We’re chatting with David Cutler, the author of The Savvy Musician, this week on Contrabass Conversations. This new book is filled with excellent and informative about musical entrepreneurship, product development, branding, marketing, networking, and much more. I hope that you enjoy this interview and check out David’s book, and be sure to also visit [...]

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This week’s podcast features an interview with James Knabe, a trumpet performer and teacher who also runs a web consulting service for musicians. Learn more about what musicians can do to effectively market themselves by listening to this short interview, and check out musicianadvice.com for more information about the services James provides. Enjoy!

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This week’s Contrabass Conversations episode features an interview with National Symphony bassist and Peabody Conservatory faculty member Jeff Weisner. In addition to performing and teaching, Jeff is a prolific blogger, writing about all kinds of subjects on PeabodyDoubleBass. Jeff also cross-posts many of these posts on doublebassblog.org, adding his own perspective and enhancing [...]

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We’re featuring double bassist Alan Steiner on this week’s episode of Contrabass Conversations. A graduate of the Curtis Institute, Alan performs regularly with the Chicago Sinfonietta and Lake Forest Symphony. In addition to maintaining a private double bass studio, Alan teaches bass each summer at the Birch Creek Music Performance Center in Door [...]

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This week’s episode of Contrabass Conversations features an interview with double bassist David Grossman, a member of the New York Philharmonic bass section and an active jazz bassist. Hosted by John Grillo, this interview covers David’s early musical experiences, his dual interest in jazz and classical music, current projects, his philosophy and approach as [...]

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The following video (25 min.) is a behind-the-scenes documentary about The American String Project, the innovative string ensemble which we have profiled previously on the podcast and blog. Artistic director (and former Contrabass Conversations guest) Barry Lieberman describes the documentary as follows: We have produced a documentary about the Project, created from extensive film footage of our [...]

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This week’s Contrabass Conversations episode features a follow-up interview with bassist Barry Lieberman, double bass faculty at the University of Washington and artistic director of The American String Project, an ensemble that specializes in performing string chamber orchestra arrangements of quartet literature. Barry was previously interviewed on Contrabass Conversations in 2008, and on that occasion we [...]

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We’re featuring videos from double bassist Donovan Stokes on Contrabass Conversations this week. A former guest of the podcast, Donovan performs a diverse range of styles and is always surprising me every time I hear him. The following video features Donovan’s own composition Marine Layer and his quartet version of Purple Haze. [...]

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We’re featuring an interview with jazz bassist Todd Coolman on the podcast. This episode is guest hosted by double bassist Win Hinkle, who interviewed Rufus Reid previously for Contrabass Conversations as well. After listening to this interview, I went out and downloaded Perfect Strangers, Todd’s newest album, and I highly recommend it to [...]

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We’re featuring an interview with and music from Joel Quarrington this week of Contrabass Conversations. Joel is the former Principal Bass of the Toronto Symphony and currently serves as Principal Bass for the National Arts Centre Orchestra of Canada. In addition to his orchestral duties, Joel maintains an active career as a solo [...]

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We’re featuring a brief (10 minute) interview with Calgary Philharmonic bassist Matt Heller. Matt is an old friend of mine who, in addition to being an excellent bassist, is the author of the always interesting blog hella frisch. Matt also did extensive coverage of the 2009 International Society of Bassists Convention. It [...]

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We’re featuring a quick update and some performances from from double bassist Colin Corner, a previous CBC guest. When we first interviewed Colin back in 2007 he was performing in the Minnesota Orchestra, but he now serves as principal bass of the Rochester Philharmonic. In addition to his orchestral duties, Colin maintains an active career [...]

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We’re chatting with Memphis Symphony Principal Bass Scott Best on this week’s episode of Contrabass Conversations. Scott is a close personal friend of mine and an outstanding double bassist in both solo and ensemble settings. We played together in the IRIS Orchestra of Memphis, Tennessee, and it is a real pleasure to feature [...]

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Here’s another video of double bassist Dean Ferrell performing a set of assorted pieces from the 2009 International Society of Bassists Convention. Check out Dean’s Captain Tobias performance from 2007 or Ode to Per Questa from this year’s convention for more content from this excellent and multifaceted musician. Video Download Link (100 MB)

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We’re featuring an interview with double bassist Jiri Slavik on Contrabass Conversations this week. Jiri is an extremely accomplished bassist in both jazz and classical styles, as you can see from his biography below, and he gave a truly mesmerizing performance at the 2009 International Society of Bassists Convention. This interview took place just as [...]

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We’re featuring composer and bassist P. Kellach Waddle on this week’s Contrabass Conversations episode. Actually, we have chatted about doing an interview since 2007, and we got a chance to do so at the 2009 International Society of Bassists Convention. P. Kellach Waddle has had a great deal of recognition as a composer, and he [...]

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I got a chance to record double bassist Steve LaSpina’s performance at the 2009 International Society of Bassists Convention, and I was really blown away by his great bass playing and te energy of his trio. About Steve: Steve LaSpina has been a prominent bassist on the New York and national scene for over twenty years.   During [...]

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We’re featuring an interview with Los Angeles Philharmonic bassist and University of Southern California bass instructor David Allen Moore on the podcast this week. David also teaches bass during the summer at the Domaine Forget program in Quebec. In this interview, we chat about his early years on the instrument, teachers that have influenced him, [...]

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We’re featuring a live performance of the Concerto for Bass Viol (sheet music link) by John Harbison. This piece was co-commissioned by 15 different orchestras and universities, all of which did a premiere of the work with their principal bassist or bass faculty member. This co-commissioning process was coordinated through the International Society of Bassists, [...]

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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 [...]

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