Portland Fiddle Camp

Portland Fiddle Camp focuses on learning fiddle tunes, daily morning and afternoon music activities, and jam sessions. Campers take part in square dance and an end-of-week camp concert performance, and each week they work on mastering four fiddle tunes. Teen campers also have options such as forming bands and, on the Teen Camp Counselor track, taking part in teacher training, classroom management training, learning how to break down a tune, and real live student teaching.

• Ages: 6–16 years old
• Schedule: Monday–Friday, 10:00am–3:00pm, with drop-off at 9:45am and pick-up at 3:00pm; camp concert on Friday from 2:30–3:30pm
• Price: Teen Camp fee is $360; returning counselors 16 and under pay $300; Week #1 / Week #2 is $360 per week or $670 for 2 weeks; sibling rate is $335 per week or $620 for 2 weeks; scholarship offers 50% off camp fee for one week per student; camp fee is $360 per week or $670 for both weeks; sibling rate is $335 per week or $620 for both weeks.

Portland Fiddle Camp was founded in 2008 by local teacher and musician Kate O'Brien, and Sophie Enloe joined in 2013. Since 2008 they have taught over 2,000 young musicians. The camp offers three tracks: a General Track best fit for ages 6–10, a Major/Minor Track best fit for age 10+, and a Teen Camp Track best fit for ages 14+ advanced players, and all tracks welcome violin, viola, cello, and guitar. During Week #1 of 2026 there is a track dedicated specifically to viola and cello, and two new programs in 2026 are the Viola & Cello track and Teen Camp. Each camper receives a Portland Fiddle Camp book of tunes that is customized each year, with cellos and violas receiving books in their own clefs, and all campers get a t-shirt and a picture from camp; the camp fee includes a Fiddle Camp Song Book, t-shirt, and musical activities. Campers meet a special guest “Fiddle Hero or Heroine,” dance a square dance, and perform in an outdoor concert at the end of the week. Regular teacher staff and guest teachers are professional musicians who know how to teach, and all Portland Fiddle Camp counselors were once young fiddle campers. Campers on the Teen Camp Counselor track learn teaching skills directly from Kate and Sophie, who are both certified Suzuki trained teachers with 15 years of teaching experience. The camp states that its aim is to support the growth and positive experience of all campers as well as the continuation of a uniquely American song-form whose roots spread to parts of Europe, Africa, and the Caribbean islands.

Campers must have at least one year of private study to attend, and beginner students must have at least one year of private lessons before attending. Note reading is not required but is described as helpful. Families are asked to sign children in and out every day at the drop-off and pick-up area, label everything the child brings, and understand that no before or after care is provided. All staff and campers will regularly wash hands, and they will learn and jam outside as much as possible. Parents are asked not to send a child to camp with any symptoms of sniffle, headache, body ache, or fever.

Last updated July 13, 2026.