Contrabass Conversations

Marek Romanowski and I were housemates during the Bradetich Competition back in the fall of 2017.  He and I spent some great nights with our hosts chatting about bass, music, Texas, Poland, and all …

I first met Steve Tramontozzi back in 2000 at the Pacific Music Festival.  Steve was our bass coach that summer, and it was such a pleasure to work with him on solo playing, orchestral repertoire, an…

Today, we take a look at the state of young bass education.  This episode is based on a recent blog post written after attending the Suzuki Association of the Americas’ 2018 Conference.  Enjoy!

Li…

Today, we dig into some thoughts that past podcast guest Colin Corner shared about the recent Oregon Symphony Assistant Principal Bass audition.  Check out Colin’s most recent interview here, and ch…

Today’s special episode is a round table discussion with over two dozen of the world’s top double bass luthiers. This discussion took place at the 2018 Violin Society of America Double Bass Workshop …

I first met Geoff Neuman when I was teaching high school orchestra back in Illinois, and ever since then I’ve admired how Geoff manages to operate at such a high level as a gigging bassist, music edu…

Joseph McFadden has led a remarkable career in the music world.  Joe’s journey from Southern California to his current role as principal bass of the Atlanta Symphony is full of valuable life lessons…

When Mitch Moehring, one of our producers for the show, recommended that I get in touch with Lois Robinson for an interview, I had a weird sense of deja vu…. I knew that name from somewhere in my pas…

Thomas Zera has undertaken a fascinating project these past couple of years: play in the bass section of many of the United States’ major orchestras and learn the differences between how these sectio…

I was driving from Santa Cruz to San Jose with Barry Green recently.  We were talking about folks I should connect with for the podcast, and Eric Hansen was the first person Barry suggested.  Eric t…

Like so many great artists, it’s hard to pin down the artistry of Matthew Golombisky.  His website states “Bassist, Composer, Educator, Ideator.”  That’s an intriguing tagline for a fascinating and m…

When Moulin Rogue bandleader and bassist Bernard Gallone reached out to me about doing an episode on the unique challenges of being a left-handed bassist, I was intrigued.  I am also a left-handed ba…

James Ham is a legend in the double bass luthier world.  After a multifaceted background that landed him in Victoria, British Columbia, James Ham created a series of revolutionary designs for the dou…

Fellow International Society of Bassists board member Marcel Villaflor suggested that I get in touch with high school junior Haruki Gonai about winning the Yonkers Philharmonic Concerto Competition. …

The Johann Matthias Sperger Competition is being held from 22 to 29 July 2018 in Ludwigslust / Germany. This competition is open to all double bass players with an age limit of 35. Applications are r…

Gael McKeon saved my bacon in 2017 on the way to a gig.  I was headed out the door to rehearsal when I heard a worrisome wooden banging sound from my bass—never a good sign!

Opening up the case, I …

Charley Sabatino is on a mission to re-vamp the way people teach music theory.  There’s a lot of wariness and confusion around music theory for many players, and it often comes down to the way it’s t…

Ole Wilson is the CEO of Wilson Pickup Systems, which have been making the signature Wilson Pickup for double bass for over 34 years.  Wilson provided the first commercially available piezo pickup sy…

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 putti…