchestra was formed, and over 50 people from all generations, backgrounds, and skill levels came together to make music. Today, DASC has held 3 successful sessions and is poised to begin a new camp design in the form of chamber ensembles. We have served over 100 Colorado residents and performed for over 600 friends and family members. Our membership continues to grow with the support of our community and the program scope continues to expand. However, even through expansion, our goal to come together in an encouraging and educational way remains today and always will remain as the main pillar of our program.
We encourage all to lean in and make music.
COVID-19
We are COVID cautious.
At this time, DASC does not require masking. We do encourage participants to wear masks and opt out of rehearsals when experiencing symptoms. Always keep others aware of any potential COVID contact. We will keep a close eye on guidelines and variants and make quick alerts in the case that anything changes.
We appreciate your cooperation and understanding.
not ready to register yet?
Join our mailing list here to receive camp and session updates and stay in the loop!
bottom of page