EXTRA CURRICULUM AND SUMMER COURSES 
All-instrument workshop with Bernard Vidal
New for 2024 – Bernard Vidal, co-founder of IMEP – Paris College of Music, and former teacher at the school, and IMEP • Paris College of Music are organizing an intensive, immersive music camp during the spring vacation. The trainees will stay on an estate in the heart of the Occitanie region near Narbonne.
Dates and times: Sunday, April 14 to Sunday, April 21. Accommodation and meals are included. You are responsible for your own travel to and from the course. A shuttle can pick you up at Narbonne station.
Intended for: musicians of all levels. Places are limited to a maximum of 12 trainees. Groups are divided according to level and type of instrument.
Objectives: to give the trainee a professional approach to preparing a repertoire as an ensemble with a view to concerts, tours and recordings, and to help the trainee in his or her personal development as regards the instrument (sound, technique, ear), his or her role in the group, his or her listening skills and ability to interact coherently with the music.
Program and organization: the course will focus on developing a repertoire for the live stage and recording studio.
Full program (link)
Price: 720 euros for 1 full week. A preferential rate of 620 euros is offered to IMEP students.
Registration: to ensure consistency of level in groups and instruments, please send an e-mail to info@imep.pro with a video recording of yourself playing jazz standards and themes.
I was able to take part in a free jazz workshop with Bernard, and the setting and welcome were really conducive to the development of new musical horizons. The week-long project was clear and well structured, with specific workshops, repertoire development and musical research, so that at the end of the week I could perform the prepared program in concert. The opportunity to jam every night and exchange experiences throughout the week was invaluable and enriching. The atmosphere was great and I have excellent memories of the music, sharing and freedom. It was a bit of an artistic laboratory in its own right. Thanks Bernard !
I’ve taken part in 4 of Bernard’s courses, so they’ve followed my time at IMEP, and each time they’ve enabled me to make enormous progress technically, but above all in terms of musicality and playing in a group, which is central to our profession as musicians.
Bernard knows exactly what needs to be worked on, so each course was different and unique, adapted to the way I had developed at IMEP during the year. This almost personalised approach, not only for the individual musician but also for the groups he or she forms, means that by the end of the course there is a real sense of progress on the instrument and a real pride in presenting the group’s work at the end-of-course concerts.
It’s also the perfect place to meet new musicians during the great evening jam sessions. Numerous projects have been created as a result of the courses (such as the Hira collective) and even between musicians who didn’t know each other beforehand.
All these experiences are now reflected in my work as a musician and teacher.Maxime Charray, drummer, professor at IMEP, class of 2019 Yaron Herman
PERSONAL STATEMENTS
When you’re learning a new language (in this case jazz for me at the time), it is a bit “head down and pedal”, and the year flies by. The three courses I was able to do (far from Paris) with Bernard Vidal enabled me to put into practice and deepen in a serene way all the knowledge I had absorbed during the year at IMEP. Bernard Vidal is an outstanding teacher who has enabled me to develop my artistic skills while making me self-reliant and confident.
I participated in several of Bernard Vidal’s workshops. These camps offer total and continuous immersion in the work and pleasure of music. As far as I know, these are the only camps that offer intense, in-depth ensemble work, authentic public concerts, nightly jams and a convivial, shared life in a small group. Each workshop is different from the others, but the experience has always been good. Work and fun on the road. I recommend it.
Paul Oxby, double bassist, class of 2019 Yaron Herman
At the end of my first year at IMEP, I took a week’s course with Bernard. Hours of group work with highly targeted feedback, demanding technical exercises tailored to my needs, wild jam sessions where I could immediately apply the day’s progress points under real conditions, and a final concert in front of an audience. This course was a major boost to my sense of the group, musicality and interpretation. Bernard combines technical and human coaching with psychology. I owe him a lot today as a musician.
Augustin Ledieu, singer, class of 2017 Alain Jean Marie
Bernard’s courses have given me the opportunity to learn more about improvisation and group playing in general. It’s a real challenge to try and make a repertoire your own in a week, but everyone ends up succeeding thanks to their own perseverance and that of the musicians who accompany us. Bernard is an artist, a passionate person and an excellent teacher who knows how to share with everyone. What he passed on to me during these courses is now an integral part of my personality as a musician.
Adrien Uduwana, guitarist, class of 2020 Etienne Mbappé
Bernard Vidal’s courses were an extremely important turning point in my future, as it was there that I was able to really understand the profession of live musician and put together my first band. Every year, it was a must for me to be fully immersed in demanding music among other enthusiasts in an atmosphere I’ll never forget.
Victor Gonon, guitarist, IMEP former student
I highly recommend Bernard Vidal’s course because it was thanks to it that I felt confident enough to take on the Paris jams as a singer.
In fact, thanks to the initial repertoire I saw during this intensive week-long course, I was able to sing these same songs for a few months, just long enough to get used to the dynamics of jam sessions, learn how to manage the stage, my interpretations and control my nervousness in front of an audience in Paris jazz clubs.
By going back to jam sessions every week, I gradually felt more confident and, by necessity, able to take more risks by proposing tracks outside my initial repertoire.
The course itself was exceptional, both in human and educational terms. I also found that the places in Ariège where we had the opportunity to give our end-of-course concerts were incredibly charming.
Bernard is demanding, he listens, he gives very pertinent advice and I really appreciated working with a mentor who took me so seriously in this musical training. His advice still echoes in my head when I sing today. I highly recommend this course if you want to take a step forward in your jazz training and practice.
Chloé Lecerf, singer