You’ve been saying you want to level up your playing. Learn to improvise. Finally put some time into your secondary instrument. Perform in front of an actual audience. We’ve all been there, where you’ve had a goal and just haven’t made the move yet.
This summer, make the move!
Here’s your push: Pacific Music Institute was built for music students exactly like you, and wherever you are in your musical journey, there’s a program here that fits. The only question is which one. Let’s dive in!
For the String Student Who Wants to Level Up
If you’ve been playing for a few years and feel like you’re ready for something more, PMI’s Strings Program is where that next chapter begins.
At the heart of the program are two of three large ensemble experiences: String Orchestra and Symphony Orchestra. Here, you’ll play alongside peers who love music as much as you do, led by faculty who will push your playing in ways a weekly lesson simply can’t. There’s something about sitting inside a full orchestra, hearing your part locked in with everyone around you, that changes how you hear and play music entirely.
But the growth doesn’t stop there. String students also work in small chamber ensembles, including String Quartet, where learning is more individualized. With only four voices, there’s nowhere to hide, and that’s exactly the point! You’ll sharpen your listening, intonation, sense of musicianship, and ability to lead and respond in real time. It’s the kind of focused, intimate work that makes you a stronger player in every setting.
For the String Student Who's Ready to Play Beyond the Page
You love your instrument. But lately, you’ve been wondering what it would feel like to step outside the sheet music and just play freely, creatively, on your own terms!
The Freestyle String Ensemble was made for that feeling.
This one-of-a-kind large ensemble, exclusive to PMI, is one of three large ensemble options in our String Program. Led by the innovative Duane Padilla, it’s unlike any orchestra experience you’ve had before. Forget a single genre! Here, you’ll explore American bluegrass, Hawaiian music, jazz, rock, funk, J-pop, K-pop, and more, all through critical listening, lead sheet interpretation, and creative arrangement. You won’t just perform music. You’ll help shape it!
Working alongside fellow string students, you’ll collaborate to craft original arrangements that blend your musical instincts with theirs, building something dynamic, surprising, and entirely your own. It’s open to all students, no matter your style background, which means the only thing you need to bring is curiosity and a willingness to experiment.
If Freestyle String Ensemble is for you, you can mark this preference during registration and opt into this large ensemble.
For the Wind, Brass, and Percussion Student Who Wants to Push Their Playing Further
You already know you love your instrument. This summer, find out how much you can grow!
PMI’s Winds, Brass & Percussion Program places students in either Wind Ensemble or Symphony Orchestra based on level, both of which are rich, challenging ensemble environments led by exceptional faculty. You’ll sharpen your technique, deepen your musicianship, and play repertoire that genuinely demands your best.
One aspect that sets the WBP Program experience apart from school year programs, though, is the opportunity for side-by-side performances. WBP students placed in Symphony orchestra have the opportunity to perform alongside professional musicians, a rare and perspective-shifting experience that raises the bar for everyone in the room. Wind Ensemble students get to perform at the famous Neil Blaisdell Center alongside our OLA Fellows from the National Orchestral Institute + Festival. When you’re sitting next to a professional playing the same part, everything clicks into focus differently: your tone, your timing, your presence as a performer.
If you’re ready to feel what it’s like to play at that level, this is a great place to start!
For the Wind, Brass, and Percussion Student Who Wants to Find Their Own Voice
PMI’s Winds, Brass & Percussion Program is a natural home base, but if you’re the kind of player who wants to push creative boundaries, there’s an additional opportunity here worth knowing about.
The WBP program gives you strong daily ensemble experience and instrument-focused instruction. But students who audition and are accepted into the Jazz Intensive (Jazz 1 ensemble) can participate in both programs, and that combination is something special!
The Jazz Intensive is led by Dean Taba, director of HYS Jazz, alongside Seattle-based saxophonist Steve Treseler, with additional faculty that includes notable session musicians and local legends. Every day, you’ll dig into jazz theory, improvisation, ensemble playing, and performance: skills that will change how you hear and play everything, not just jazz.
Note that Jazz Intensive requires an audition video. Because of scheduling conflicts, only students placed into Jazz I (intermediate/advanced) can participate in both programs and will be placed into Wind Ensemble. The Jazz Intensive enrollment deadline for 2026 is April 30, so don’t wait on this opportunity!
If you’ve ever been curious about jazz, this summer is the time to find out what it does for your playing.
For the Jazz Musician Who Wants More From Their Playing
The Jazz Intensive will challenge you. But pairing it with PMI’s Wind, Brass & Percussion Program? That’s where real transformation happens!
WBP Program students spend focused time in instrument-specific small ensembles working on the fundamentals that sit underneath everything else you do as a musician. Tone. Intonation. Technique. Phrasing. The building blocks that, when sharpened, make every other context you play in feel more natural and more powerful…including jazz! The skills you refine in WBP Program will show up in your improvisation, your ensemble listening, and your overall confidence as a performer.
Meanwhile, the Jazz Intensive gives you daily immersion in theory, improvisation, and performance with Dean Taba, Steve Treseler, and a faculty of seasoned session musicians and local legends who bring real-world artistry into every session.
Between WBP and Jazz, you’ll leave this summer a more complete musician; stronger on your instrument, more confident in your voice, and ready for whatever comes next.
Note that Jazz Intensive requires an audition video. Because of scheduling conflicts, only students placed into Jazz I (intermediate/advanced) can participate in both programs and will be placed into Wind Ensemble. The Jazz Intensive enrollment deadline for 2026 is April 30, so don’t wait on this opportunity!
For the ʻUkulele Player Who's Outgrown the Basics
You can chord, you can strum, you can pick out a melody, but you know there’s more! The (all new!) PMI ‘Ukulele Workshop is where intermediate and advanced players come to find out what that “more” actually looks like.
Led by the incomparable Abe Lagrimas Jr., this exclusive 6-day program is unlike anything else available to ‘ukulele students. Over the course of the workshop, you’ll dig into fretboard navigation, tone production, rhythm and strumming, melody, harmony, and dynamics…all the elements that separate a good player from a great one. You’ll also learn how to practice more effectively and build out your understanding of music theory in a way that directly serves your playing.
The workshop is designed for students entering 6th through 12th grade, as well as graduating seniors, who are already comfortable with basic chords, common strumming patterns, tablature, and simple melodies. If that’s you, you’re ready.
And if you also play a wind, brass, or percussion instrument, good news! You can participate in both the ‘Ukulele Workshop and the WBP Program, making for a full, immersive summer of musical growth.
For the Middle School All-State Band Student Who’s Just Getting Warmed Up
Getting nominated for Middle School All-State Band by your band director is a big deal! It means you’ve already demonstrated passion for your instrument and leadership ability amongst your peers. But the best musicians don’t stop at a milestone, they use it as a launching pad.
PMI’s Middle School All-State Band Program is designed specifically for students like you: young musicians who’ve already shown what they’re capable of and are ready to keep climbing. You’ll work with awesome faculty, perform alongside peers who match your drive, and experience an intensity of musical focus that keeps your momentum going strong this summer.
What could make it even better? Middle School All-State Band students can also participate in the Winds, Brass & Percussion Program, giving you a second ensemble experience that deepens your playing from a different angle! More rehearsal time, more faculty mentorship, more opportunities to grow. It’s a combination built for the student who’s already ahead and knows they’re not done yet.
Someday is Today
Every program at Pacific Music Institute was built with one thing in mind: giving student musicians a place to grow in ways that last long after the summer ends. Whether you’re stepping into an orchestra for the first time, finally exploring jazz, or taking your playing to a level you didn’t think was possible yet, PMI is where that happens.
The students who thrive here aren’t just the ones who are already advanced. They’re the ones who show up curious, committed, and ready to be challenged. They’re the ones who’ve had a goal sitting in the back of their mind and decided this was the summer to go after it.
That student is you!
Space in each program is limited, and spots fill quickly. Don’t let this be another summer you look back on and wish you’d signed up. Find details about PMI 2026 and registration information here.