Ensemble Options

Ensembles provide opportunities for students of all ages to jam, improvise, and learn collectively. In these 60-minute classes, students study different instruments to create a band experience over the course of the semester.

We strongly recommend students who would like to enroll in a group also enroll in private lessons. To help facilitate this, MCMA offers a 10% discount on ensemble registrations for any students who also study privately.

If you are interested in joining an ensemble, please send us a message to inquire about availability and skill or instrument fit.

If you are looking for a particular option and don’t see it, let us know what you’re looking for! We create our ensembles based on interest and demand.

This is the ideal ensemble for the adult who has always wanted to experiment with other musicians and learn how to play in an ensemble setting. Join this ensemble and explore a wide variety of genres, learn how to improvise and communicate with other musicians, learn music theory, and build your own personal confidence by learning to take musical risks with improvisation.
Instructor: Amory Raymond
Prerequisites: For adults with a baseline of theory who are comfortable on at least one instrument
Suggested Ages: 16+
Mondays, 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm, starting September 9
This is the perfect ensemble for the adult who wants to learn how to play in an ensemble setting. Join this ensemble and explore a wide variety of genres, learn how to improvise and communicate with other musicians, learn music theory, and build your own personal confidence by learning to take musical risks with improvisation.
Instructor: Tom Luther
Prerequisites: For adults with a baseline of theory who are comfortable on at least one instrument
Suggested Ages: 16+
Thursdays 6:30 pm -7:30 pm, starting September 12
This one hour class will help develop and hone stick control and technique by methodically working on skill building exercises, rudiments and their applications to the drum set, and drum set examples. Students should be prepared to spend time specifically working on a practice pad with a metronome, as the basis of the course will focus on building vocabulary with hands, though there will be opportunities for full drum kit exploration as well.
Instructor: Tom Ulichny
Suggested Ages: 16 +
Tuesdays, 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm, starting September 10
Ages 11 - 16
With Khaya Cohen
Wednesdays 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm
Starting September 11
Using a variety of hand percussion instruments, this ensemble will explore the traditional and modern rhythms of West Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean.
Instructor: Jeff Densmore
Open to all ages
Wednesdays, 5 pm - 6 pm, starting September 11
MCMA’s Jazz Ensemble takes a group-centered approach and gives students a chance to play jazz -- and its related sub genres -- in a supportive learning environment, with an emphasis on topics not often covered in school programs. Students are counseled and encouraged to improvise, sight read, and become exposed to new styles and new modes of creating music.
Instructor: Tom Luther
Suggested Ages: 12 - 18
Prerequisites: Comfortable with your instrument and willing to take risks
Thursdays, 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm, starting September 12
The ideal ensemble for the budding rock star! This weekly ensemble is open to students who play guitar, bass, drum set, keys, or vocals. Students will form a rock band and study fundamentals such as understanding song arrangement of rock classics, theory, performance techniques, and improvisation. This class will not only focus on developing individual musicianship, but also the application of skills in a group setting with a strong emphasis on team-building.
Instructor: Amory Raymond
Suggested Ages: 11+
When: Tuesdays: 6:30 pm - 7:30 pm, beginning September 10th