Contrabass Conversations
Jason Heath
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Top 10 Contrabass Conversations Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Contrabass Conversations episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Contrabass Conversations for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Contrabass Conversations episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
480: Yoshi Horiguchi on George Vance
Contrabass Conversations
05/03/18 • 30 min
Yoshi Horiguchi is a Baltimore -based double bassist and educator as well as a faculty member of Maryland’s thriving Bass Works program.
In the fall of 2017, Yoshi got in touch with me about putting his analysis of George Vance’s Progressive Repertoire Book 1 online. We got it up on the blog, and it has proven to be a popular resource for bassists worldwide.
In this analysis, Yoshi interviewed Nicholas Walker, Tracy Rowell, Johnny Hamil, and Martha Vance about the pedagogy of George Vance. We dig into details about using this teaching resource and what Yoshi has learned through this research. Enjoy!
Listen to Contrabass Conversations with our free app for iOS, Android, and Kindle!
Contrabass Conversations is sponsored by:
Upton Bass String Instrument Company
Upton's Karr Model Upton Double Bass represents an evolution of our popular first Karr model, refined and enhanced with further input from Gary Karr. Since its introduction, the Karr Model with its combination of comfort and tone has gained a loyal following with jazz and roots players. The slim, long “Karr neck” has even become a favorite of crossover electric players.
This episode is brought to you by D’Addario Strings! Check out their Zyex strings, which are synthetic core strings that produce an extremely warm, rich sound. Get the sound and feel of gut strings with more evenness, projection and stability than real gut.
Contrabass Conversations production team:
- Jason Heath, host
- Michael Cooper and Steve Hinchey, audio editing
- Mitch Moehring, audio engineer
- Trevor Jones, publication and promotion
Subscribe to the podcast to get these interviews delivered to you automatically!
217: Jerry Fuller on early music, creativity, and business world lessons
Contrabass Conversations
05/30/16 • 58 min
Today’s episode features double bassist Jerry Fuller. I’ve known Jerry for well over a decade at this point and have found him to be such an interesting person. Jerry is best known in the music world for his work in period performance—in fact, he won an award for historically informed performance from the International Society of Bassists in 2015, and he is also a former ISB board member.
We cover Jerry’s early years in music, attending Northwestern in bass studio of rock stars including Hal Robinson, Curtis Burriss, and Rufus Reid, and his time spent performing in the bass section of the Lyric Opera of Chicago and in Switzerland. While he was in Lyric, Jerry attended business school at the University of Chicago and has worked for most of his professional life in the world of business while simultaneously keeping up an active musical life, and we talk about his what prompted this decision to attend business school and what his experiences in that world have been like.
We get into details about how period performance differs from modern technique, how players can explore the world of period playing, and the role of the bass player in the continuo. We also have a great discussion on creativity in music and answer listener questions from Gaelen McCormick and Dan Carson.
Jerry has gotten into traditional jazz recently, and we’ll open up the episode with an excerpt featuring Jerry performing C'est si Bon, and we’ll close with a duet by Bernhard Romberg with Richard Hirschl on cello.
Links to check out:
Interview Highlights
Early Years and Career
- grew up in Wisconsin - inspiring encounter with Roger Ruggeri of the Milwaukee Symphony
- accepted into Northwestern University bass studio with Warren Benfield
- joined Lyric junior year of college, promoted to assistant principal
- enrolled in business school at University of Chicago while still playing in Lyric
- went to work for American Hospital Supply Corporation and found an amazingly creative group of people there
- joined orchestra in Switzerland
Early Music
- physical and mental differences in early and modern playing
- what instrument really “drives the bus” in continuo playing
- outlets for learning more about early music performance
- switching between early and modern setups
Careers and Creative Outlets
- personality and temperament play a huge role into us figuring out what we should do in the world career-wise
- temperament over skill level
- creativity in music and life
563: Instrument Rentals with Gareth Montanarello
Contrabass Conversations
02/07/19 • 9 min
I had a great time chatting with Gareth Montanarello, who recently released a cool new service at orchestralrentals.com. Orchestral Rentals is a community that makes it easy for musicians to rent high-quality, professional-level instruments anywhere in the world.
You can create an account for free and can look for an instrument or list your own instruments for rental. All payments are handled through their secure system.
Gareth is an International Society of Bassists member who lives in Arizona, and it’s great to see this exciting new development toward making bass travel an easier process! Check out orchestralrentals.com here, and you can also follow along with Gareth on Instagram.
Listen to Contrabass Conversations with our free app for iOS, Android, and Kindle!
Contrabass Conversations is sponsored by:
This episode is brought to you by D’Addario Strings! Check out their Zyex strings, which are synthetic core strings that produce an extremely warm, rich sound. Get the sound and feel of gut strings with more evenness, projection and stability than real gut.
Upton Bass String Instrument Company
Upton's Karr Model Upton Double Bass represents an evolution of our popular first Karr model, refined and enhanced with further input from Gary Karr. Since its introduction, the Karr Model with its combination of comfort and tone has gained a loyal following with jazz and roots players. The slim, long “Karr neck” has even become a favorite of crossover electric players.
Steve Swan String Bass features the West Coast’s largest selection of double basses between Los Angeles and Canada. Located in Burlingame, just south of San Francisco, their large retail showroom holds about 70 basses on display. Their new basses all feature professional setups and come with a cover at no additional cost. Used and consignment instruments receive any needed repairs and upgrades before getting a display position on the sales floor.
The Samuel Kolstein Violin Shop was founded by Samuel Kolstein in 1943 as a Violin and Bow making establishment in Brooklyn, New York. Now on Long Island, over 60 years later, Kolstein’s has built a proud reputation for quality, craftsmanship and expertise in both the manufacture and repair of a whole range of stringed instruments, and has expanded to a staff of twelve experts in restoration, marketing and production.
The Bass Violin Shop offers the Southeast’s largest inventory of laminate, hybrid and carved double basses. Whether you are in search of the best entry-level laminate, or a fine pedigree instrument, there is always a unique selection ready for you to try. Trade-ins and consignments welcome!
An institution in the Roscoe Village neighborhood for over 20 years, A440's commitment to fairness and value means that we have many satisfied customers from the local, national, and international string playing communities. Our clients include major symphony orchestras, professional orchestra and chamber music players, aspiring students, amateur adult players, all kinds of fiddlers, jazz and commercial musicians, university music departments, and public schools.
Contrabass Conversations production team:
- Jason Heath, host
- Michael Cooper and Steve Hinchey, audio editing
- Mitch Moehring, audio engineer
- Trevor Jones, publication and promotion
- Krista Kopper, archival and cataloging
Subscribe to the podcast to get these interviews delivered to you automatically!
866: The "rules" of double bass fingering
Contrabass Conversations
01/06/22 • 22 min
Today’s solo show is a deeper dive into this week’s video topic of bass fingering “rules.” Enjoy, and you can download a PDF of these rules here.
Subscribe to the podcast to get these interviews delivered to you automatically!
Check out our Online Sheet Music Store with 100+ wide-ranging titles for bassists.
Listen to Contrabass Conversations with our free app for iOS, Android, and Kindle.
Check out my Beginner's Classical Bass course and Intermediate to Advanced Classical Bass course, available exclusively from Discover Double Bass.
Thank you to our sponsors!
Carnegie Mellon University Double Bass Studio - CMU is dedicated to helping each student achieve their goals as a musician. Every week each student receives private lessons and participates in a solo class with Micah Howard. Peter Guild, another member of the PSO, teaches Orchestral Literature and Repertoire weekly. They encourage students to reach out to the great bassists in their area for lessons and direction. Many of the bassists from all of the city's ensembles are more than willing to lend a hand. Every year members of the Symphony, the Opera and the Ballet give classes and offer our students individual attention. Click here to visit Micah’s website and to sign up for a free online trial lesson.
Wabass Institute - Wabass Institute, a part of the Honeywell Arts Academy, is a unique full-scholarship performance institute. Wabass uniquely fosters an inclusive, supportive environment where ideas are freely shared from teacher to student and vice versa. Check out Wabass behind the scenes here, and be sure to apply by February 15th!
Contrabass Conversations production team:
-
- Jason Heath, host
- Michael Cooper and Steve Hinchey, audio editing
- Mitch Moehring, audio engineer
- Trevor Jones, publication and promotion
- theme music by Eric Hochberg
872: Staying healthy on the bass
Contrabass Conversations
01/27/22 • 10 min
Today’s deep-dive takes a look at how to stay healthy on the bass and is a longer riff on this week’s YouTube video—enjoy!
Subscribe to the podcast to get these interviews delivered to you automatically!
Check out our Online Sheet Music Store with 100+ wide-ranging titles for bassists.
Listen to Contrabass Conversations with our free app for iOS, Android, and Kindle.
Check out my Beginner's Classical Bass course and Intermediate to Advanced Classical Bass course, available exclusively from Discover Double Bass.
Thank you to our sponsors!
Carnegie Mellon University Double Bass Studio - CMU is dedicated to helping each student achieve their goals as a musician. Every week each student receives private lessons and participates in a solo class with Micah Howard. Peter Guild, another member of the PSO, teaches Orchestral Literature and Repertoire weekly. They encourage students to reach out to the great bassists in their area for lessons and direction. Many of the bassists from all of the city's ensembles are more than willing to lend a hand. Every year members of the Symphony, the Opera and the Ballet give classes and offer our students individual attention. Click here to visit Micah’s website and to sign up for a free online trial lesson.
Wabass Institute - Wabass Institute, a part of the Honeywell Arts Academy, is a unique full-scholarship performance institute. Wabass uniquely fosters an inclusive, supportive environment where ideas are freely shared from teacher to student and vice versa. Check out Wabass behind the scenes here, and be sure to apply by February 15th!
Contrabass Conversations production team:
- Jason Heath, host
- Michael Cooper and Steve Hinchey, audio editing
- Mitch Moehring, audio engineer
- Trevor Jones, publication and promotion
- theme music by Eric Hochberg
898: Intonation "hacks"
Contrabass Conversations
04/28/22 • 6 min
Today’s deep-dive covers ideas for getting more accurate with double bass intonation. Enjoy!
Subscribe to the podcast to get these interviews delivered to you automatically!
Check out our Online Sheet Music Store with 300+ wide-ranging titles for bassists.
Listen to Contrabass Conversations with our free app for iOS, Android, and Kindle.
Check out my Beginner's Classical Bass course and Intermediate to Advanced Classical Bass course, available exclusively from Discover Double Bass.
Thank you to our sponsors!
Upton Bass String Instrument Company - Upton’s Karr Model Upton Double Bass represents an evolution of our popular first Karr model, refined and enhanced with further input from Gary Karr. Since its introduction, the Karr Model with its combination of comfort and tone has gained a loyal following with jazz and roots players. The slim, long “Karr neck” has even become a favorite of crossover electric players.
Dorico - Dorico 4 is here to supercharge your workflow. Steinberg’s latest major version of music notation and composition software for macOS & Windows is packed with powerful new features that are designed to accelerate your workflow and make it quicker and easier than ever to go from inspiration to finished product. If you’re a composer, arranger or orchestrator, you’ll be delighted by the sophisticated new tools on offer – and there are improvements across the whole application, whatever your focus. For more information and to download a free 30-day trial of Dorico 4 visit steinberg.net/dorico.
- theme music by Eric Hochberg
627: Andres Martin on changing your life
Contrabass Conversations
09/23/19 • 27 min
Andrés Martín is a longtime friend and collaborator of mine. Even though we regularly see each other at events like his Latin American Bass Festival, the Golden Gate Bass Camp, the International Society of Bassists Convention, and Galicia Graves, it have been over three years since he appeared on the podcast.
In this episode, recorded live at the 2019 Golden Gate Bass Camp, Andrés and I chat about his beginnings as a composer, what it was like writing The Heart Knows No Borders for Gary Karr, and how working our regularly has changed his approach to bass, composition, and life in general.
Listen to Contrabass Conversations with our free app for iOS, Android, and Kindle!
Contrabass Conversations is sponsored by:
This episode is brought to you by D’Addario Strings! Check out their Zyex strings, which are synthetic core strings that produce an extremely warm, rich sound. Get the sound and feel of gut strings with more evenness, projection and stability than real gut.
Steve Swan String Bass features the West Coast’s largest selection of double basses between Los Angeles and Canada. Located in Burlingame, just south of San Francisco, their large retail showroom holds about 70 basses on display. Their new basses all feature professional setups and come with a cover at no additional cost. Used and consignment instruments receive any needed repairs and upgrades before getting a display position on the sales floor.
Upton Bass String Instrument Company
Upton's Karr Model Upton Double Bass represents an evolution of our popular first Karr model, refined and enhanced with further input from Gary Karr. Since its introduction, the Karr Model with its combination of comfort and tone has gained a loyal following with jazz and roots players. The slim, long “Karr neck” has even become a favorite of crossover electric players.
Modacity is a practicing app that helps musicians be more effective at practice. They help you get the results you want, while keeping you encouraged and motivated to stick with it and reach those goals – however big, or small, they may be.
The Samuel Kolstein Violin Shop was founded by Samuel Kolstein in 1943 as a Violin and Bow making establishment in Brooklyn, New York. Now on Long Island, over 60 years later, Kolstein’s has built a proud reputation for quality, craftsmanship and expertise in both the manufacture and repair of a whole range of stringed instruments, and has expanded to a staff of twelve experts in restoration, marketing and production.
An institution in the Roscoe Village neighborhood for over 20 years, A440's commitment to fairness and value means that we have many satisfied customers from the local, national, and international string playing communities. Our clients include major symphony orchestras, professional orchestra and chamber music players, aspiring students, amateur adult players, all kinds of fiddlers, jazz and commercial musicians, university music departments, and public schools.
Contrabass Conversations production team:
- Jason Heath, host
- Michael Cooper and Steve Hinchey, audio editing
- Mitch Moehring, audio engineer
- Trevor Jones, publication and promotion
- Krista Kopper, archival and cataloging
419: Andrés Martín (from the archives)
Contrabass Conversations
10/30/17 • 60 min
This "best of" episode features composer, teacher, and bassist Andrés Martín. Enjoy, and check out the original episode from 2016 here.
About Andrés MartínNative of Buenos Aires, Argentina, bassist, arranger, and composer Andrés Martín has performed with orchestras and chamber ensembles in Argentina, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Brazil, Mexico, England, Germany and United States. Since his arrival in Tijuana (Mexico), Andrés has been immersed in teaching as well as performing as a soloist and chamber musician. He is a member of the “Orquesta de Baja California” and “Cuatro para Tango”, a chamber ensemble with whom he has released four recordings.
He also organizes and directs Contrabajos de Baja California A.C., a Double Bass academy who celebrates an international double bass festival and chamber music course held in Tijuana every summer. As a composer and arranger, he works with a wide language which ranges from contemporary techniques to tango and rock. His work has been performed and recorded by very successful orchestras, ensembles, and soloists in Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, Germany, Italy, Denmark, Netherlands, Japan and the United States.
Contrabass Conversations is sponsored by:The Upton Bass String Instrument Company
Upton's Karr Model Upton Double Bass represents an evolution of our popular first Karr model, refined and enhanced with further input from Gary Karr. Since its introduction, the Karr Model with its combination of comfort and tone has gained a loyal following with jazz and roots players. The slim, long “Karr neck” has even become a favorite of crossover electric players.
Check out their Zyex strings, which are synthetic core strings that produce an extremely warm, rich sound. Get the sound and feel of gut strings with more evenness, projection and stability than real gut.
126: Art Davis Retrospective
Contrabass Conversations
06/30/09 • 39 min
We’re featuring a guest interview by bassist Tim Wolfe, Jr. interviewing his former teacher Jim Miller about Art Davis. Tim and Jim discuss Art Davis’ life, career, and pedagogical approach. They discuss Art’s book and his four-finger approach to the double bass, among other subjects.
We’re also featuring excerpts from “Duo,” a track from the Art Davis Quartet album Life and featuring Art Davis, John Hicks, Idris Muhammad & Pharoah Sanders. This album (along with other music from Art’s considerable career) is available through iTunes.
Tim also created a timeline (PDF) detailing milestones in Art’s career:
About Art Davis:
In a musical career that has spanned four decades, Dr. Art Davis has played his bass with a myriad of the greatest jazz, classical, and popular artists in the world. He has shared his talents with not only the best jazz musicians (John Coltrane,Max Roach, Dizzy Gillespie, Lena Horne, Thelonius Monk, Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, Quincy Jones, etc.), but with notable figures from popular music such as Judy Garland, Bob Dylan, Minne Pearl, Barbara Streisand, Hank Williams. Davis’ career has also seen performances with major orchestras such as the National Symphony, NBC Symphony, New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Radio City Music Hall Symphony, Westchester Symphony, Orange County Symphony and others.
Davis studied the tuba as well as the piano as a boy in his hometown of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania before switching to the bass in high school. He won numerous awards on both tuba and double-bass while attending high school. Upon graduation, he moved to New York to study via scholarship at both theManhattan School of Music as well as the Juilliard School of Music. While attending the latter he studied with world renown cellist Lazlo Varga andAnselme Fortier, who was principal bassist with the New York Philharmonic at that time. He earned a B.A. degree, triple major in psychology, music, physics, summa sum laude from Hunter College, City University of New York.
Art Davis’ recording debut came in 1958 at the Newport Jazz Festival, with Max Roach’s group that included the legendary Booker Little and George Coleman. Davis maintained a strong personal relationship with Max, and Booker Little became one of his best friends.
John Coltrane came into Art Davis’ life while Davis was working with Max Roach’s group at Small’s Paradise in Harlem. Coltrane at that time was in Miles Davis’ band and between sets asked Art if he would like to “practice” with him. Art agreed and Coltrane replied “How about tomorrow morning?” At 8:00 the following morning John Coltrane was in the lobby of Art’s hotel and called him on the house phone. After that first meeting, the two practiced regularly for about a year, the sessions lasting for many hours without a break. It was during this year that John Coltrane wrote the tune “Giant Steps”. Davis credits the association with John Coltrane as the most intense and enriching musical experience of his career. Until Coltrane’s death in 1967, Art remained close musically and personally with him and was a member of the bands on several Coltrane albums including, “Ascension”, “Africa Brass I and II”, “Olé! Coltrane”, and others. Art’s discography as a member of Coltrane’s groups also includes the original recording of “A Love Supreme” (which remains unreleased) with Coltrane’s regular quartet and Archie Shepp. Art also toured intermittently with John Coltrane. Due to Davis’ studio and other commitments, he was unable to become a permanent member of Coltrane’s quartet, but John insisted on their continued relationship.
Then, in 1959, Davis joined Dizzy Gillespie’s band and toured for two and a half years. Weary of the road he returned to New York and free-lanced. In 1961 Art became the second African-American member of the NBC Staff Orchestra, working regularly on the Merv Griffin, Jack Paar, and Johnny Carson shows (and others), as well as performing in the New York studios playing jingles, films, and freelancing with performers.
When the Griffin show moved to Los Angeles in 1971 Davis went back to school to pursue his deep interest in psychology, earning a masters degree in Experimental Psychology from the City College of the City University of New York and a masters degree and a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from New York University by 1982. He supported himself while in college by teaching and performing in Broadway shows.
After receiving his doctorate, he devoted four years to psychology patients and teaching in medical centers and colleges. In 1986, Davis moved to southern California, wher...
707: Susanna Klein on Practizma
Contrabass Conversations
06/22/20 • 78 min
Susanna Klein has been working on a really cool project the past few years: Practizma. This is a journal that takes you through 16 weeks of guided practice, with goal setting, reflection prompt, action challenges, and journal pages to track your practice.
In addition to this very cool system, we talk about Susanna’s background, what it has been like teaching online these past few months, the evolution of the journal, the concept of deliberate practice, my trusty practice app Modiacty, and much more.
Be sure to check out the Practizma website for more info and to get a free sample, and be sure to follow along with Susanna on Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook!
Listen to Contrabass Conversations with our free app for iOS, Android, and Kindle!
This podcast is brought to you by the International Online Bass Summit and the sponsors who are proudly involved with this event:
Contrabass Conversations production team:
- Jason Heath, host
- Michael Cooper and Steve Hinchey, audio editing
- Mitch Moehring, audio engineer
- Trevor Jones, publication and promotion
- Krista Kopper, archival and cataloging
- theme music by Eric Hochberg
Subscribe to the podcast to get these interviews delivered to you automatically!
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FAQ
How many episodes does Contrabass Conversations have?
Contrabass Conversations currently has 1090 episodes available.
What topics does Contrabass Conversations cover?
The podcast is about Classical, Music, Podcasts, Jazz, Music Interviews, Interviews and Music Commentary.
What is the most popular episode on Contrabass Conversations?
The episode title 'Johnny Hamil on Bassists 4 Bassists' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Contrabass Conversations?
The average episode length on Contrabass Conversations is 45 minutes.
How often are episodes of Contrabass Conversations released?
Episodes of Contrabass Conversations are typically released every 3 days, 23 hours.
When was the first episode of Contrabass Conversations?
The first episode of Contrabass Conversations was released on Jan 1, 2007.
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