STAGE & STARDOM. The Valley Rockademy, an inaugural camp hosted by Planette Kids and the Pablo Center, will offer children ages 4-11 the chance to discover musical instruments and learn in a curious environment. (Photo by Megan Zabel Holmes)

The drums thump, guitars shred and screech, and the crowd roars. This won’t be your average garage band. This is the Valley Rockademy, where young musicians discover their own sound and way to rock stardom.

In a collaborative effort, Eau Claire's Planette Kids (100 N. Farwell St., Suite 116) and the Pablo Center (128 Graham Ave.) have launched the Valley Rockademy camp. This inaugural camp offers young children of the Chippewa Valley their first opportunity to experience playing a musical instrument.

Jill Heinke Moen, the Valley Rockademy director and owner of Planette Kids, said the camp addresses an urgent community need: encouraging creativity and self-expression in young children as they learn to experience the arts through music.

“The arts are truly for everyone,” Heinke Moen said. “The more that we can give access to the arts in this way, the more we can grow that part of our identity in Eau Claire.”

The Valley Rockademy will offer two one-week camps, from 9am-12pm on weekdays at the Pablo Center Manz Gibson Street Entry. The first camp will take place from Aug. 11-15, with the second the following week, Aug. 18-22.

“As you get older and you learn an instrument, you physically feel it as an extension of yourself."

jill heinke moen

director of the valley rockademy

Each five-day course offers children ages 4 to 11 the opportunity to learn a musical instrument. Options include keyboard, auxiliary percussion, bass guitar, drums, and vocals.

With no prior experience required, students will learn skills in teamwork, collaboration, and communication, as they prepare a song to perform in a final showcase at the end of the week. Many of the skills will be acquired through musically-driven crafts, activities, or challenges — all with the goal to create a song to perform in front of family and friends.

Heinke Moen holds three degrees in flute performance from UC-Santa Barbara, San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and the Royal College of Music, London. As a lifelong musician and music educator with over two decades of experience, the invaluable joy of connecting with an instrument is something she deeply understands.

“As you get older and you learn an instrument, you physically feel it as an extension of yourself,” Heinke Moen said. “When students finally find that instrument that they do feel really comfortable with, they feel that ownership.”

Jill Heinke Moen, a small business owner and musician, also performed with The Shouting Matches (pictured playing OXBEAUX in 2017).

Prior to the inaugural summer camp, Heinke Moen has also instructed toddler music courses with a similar mission and vision in Eau Claire. A professional bassist and flutist, she has graced stages including Carnegie Hall, Austin City Limits, and Coachella. Heinke Moen has also performed with Justin Vernon and other Eau Claire musicians in The Shouting Matches.

She aims to inspire young musicians with the same sense of possibility she's witnessed as a female artist in rock and other musical genres. The Pablo Center has equally been instrumental in providing opportunities like the Valley Rockademy both a stage and spotlight, Heinke Moen noted.

“The fact that we get to have this camp at the Pablo Center is a big deal,” Heinke Moen said. “I want families with young kids to feel ownership there, to feel welcome there, to feel at home there.”

Admission to the Valley Rockademy will be $150 per child after July 10. Scholarships for reduced fees are available through the registration portal on Village.com.

For more information and to register for one of the two Valley Rockademy sessions in August, visit their website online. Participation costs $125/child before July 10 and $150/child after July 10.