247 schools in the US 5 in Mexico 6 in Canada 36 in Brazil 4 in Australia 1 in the Philippines 5 in Chile 1 in Colombia 1 in Peru 1 in South Africa 1 in Spain 1 in Taiwan
Though they offer a pre-school introduction to music for children age two through six, the majority of their students are in a performance-based program where students are accepted at any skill level, with the goal getting them on stage, playing a concert before a paying audience. The most skilled students in each school form a band and play concerts in their city, and the top students from each school compete to become a member of an "All-Star" band and tour regionally. They have recently expanded to offering career development for working bands, and "Grad School" for adult amateur musicians. Successful musicians occasionally serve as "Guest Professors" and perform with the students.
History
Paul Green began giving traditional individual music lessons in his home in 1996.[1] He invited a group of his students to sit in, or "jam", with his own band with disappointing results. But by the third week, he found that the students who played in a group had advanced much more than the students who received only traditional solo instruction. He modified his teaching method to supplement traditional instruction with group practice, with the goal of putting on a concert. He compared it to the difference between "...shooting hoops and playing basketball". In 1999, the most advanced students played their first public concert at an art gallery.
He took out a loan for $7000 in 2002[2] and established a permanent location for the first Paul Green School of Rock Music in a dilapidated building at 1320 Race Street, Philadelphia that has since been demolished.[3] The location had a number of small rooms for individual instrumental instruction as well as larger performance spaces for full band practices. Spin magazine sent The Smashing Pumpkins guitarist James Iha to profile Green and the school for the May 2002 issue.[1]
Green chose to name the school after himself to avoid confusion with the Herbie Hancock television program and to use his measure of local fame, but always referred to the program as "Rock School" and answered the phone using the phrase.[4] Additionally, Green established the domain SchoolofRock.com in 2001,[4] first archived 24 May 2002.[5]
In 2002, a crew from the Viacom television channel VH1 filmed for four days at the Philadelphia location for a proposed reality television series. After the shoot, the producers stopped returning Green's phone calls.[2] In January 2003, filmmakers Don Argott and Sheena M. Joyce attended a concert by the students, and decided to make a documentary about the school five minutes after the concert started.[6]
They met with Green the next day and began shooting video one day later, intending to follow an entire school year.[7] Midway through the nine months of shooting what became Rock School, they learned that the Viacom movie studio Paramount would be releasing a fictional film to be called School of Rock featuring Jack Black as Dewey Finn, a would-be rock star teaching children to play rock music. Many critics claimed[8] that Black's characterization was based on Green's man-child persona[9][10] though screenwriter Mike White claimed that he had "...never heard of Paul Green before".[11] Green preferred the documentary, saying it "...opened a lot of other doors, corporate partnerships, and given us access to the rock stars that we play with. It was like Jack Black was the nationwide commercial for us and our movie was the industry cred."[12] He considered a lawsuit, but decided against it, reasoning that the School benefited from the film saying "I considered suing, but what are you going to do? It's better, in a karmic sense, to just reap the rewards."[13]
School of Rock magazine
In 2002, Green had more than 100 students, and in order to maintain an acceptable student to teacher ratio, opened an additional location in Downingtown, Pennsylvania. Expansion continued in counties around Philadelphia, then into southern New Jersey and Delaware. Green's dentist, Dr. Joseph Roberts, became chairman of the Board of the School and provided funding to expand to San Francisco, New York City, Austin and Salt Lake City.
Green was bought out in 2009 by investor Sterling Partners and the management team he had brought in,[14] headed by former Clear Channel executive Matt Ross.[15] Ross remained CEO until 2010, managing the company's expansion and private equity acquisition,[16] when he was replaced as CEO by former McDonald's Ventures executive Chris Catalano,[17] who had previously led the expansion their Chipotle and Redbox businesses.[18] The name was shortened to School of Rock. In January 2012, the headquarters relocated from New Jersey to the Chicago suburb of Burr Ridge[19] with a staff of 14,[18] and an additional 11 employees in Denver. The company has 1,500 part-time employees, primarily music instructors in its owned and franchised locations.[20]
In June 2014, Catalano was replaced with Dzana Homan, who had been Chief Operating Officer of the Goddard School child care centers, and had previous experience as CEO of Huntington Learning Centers and Futurekids.[21]
In April 2006, Guitar Player magazine publisher MPN announced a quarterly School of Rock magazine intended to focus on classic rock and musical tips for readers age twelve to eighteen.[22] It lasted less than a year, closing during a contraction of the publishing industry.[23]
Green's non-compete agreement expired in 2013, and he announced plans to open a Paul Green Rock Academy in Woodstock, New York to serve ages 8 to 18, as well as a Woodstock College of Music in Ulster County with Woodstock Music Festival promoter Michael Lang.[24]
In 2017, current CEO Rob Price joined the company.
Franchising
The CNN Money website featured School of Rock as one of their Five Hot Franchises on 12 February 2013, stating that there are "more than 10,000 kids enrolled in 105 locations in 31 states, as well as Mexico."[25] A January 2014 profile of CEO Dzana Homan in Entrepreneur magazine increased that number to "more than 145 School of Rock franchises in eight countries".[26]
The company has plans to grow to more than 190 locations worldwide by the end of 2015.[27]
25 of the locations were owned by the company as of 16 December 2012, the rest by franchisees. Purchasing a franchise requires an initial investment of $137,350 to $304,100 according to a review by Entrepreneur magazine that ranked it #211 of their 2013 Top 500 Franchise Opportunities, up from #289 in 2012, and #318 in 2011. This estimate includes a renewable ten-year franchise fee of $49,500. The franchisee also pays an 8% annual royalty fee, and is required to have a net worth of $300,000, and $100,000 cash available. Each location will require from 14 to 21 employees.[28] The majority of the employees are music teachers who are also working musicians.
The franchisee receives training in running the business, IT support including a website, assistance with real estate selection and designing the franchise location, grand opening and on-going marketing support, discounts on music equipment and a protected territory.[29] The IT support includes access to a customized task management and internal social productivity site.[20]
The majority of the schools are in dedicated locations, although in January 2013, the company announced that they intend to expand their program to co-locate with music retailers, who are having difficulty competing with online retailers and frequently have surplus floor space. The Charlotte, North Carolina, location was the model, being co-located in a Sam Ash Music store but has since moved to a new location.[18]
Curriculum
The Chicago branch of the School of Rock
The schools operate year-round, offering a variety of programs. Throughout the year, they offer lessons and performance groups, which can be on either weekdays or weekends. During summer, winter and spring breaks, they offer various day camps for intensive instruction.
The Burnsville, Minnesota, location originated[30] an early childhood music education known as "Little Wing", after the Jimi Hendrix song.[31] Children age two to three participate with a parent in the "Rockin' Robin" class, and children age four to six participate as part of a drop-off class known as "Free Bird". The program of 45-minute sessions is being rolled out to other locations.[32]
At age seven, students can begin weekly lessons in the instrument of their choice in "Rock 101" classes. Once a student has basic competence in an instrument, they can move to the "Performance Program" where they have a weekly one-on-one private lesson and three hours weekly of group band rehearsal that culminates in a concert before an audience.[33]
The most skilled students of each school form a band and perform at various venues in their city, opening for established regional and national acts. The top 1% of each school can audition to become an AllStar. Many schools have songwriting and recording programs as well. In 2011, they introduced two new programs – "Band Coaching" for existing bands to improve aspects of their performance and "Epic Albums" where students spend three to four months recording their own version of Nirvana's Nevermind, Radiohead's OK Computer, Led Zeppelin IV, Green Day's Dookie and Black Sabbath's Master of Reality.[34]
Most School instructors are working musicians with ongoing careers in rock music[35][36] and a number are graduates of the program. Instructors are encouraged to stress the fundamentals of both popular music and music theory, using songs from popular bands and artists like Led Zeppelin, The Who, Pink Floyd, and music from genres such as 1980s glam metal, punk rock and grunge. The teachers generally specialize in a single instrument, though many have skills in additional instruments and students are encouraged to learn multiple instruments. Instruction is available in electric guitar, bass guitar, drums, keyboards and vocals.[37]
The students are paired with others of similar abilities to form bands, and assigned a band coach. Dependence upon their peers is credited with being more effective than their own parents at ensuring practice discipline.[36][38]
Various locations[44] have launched a "Grad School" program for those older than 18 who wish to participate in a performance based music education program. Five weeks of 45-minute private lessons are followed by 10 weeks of professionally guided two-hour rehearsals leading up to a pair of full length concerts.[45]
Locations take advantage of regional opportunities. In 2014, School of Rock Chicago launched Rock City Camp: An Opera of Rock in cooperation with The Second City to create an original stage production to be performed at the Athenaeum Theatre. In 2014, they again cooperated to produce a production of Tommy by The Who.[46] The Portland location has an annual concert of music by Portland bands called Best! of Portland. Every song in the 2014 edition of the show featured a member of the original band, including The Thermals and Typhoon.[47]
In 2012, the School branched out with a variation on the traditional Catskill Mountains summer camp with Metal Camp: Mayhem in the Mountains, an intensive week-long event for musicians age 12 to 18, leading up to a concert.[48] The Guest Professors for the 2012 event were "Metal" Mike Chlasciak - guitarist with Halford, Sebastian Bach and Testament, a teacher at the Chatham location and Jason McMaster - bassist with Watchtower, Dangerous Toys and Ignitor who teaches at the School of Rock Austin.[49] For the 2013 event, Chlasciak was again the Guest Professor.[48]Time Out: New York ranked it as one of the best summer camps for kids near New York City.[50]
Fees vary depending on program participation and school location, but it is in the range of "a couple hundred dollars a month."[51] As of May 2012, enrollment at the Wichita, Kansas location started at $225 a month,[52] and $250 a month at the Cleveland location as of July 2012.[53] The School has partnered with MySafeSchool[54] to ensure the safety of their students.
In August 2010, Wendy Winks and Carl Restivo, the former heads of the Hollywood branch, formed The Rock School Scholarship Fund, a tax-deductible 501(c)3 charitable organization[55] to provide instruments and tuition for deserving students of any rock music school in the United States.[56]
Performances
The school has "the ultimate goal of performing live in front of real crowds"[57] and the official motto of the school is "To inspire the world to rock…on stage and in life".[58] The founder of the school stated in the documentary about the school "Don't come to watch kids play music. Come to watch kids play music well".[59]
The School year consists of up to three seasons, each composed of up to five different theme shows (depending on the size of the branch). Each show is dedicated to a particular artist, band, genre, time period or historical event. Although some shows are more technically demanding, students can sign up for any show no matter what the age or skill level (although approval by the show's director is occasionally required). Shows usually consist of 20 to 25 songs chosen by the show's director (usually one of the teachers at the school) to make a ninety-minute concert. Three-hour rehearsals are held every week in preparation. The shows are performed at local clubs twice, usually on Friday and Saturday nights, and sometimes Saturday night and Sunday afternoon; however, some of the schools have their own venue for performances. Tickets are sold to defray the rental cost of the venue, usually for $10.
Some locations produce a Best of Season show that is a compilation of songs from previous shows, usually to raise tuition for a scholarship.[60] Locations are a mixture of franchised and company-operated, some having been established as independent entities prior to the founding of the Paul Green School of Rock Music and maintain their own traditions and values.[61]
Five Dallas, Texas School of Rock locations will be performing at various Deep Ellum locations over Memorial Day weekend as part of the 3rd annual Rockstravaganza.[62] More than 500 students will be performing as part of 80 bands. Venues are Trees, Club Dada, Boiler Room, Liquid Lounge and 3 Links beginning 14 April 2013.[63]
The School of Rock AllStars is a select group of students comprising the top .1 percent of the students in the program,[57] selected via an audition process where the student submits a five-minute video clip. The student answers four questions: "What is your favorite thing about School of Rock?", "What is your best School of Rock moment?", "How has music changed your life?", and "Why do you want to be an AllStar?". They must also include a performance of one Led Zeppelin, Beatles, or Rolling Stones song, and one solo song of their own choice. Originally, there was a single national AllStars team, but since expanding the number of schools, there are AllStar teams for seven different regions to keep tour length manageable. Applicants to represent a particular region are selected by the music directors of School location from a different region.
The 2013 AllStars list was announced 1 April 2013 and included 153 performers from across the United States and Mexico. The performers were assembled into six bands, and played multiple dates including all the days of both Gathering of the Vibes and Lollapalooza festivals. The tour was once again a benefit for the Love Hope Strength Foundation.[69]
Eric Svalgard, a teacher at Green's original School of Rock location and owner of the Wilmington, Delaware location, assembled a special "Z Team" from nine School of Rock locations to travel to Bad Doberon, Germany to play the 25th Zappanale, a festival of music by and associated with Frank Zappa. The Z Team both opened and closed the show.[70]
References
^ abIha, James (2002). "Schoolhouse Rock". Spin (May): 93–97. Retrieved 3 October 2011.
^ abcDavis, Johnny (22 February 2004). "The real school of rock". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 27 August 2008. For the first School of Rock show, Paul's students performed Pink Floyd's The Wall. From start to finish. Recently, they've been tackling the works of Frank Zappa, Emerson, Lake & Palmer and Jimi Hendrix.
^Stefchak, Cara (23 April 2012). "Music Issue: Learning how to rock". The Temple News. Archived from the original on 5 May 2012. Retrieved 27 April 2012. Philadelphia was home to the first School of Rock established by musician Paul Green in 2000 at 1320 Race Street, which has since been condemned and demolished with the expansion of the Pennsylvania Convention Center.
^Vice, Jeff (24 June 2005). "Green relieved documentary shows real 'School of Rock'". Deseret Morning News. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 30 August 2012 – via HighBeam Research. The School of Rock was spawned by a development deal with music television network VH-1, which initially pitched Green on a reality television show. But when that deal soured, the producers sold the concept to Paramount Pictures, leaving him out in the cold. (According to some reports, Green was not paid for either the scrapped television program or the movie.)
^"Rock School review". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 12 July 2012. Though you won't find it acknowledged anywhere, Rock School's main subject Paul Green no doubt figured into White's research for his feature film script.
^Douglas, Edward. "Movie Reviews: Rock School". Comingsoon.net. Retrieved 7 April 2012. ...the real Paul Green is even funnier and more entertaining than Jack Black's fictionalized version of him in School of Rock.
^Ogunnaike, Lola (3 November 2003). "November 03, 2003". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 July 2012. I was shocked by how little the kids were learning. It was the difference between shooting hoops and playing basketball.
^Gay, Gerald (10 August 2006). "School of Rock's elite performing here". Arizona Daily Star. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 2 January 2013 – via HighBeam Research. The Jack Black movie was actually, businesswise, way better for us because people actually saw that movie," Green said. "Our movie has opened a lot of other doors, corporate partnerships, and given us access to the rock stars that we play with. It was like Jack Black was the nationwide commercial for us and our movie was the industry cred.
^Davis, Johnny (22 February 2004). "The real school of rock". The Observer. 'I considered suing,' says Paul Green, 'but what are you going to do? It's better, in a karmic sense, to just reap the rewards.
^Boast, Will (12 May 2014). "A School for Brooklyn's Youngest Hipsters". The New Yorker. Retrieved 14 May 2014. Green went on to expand his business rapidly, opening branches along the East Coast, in San Francisco and Austin, and elsewhere before selling the business to Sterling Partners, an investment firm, in 2009. "Paul had his quirks," Catalano told me. "He wouldn't have made great partners with a large equity group. It was the right thing for everyone involved."
^"History of the School of Rock". School of Rock DC. Retrieved 2 August 2012. At the end of 2005, the School of Rock hired radio industry veteran Matt Ross to solidify the management team and fine-tune the strategic plan for the future.
^Boudreau, Mark. "Paul Green School of Rock Ramps Up National Expansion". Rock and Roll Report. Retrieved 2 August 2012. the original performance-based rock music school, has solidified its new management team and launched an aggressive national expansion that is on target to double the number of branches by the end of the year.
^ abc"School of Rock". Musical Merchandise Review. 4 January 2013. Archived from the original on 15 January 2013. Retrieved 19 January 2013. A veteran of venture projects for years, Catalano has steered several high-profile brands to success on his own and in his former role with McDonald's Ventures. There, Catalano and his business partner, Mats Lederhausen, climbed to prominence making household names out of Chipotle and the on-location DVD rental system Red Box.
^ abMcKeon, Albert (14 February 2013). "School of Rock humming with Salesforce's Do task management application". TechTarget.com. Retrieved 15 February 2013. It has about 25 employees split between offices in Burr Ridge, Ill., and Denver. It also has about 1,500 mostly part-time employees at its company-owned and franchise locations.
^Yerak, Becky (7 July 2014). "School of Rock gets new CEO". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 21 July 2014. From 2008 to 2010, Homan was also CEO of Huntington Learning Center, and from 2001 to 2008 she was CEO of Futurekids Inc., a retail computer learning center at which she was also a franchisee.
^Molenda, Michael (April 2006). "Noise from the Editor". Guitar Player. Archived from the original on 16 February 2013. I'm jazzed to announce that MPN – the music publishing group that brings you Guitar Player, Bass Player, Keyboard, EQ, and Frets – is partnering with Paul Green's School of Rock to produce School of Rock Magazine.
^Molenda, Michael (July 2007). "Noise from the Editor". Guitar Player. Archived from the original on 16 February 2013. Retrieved 2 January 2013. In our own house, we've shut down Frets, and ceased publication of the youth-oriented Paul Green's School of Rock Magazine.
^"School of Rock founder plans music academy for Woodstock". Poughkeepsie Journal. 7 February 2013. Retrieved 8 February 2013. Paul Green, a Woodstock resident, plans to open a school "very similar to the original School of Rock in Philadelphia," which he launched in 1997. Green ultimately opened 52 School of Rock locations across the nation and sold the company. His non-compete clause recently expired.
^Kavilanz, Parija (12 February 2013). "Five Hot Franchises". CNN. Retrieved 12 February 2013. Today, School of Rock has more than 10,000 kids enrolled in 105 locations in 31 states, as well as Mexico. CEO Chris Catalano, who joined the company in 2009, expects to open another 20 to 40 locations in 2013.
^Moran, Gwen (5 January 2015). "3 Women to Watch in the Franchising Sector". Entrepreneur magazine. Retrieved 6 January 2015. She leads more than 145 School of Rock franchises in eight countries, helping to develop the next generation of musicians.
^Fallon, Nicole. "40+ Franchises For Every Budget". Business News Daily. Retrieved 17 August 2015. Since 1998, music education franchise School of Rock has been providing students of all ages with exceptional and one-of-a-kind musical experiences. The company encourages students to rehearse along with their fellow students, allowing for a uniquely supportive and motivating environment in which to succeed. School of Rock anticipates having more than 180 schools in operation by the end of 2015
^Paulin, Ben (29 March 2013). "Opening Act: School of Rock Coming to Norwood". Patch Network. Retrieved 29 March 2013. A typical program will include a private lesson once a week and then a three-hour group lesson on weekends.
^"Epic Albums Program". School of Rock. Retrieved 2 October 2011. This workshop provides in-depth analysis and re-creation of iconic albums
^Ziezulewicz, Geoff (26 March 2013). "A School of Rock is opening in Plainfield this May". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 27 March 2013. The School of Rock staff is comprised of professional musicians, who all have experience in rock bands, Fein said.
^ abMcPhate, Christian (11 February 2014). "How Dallas Became a School of Rock Hub". Dallas Observer. Retrieved 16 February 2014. The music leans more toward indie influences, although teachers like former Polyphonic Spree guitarist Ryan Fitzgerald, Shannon Grady of Hello My Name Is, David Fiegelman of Rodney Parker and 50 Peso Reward, David Ponder of Somebody's Darling, Wade Coffer of Homespun Remedies, Stephanie Burns of Spookeasy and Joel Butterfield of My Son My Executioner are more than capable of teaching all genres of music.
^ abCoffey, Kevin (6 February 2011). "I wanna ROCK!". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved 3 October 2011. Kids ages 7 to 17 can enroll in one of four evening programs that teach guitar, bass, drums, vocals and keyboards.
^Carriveau, Cara (5 March 2014). "A Summer of Rocking, Performing And Laughing For Teens". The Local Tourist.com. Archived from the original on 7 March 2014. Retrieved 6 March 2014. Over two weeks, musical all-stars with multiple performance skills in music and theater, will create an original storyline, learn rock music and develop original music to produce a never-before-seen show.
^Lannamann, Ned (22 January 2014). "Get Schooled - School of Rock and the Best of Portland". Portland Mercury. Retrieved 7 March 2014. Now in its third year, the concert pairs students from the Portland chapter of School of Rock with members of local bands, sharing the stage for performances of said bands' songs.
^ ab"School of Rock Announces Metal Mike as Guest Professor for Metal Camp". The Wall Street Journal. 16 April 2013. Retrieved 16 April 2013. The special guest professor for the week will be the one and only Metal Mike, most commonly known as the affable guitar shredder who records and tours the world with Judas Priest singer Rob Halford.
^"Sleepaway camps: The best summer camps for kids near New York City". Time Out: New York. 7 February 2013. Retrieved 21 February 2013. Music lovers thrive in this unique environment, where attendees receive concentrated music instruction in guitar, bass, drums, keys and vocals, while jamming with like-minded kids.
^Siebenmark, Jerry (28 April 2012). "School of Rock opens on South Rock Road". The Wichita Eagle. Retrieved 3 May 2012. Ramsey said enrollment prices start at $225 a month.
^Yarborough, Chuck (6 July 2012). "School of Rock Midwest AllStars Tour features 5 local teens". Cleveland Plain Dealer. Retrieved 22 February 2013. Students pay $250 a month to attend the School of Rock at two locations in Greater Cleveland -- one in Highland Heights and one in Rocky River -- with one soon to open in Strongsville.
^"About the RSSF". rockschoolfund.org. Retrieved 8 November 2012. The Rock School Scholarship Fund (RSSF) is the first 501(c)3 non-profit which provides scholarship funds and instruments for children ages 7 to 17 years of age who want to attend ANY rock music school in the U.S.A.
^"One of the Biggest Music Events for Kids in the DFW Area Coming on 14 April". PR.com. Retrieved 1 April 2013. On 14 April, over 500 kid and teen musicians from School of Rock's locations all over DFW will descend upon Dallas' Deep Ellum neighborhood for an entire day of their own unique rock and roll festival called Rockstravaganza.
^Tarradell, Mario. "Rockstravaganza festival comes to Deep Ellum clubs". Dallas News. Retrieved 1 April 2013. The event, which runs from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., takes place in the renovated warehouse district of Deep Ellum. Participating clubs are Trees, Boiler Room, La Grange, Club Dada and Liquid Lounge.
