Interlochen Arts Camp, in northwest lower Michigan, is home to one of the world's most renowned summer music camps. Interlochen's programs for third through twelfth grades draw 1,300 campers each summer, from all 50 states and around the world. Admission is competitive, with auditions are generally required. There are also are week-long, advanced institute programs early in the summer. Recent institutes include oboe, bassoon, horn, trumpet, trombone and percussion. Campers live in rustic cabins with up to 16 campers and one or two counselors. In 2006, Interlochen received a National Medal of the Arts for its substantial contributions to American culture.
Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, located on 1,300 acres in Michigan's Manistee National Forest, offers summer programs in orchestra, band, choir, music composition, jazz, harp and piano. Campers receive up to six hours a day of intensive rehearsals, sectionals, and technique classes over the course of each 10-day camp session. Programs are divided into junior camp, known as Camp Bernstein, for grades five through eight, and Central Camp, for grades eight through 12. Auditions are not required for enrollment.
MPulse, at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, offers two-week summer programs in the performing arts for high school students. For 2011, offerings will include institutes in basson, clarinet, flute, horn, oboe, percussion, saxophone, trombone and harp. MPulse also features programs focusing on musical theater, vocal arts and jazz. Auditions are required. Students have the opportunity to stay in dorms and experience a taste of college life along with studying under the renowned faculty of the School of Music.
Western Michigan University (WMU), in Kalamazoo, offers a two-week summer music program for ninth through twelfth grades. The camp has a rich, 60-year history of promoting artistic and cultural learning and interaction among young musicians. More than 100 students participate annually, in specialty programs for brass, woodwind, percussion, string, vocal and keyboard. Campers stay in residence halls with a counseling staff of WMU music students and participate in a variety of recreational activities to balance out the intense music classes. Bowling, movie nights and a trip to Lake Michigan are some of the extracurricular activities offered. A recorded audition is required for admission.