Mountain Brook High drummer chosen for Grammys summer camp

Published: Wednesday, July 04, 2012, 10:34 AM Updated: Wednesday, July 04, 2012, 11:52 AM

By William Thornton -- The Birmingham NewsThe Birmingham News

 

Harrison Jones, a 16-year-old drummer from Mountain Brook, is one of 136 high school students across the country selected to attend a Grammy Camp this summer. The camp he will attend in Los Angeles is intended to teach the basics of the music industry. (The Birmingham News/Beverly Taylor)

MOUNTAIN BROOK, Alabama -- A Mountain Brook drummer is one of 136 high school students from around the nation selected to take part in the eighth annual Grammy Camp, where teens get a crash course in the basics of being a professional in the music industry.
Harrison Jones, 16, will travel to the University of Southern California's Thornton School of Music July 14-23 for the camp. Other participants selected will travel to similar camps in Nashville and New York.
The camp is supported by the Grammy Foundation, Best Buy, Black River Entertainment, Converse and Guitar Center. Jones was the only Alabama resident chosen to attend at any of the camps.
Jones, 16, a junior at Mountain Brook High School, said he has been playing drums for seven years and was inspired by his grandfather, who played drums in several bands. Harrison is drummer for Dry Honor, a band inspired by White Stripes that plays rock, some jazz and rhythm and blues. "This is a huge deal," he said of the camp. "It's not just about learning about your instrument, but learning about the whole industry. And it's a real honor to represent my state."
At Jones' camp, participants will get training in recording, engineering, concert production, music production, music journalism, songwriting and recording. While Harrison owns some recording equipment, he has never professionally recorded music, which is one of the reasons the camp appealed to him.
Jones' mother, Jennifer, said it was the professional immersion the camp promised, as well as its connection to the Grammys, the music industry's signature award, that inspired Harrison to apply.
"It just sounds like the chance of a lifetime," she said.