Forge Jazz Camp

A summer jazz intensive for trumpet and saxophone players at UW Bothell.

Forge Jazz Camp is a four-week summer jazz camp in Bothell, Washington for middle and high school trumpet and saxophone players who are ready to take their playing somewhere new. Hosted on the University of Washington Bothell campus, the camp runs Tuesdays and Thursdays from July 6 through July 30, 2026, with a final performance at Bothell Unity on August 1. Camp is built around three things that lift young brass and woodwind players faster than private lessons alone: transcribing the masters by ear, learning to improvise over real changes, and stepping out front as a soloist. Students work in a focused group, get hands-on time with two professional jazz educators, and finish the month playing a public concert in front of family and friends. Trumpet sessions are led by Barb Hudak, a Pacific Northwest trumpeter and educator with more than 30 years in classrooms and on bandstands. Saxophone sessions are led by Tyler Rogers, a Seattle-area saxophonist active in the regional jazz scene. Both instructors are working players who teach the way they wish they had been taught: less drilling, more music. The camp is open to students entering grades 7 through 12 with at least one year of playing experience on trumpet or saxophone. Tuition is a flat $500 for the full session. Space is limited so we can keep the student-to-instructor ratio low and every camper gets real time on the stand. If you have been looking for a summer jazz camp in the Seattle area, or a trumpet camp or saxophone camp that takes young players seriously, Forge Jazz Camp is built for exactly that. Registration is open now.