Collaboration and mentorship are at the heart of the Hands-On Harmonies Summer Camp.

— Anna Swearingen, USC alumna, theatre

In June, the University of South Carolina School of Music’s Hands-On Harmonies program partnered with the Columbia YMCA to offer a weeklong commercial music industry camp experience for students participating in the Adventure Camp at Washington Street Methodist Church in downtown Columbia.

The camp introduced students ages 9–14 to commercial music through hands-on work with instruments, ensemble rehearsal, deejay activities, performance preparation, artist personas and music-industry skills. The week culminated in a student showcase at the Koger Center for the Arts.

Hands-On Harmonies is a music education outreach initiative operating through the USC Music Industry Studies program, led by Assistant Professor, Jeremy Polley. The initiative is designed to make commercial music industry education more accessible to students who may not otherwise have regular exposure to instruments, microphones, sound equipment, production tools or music-industry career pathways.

The program is supported by the Hootie & the Blowfish Foundation and developed as a way to reach students with limited access to hands-on music experiences. While the original plan focused on direct school-based programming, the team pivoted when school schedules, approval processes and access barriers made that model difficult to implement. The Columbia YMCA partnership became a practical way to reach students through trusted after-school and summer programming.

Through the YMCA model, Hands-On Harmonies reached students connected to eight school and community sites during the 2025–2026 program year. In April, the program held an event at Caughman Road Elementary through the YMCA after-school program, where 48 students participated in live performance, instrument exploration, microphone and vocal activities and an outdoor drum circle. That event helped confirm the strength of the YMCA partnership and led naturally into the June summer camp.

“Collaboration and mentorship are at the heart of the Hands-On Harmonies Summer Camp,” said Anna Swearingen, a recent University of South Carolina Theatre graduate who helped build the original framework for the program while she was an undergraduate student.

During the first two days of camp, students rotated through guitar, keyboard and drums with Polley, Cameron Coffee, a master’s graduate of the USC School of Music, and Malachi Smalls, a recent graduate of the USC Music Industry Studies program. DJ Kenya Spinz also joined the camp as a featured artist.

Later in the week, students moved into focused rehearsals with a single mentor, working in three ensembles to prepare for the Friday showcase.

The camp was about more than learning songs. Students created artist personas and performance identities. They received $10 each to shop at Goodwill, where they practiced budgeting and selected clothing for their showcase. They also designed merchandise, including buttons, shirts and iron-on patches. Through those activities, students learned that music is not only performance; it is also collaboration, presentation, creativity, decision-making and entrepreneurship.

A major theme of the camp was process over product. The final showcase mattered, but the deeper learning happened throughout the week as students tried instruments, heard immediate results, adjusted, rehearsed, asked questions and worked together.
For Smalls, teaching students at the beginning of their musical journey was especially meaningful. He said it is special to work with brand-new students because once “the light goes on it does not go away.” He noted that students did not give up, and some even asked if they could practice during their breaks.

That broader impact is central to Hands-On Harmonies. The program builds musical skills, but it also builds confidence, persistence, teamwork and creative identity.

The program also creates meaningful learning opportunities for USC students and recent graduates, who gain practical experience in teaching, mentoring, ensemble leadership, production, community engagement and youth development.
Hands-On Harmonies is positioned to continue growing. In the next program year, the USC School of Music plans to build on the

YMCA partnership by reaching students from additional school and community sites through Hands-On Harmonies Exposition Days, after-school programming and summer opportunities.

For the USC School of Music, the camp represents both a milestone and a beginning. The current model has laid a strong foundation for future years, with a goal of expanding Hands-On Harmonies to reach more students across South Carolina.