We’re back!  And we can’t wait to rock with you in 2021.  Rock U. Winter Session starts today.  Please read below for more information about specific bands and programs.

Private lessons

Finally, an important reminder: Our procedures to prevent coronavirus transmission work (you can review them here) and remain in effect.  We have not had a single known case of coronavirus transmission at Rock U. since we reopened in May after the first confinement.   We’re so glad you can keep rocking safely with us!

We really miss you!  We were disappointed that this week’s announcements didn’t bring us permission to reopen next week.  But it’s a bad news-good news situation, and there’s some of both.  It’s good to focus on the positive, so here it is: Rock U. will reopen on a (mostly) normal schedule starting on Tuesday 15 December!

And there’s another important piece of good news you might not have realized.  Since the first deconfinement in May, Rock U. has been operating a full slate of bands and lessons under our new health and safety procedures for distancing and disinfection (which you can see here), except for our annual closure in August and early September.  During that time, we have not had a single case of known coronavirus transmission or infection at Rock U.  We have had only one student test positive after a Rock U. session, but it was not known whether the student became infected before or after attending the session, and none of the other students or teachers in the band tested positive or developed symptoms.  Our procedures work, and will continue in force once we reopen, to keep you rocking safely!

Please read below for more information about our specific bands and programs.

Youth and teen bands
OK, first the bad news: the Rock U. Fall Concert scheduled for 13 December is now officially cancelled.  La Boule Noire, like every music venue in Paris, can’t open until 20 January at the soonest.

So now let’s do the good news:
1) Our bands have been working really well on Zoom since returning from Toussaint break, and will continue doing great work for just a few more weeks.
2) We will extend the Fall Session by an extra week so our bands get one last practice session together in the studio.  Our last day will be Saturday 19 December instead of 12 December.
3) Bands will use this in-studio practice session to record video performances of their songs, which we will be very proud to release as the next (and hopefully final) installment of our Rock the Confine Concert Series!
4) We expect to operate normally in the Winter Session from 4 Jan – 20 March, and are optimistic that the concert at La Boule Noire, scheduled for 21 March, will take place.

So keep your eyes peeled on our YouTube channel, Facebook page, and Instagram account for a bunch of new releases from Rock U. bands in December!

Adult bands
Our adult bands will also resume normal operations starting on 15 December.  However, since we’ve lost 6 weeks of the semester, we will be amending the calendar to include make-up sessions for these missed weeks and to move the concert later in the winter.  The adult band instructors and I will send you more information about the amended calendar very soon, please stay tuned!

So we’ll see you very soon!  As always, check out our free rock and roll content on our YouTube channel, Facebook page, and Instagram account.  Look for new One Minute Master Classes, music trivia and theory, artist appreciation, and recommendations on online resources for rockers.  Like and subscribe to be notified as each new post goes up.  And in the meantime…

We miss you!  And once again we send our hopes that you’re healthy and safe during this new period of confinement. We’re obviously extremely disappointed that this latest lockdown will force us to suspend our in-person bands and lessons. But, although the last lockdown was no fun, it turned out to be a period of unprecedented creativity and learning for most of us at Rock U, as you can see in the video above.  We’ve been here before.  We know what to do.  We got this.  And we can do it even better this time.  (You can use the confinement to check out all 53 videos and listen to all 18 audio tracks our students created during the spring lockdown!)

Youth and teen bands

Once again, we’ll be bringing Rock U. to you online until we can reopen our studio.  As we learned in the spring, we can still make music, learn, and have fun during this time.  Starting tomorrow, we will be resuming weekly band session for ALL of our youth and teen bands on Zoom (available for free download at https://zoom.us/).

Our main goal for the month of November will be to continue learning and preparing the songs the bands have chosen for the Fall Concert.  Clearly we’ll be waiting to hear how the situation develops and we’ll be hoping for a timely end to the confinement period.  Obviously it’s too soon to know if our concert will take place as scheduled on 13 December, but if it doesn’t, we’ll provide another way for the bands to perform their sets, as we did in the spring.  If the concert can’t take place, we’ll add an extra week to the Fall Session by continuing practices until 19 December, in order to give the bands more opportunities to create their performances.

Adult bands

We expect more variation in online participation among our adult bands, and fortunately we have more flexibility in scheduling.  As a result, rather than necessarily continuing with weekly online meetings for every band, we’ll make up the missed November sessions by adding the weeks of 14-18 December and 8-12 February to the first semester, scheduling other additional sessions after deconfinement, and modifying the dates of concerts for the rest of the year if necessary to add enough time to catch up.  However, if some bands have the motivation and available instruments at home to continue with their practices online, that’s great!  Please talk to your individual instructor to discuss how your band will proceed.  In any case, we’ll provide other ways to stay engaged, learn, and socialize during the month of November, including our weekly online Adult Band open mic sessions, trivia and listening quizzes, contests, and online content.

Andy Guthrie: 06 37 06 20 85 andyguthriemusic@yahoo.com
Leander Lyons: 06 73 54 25 78 leandelan@gmail.com
Jason Waters: 07 67 78 88 16 music.jasonwaters@gmail.com

Here’s what we said back in March when the first lockdown arrived: “We know this isn’t how any of us expected to be spending our time this month.  The irony of this situation is that togetherness and music are two things that could be really helpful to most of us during this period of isolation and uncertainty, and they’re two things we can’t have, at least not the way we’re used to.  Rock U. is built on the joy of sharing music together in the same physical space and in front of an audience, and that’s been taken away from all of us temporarily.  But we’re going to find ways to keep your musical journey moving forward, one little step at a time.”  You know what to do!