Here's my promised review. Actually less like a review than a series of impressions...
And they are _my_ impressions, not some kind of general consensus.
Executive Summary: Positive experience, learned a lot, already signed up for 2015...
Some questions answered:
This year (for the most part) all the core instructors taught all four levels, so you didn't have to pick and choose by class subject.
This year I classified myself as a beginner, which was probably a mistake, but I stuck with it and I have no regrets. But next year I will definitely be some sort of Intermediate - depends how much I am able to learn over this coming year on my own. If you know the names of the parts of your instrument, the difference between a half note and a quarter note, and the names of the notes on the staff and how to find (perhaps not -know- - but find) them on the fretboard, you are already beyond the knowledge of half the people in my track. (Yes, I knew this stuff...) Seriously - half the people had started bass within the prior 3 months and did not know the names of the notes on the strings. (Why are these people always the one who show up 15 minutes late and ask 'What'd I miss?' ? But I digress...)
So the Beginner-level 'theory' classes were painfully tedious but I have to give the instructors full props for having infinite patience in plodding through a grade-school-level curriculum.
However - if I had succumbed to my initial thought to bolt early for the Intermediate track, I'd have missed Patrick Pfeiffer's excellent class on what and how to practice, and Anthony Wellington's dynamite session on modes. So no regrets, because these were sessions I _needed_.
The master classes (think "assembly") were great. Got exposed to artists and concepts outside my normal range.
Friday night was Meet and Greet with included buffet. Would have got more out of it had I known anyone else in the room. Decent food and enough of it, with door prizes (I won nothing all weekend...). Followed by Movie Night ! "Standing in the Shadows of Motown". Which was followed by the Night Owl sessions starting at 11PM. I attended the 'Beginner's Jam' and didn't play much but learned a ton. (This is a theme - I didn't come to play - I couldda stayed home and played. I came to learn.) Finally off to bed at 0200... (There were also sessions on Slapping, Tapping, and Recording Technique.)
Saturday was all day workshops in parallel with the Expo, where I scooped up a bunch of instructional books and some Tees. Saturday evening was a presentation with the writer/producer of the "Standing In The Shadows" book and film (Allan Slutsky) along with James Jamerson, Jr. Followed by the "Instructor's Concert" in the night club. Which was in turn followed by more Night Owl sessions, but since I was running on 3 hrs of sleep and a full day of classroom sessions, I bailed on that...
Sunday, in the face of scary weather bearing down on the East Coast the schedule got squished but they got all the scheduled classroom sessions in. The event finished off with another round of door prizes and the big raffle drawing. Followed by the "Groove Exam." Yes, boys and girls - EVERYBODY goes up onto the Big Stage and plays a minute or so of 'something that grooves' with a live drummer - one at a time - for the whole group. Bit of anxiety here, especially for the beginners, but the point is to DO IT - not give a show. Lots of the beginners - and several of the Intermediates - just did 30 seconds one note, played on the '1' - with conviction.
( I had practiced a bunch of stuff but wasn't as solid as I wanted on most of it - adding in the stage nerves factor of it being 25 years since I've played for other people... So I did about a minute of the bass line from John Klemmer's "Touch" - which is simple enough but I knew I could nail it. Did I mention that I was the only student that brought a fretless? )
So I had a great time.
Now comes the value computation. The cost side is easy: $500 for the Expo, $115/night for the room, all meals except Friday's buffet. $100 at the Expo which I don't count, because I don't need a special occasion to buy books and Tee's...
This is probably all I'll spend on 'education/instruction' this year and came from the Christmas Present budget anyway.
Is it a good value for -you- ? I don't know. I can tell you that you have virtually unlimited access to a ton of excellent players and teachers and in my (limited) experience, they are there to help you and answer any question you've got. What's it worth to have a 3-day weekend to ask Anthony Wellington -anything- ? And Adam Nitti, and Gerald Veasley, and Patrick Pfeiffer...
I have no regrets about this year's experience and I've already signed up for 2015. But definitely -not- as a Beginner. Having had that experience, I can definitely say that if you or someone you know -is- a Beginner, the Beginner track is excellent, patient, supportive, and as comprehensive as you're going to get in 3 days.
I think if you have something specific that you want to learn, ask anyone you think can teach you. If an instructor starts with "what do you want to learn?" don't be bashful, tell them. I think when they ask that, it's not because they don't have concepts in mind, but because they want to make sure your questions are answered. (There may well be unprepared instructions - I didn't see them all - so I'm not saying it can't happen.) They don't ask this in the Beginner's track because the answer is either 'everything' or 'I have no idea what I don't know.'
Truly, it's a bass player love fest. The amount of generous support from, and for, all levels, is amazing. I experienced no gear snobbery, no genre snobbery, nothing but appreciation and interest.
