Contrabass Conversations

This bonus episode features Jason Heath on the wonderful new Mind Over Finger podcast.  Be sure to subscribe to Mind Over Finger wherever you get your podcasts, and follow along with Renee's conversations on Facebook also.

Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra Principal Bass David Daly has released a true epic debut album with a great title: Titanic Double Bass .   The title track of the album is an Irish air my Great Uncle Eugene played on the deck of he Titanic (thats right—David's Great Uncle played on the Titanic!) as it left Ireland.   David also filmed an epic video at the crack of dawn on the cliffs overlooking wher...

Amy Baltzell is a sports psychologist that serves as Clinical Associate Professor and Coordinator of the Sport Psychology Specialization at Boston University.   The author of Living in the Sweet Spot: Preparing for Performance in Sport and Life and The Power of Mindfulness: Mindfulness Meditation Training in Sport , Amy has worked with many musicians over the years to alleviate performance anxiety...

Herbert Smith has had a remarkable career spanning a variety of musical genres.   Originally from Chicago, Herbert spent many years in Southern California prior to his move to São Paulo, Brazil eight years ago. We dig into similarities and differences between the musical scenes of Brazil and the United States, Brazilian musical traditions, language and how it affects the music of a specific cultur...

One of my all-time favorite podcast guests is Leon Bosch , and it was great to get a chance to sit down with him in person at the 2018 European Bass Congress and dig into some deep topics.   Leon is the former principal bass for Academy of St Martin in the Fields and has put out an astounding amount of albums and other projects since retiring from this group a few years ago.   This interview cover...

Anima Nova carbon fiber sound posts have been getting a lot of attention recently in the double bass world.   I had the chance to sit down with Pal Molnar of Anima Nova at the 2018 European Bass Congress to dig into the details bout this new type of sound post and the advantages that it can offer.   Listen to Contrabass Conversations with our free app for iOS, Android, and Kindle! Contrabass Conve...

Vassilis Papavassiliou has been on my "to interview" list for years, and it was a treat to sit down with him over a coffee at the 2018 European Bass Congress and discuss his current topic of research: vibrato . Vassilis has presented a session on vibrato at past bass conventions, and I learned a lot chatting with him about the topic.   He also has an outstanding online resource on vibrato which s...

I've been looking forward to having Hagai Bilitzky on the podcast for years, and it was great to be able to sit down with him in person at the 2018 European Bass Congress and dig into his explorations of Middle Eastern music on the bass.  Hagai has a wealth of information regarding Middle Eastern music on his website , and this is must-read material for any bassist interested in exploring this wor...

I first met Jennifer Downing Olsson back in the early 2000s.   She was playing in the Civic Orchestra of Chicago at the time, and we also ended up playing in the Spoleto USA Festival in Charleston, South Carolina.   It has been great watching her career unfold.   Jennifer moved to Sweden several year ago to play in the Gothenburg Symphony, and she recently took a new position with the Swedish Radi...

After a recent podcast appearance from Lauren Pierce all about her Practiceology course , I was contacted by Elizabeth Li of Modacity .   Modacity is a practicing app developed by Marc Gelfo , a horn player who used to be in the Hong Kong Philharmonic and who is a regular extra with the San Francisco Symphony. Modacity has become my constant practice companion.   H onestly, I haven't been this exc...

I've been enjoying watching the career of double bassist Grace Lewis unfold.   A former student of John Schimek's at Oklahoma City University, Grace is currently completing her graduate studies with Dennis Whittaker at the University of Houston.   We dig into Grace's path through the music world, what she finds gratifying about bass events like the KC Bass Workshop , how to develop a bass studio f...

Today's episode features a conversation on music, psychotherapy, and double bass.   Bill Harrison and Judith Hanna are both Chicago-area double bassists and practicing psychotherapists.   We met up in Chicago to talk about their path from bass paying into the world of psychotherapy, how the two disciplines relate, and much more! We also answer a number of questions submitted by listeners, includin...

Today we're digging into a question that I've asked many of my past podcast guests: what advice would you give your younger self?   This question is answered today by the following people (in order of appearance): Tom Zera - Utah Symphony Christian McBride - renowned jazz bassist Susan Wulff - San Diego Symphony Peter Seymour - Project Trio Carlos Henriquez - Wynton Marsalis quintet Matthew McDona...

I've been a fan of Edwin Livingston 's bass playing ever since hearing him play with Natalie Cole several years ago.   Edwin is one of the most in-demand bassists working today, having worked Elvin Jones, Ellis, Delfeayo, and Jason Marsalis, The Headhunters, and dozens of other familiar names. Edwin and I cover a lot of territory, including: growing up in Dallas early influences in his musical dev...

Joel Reist has been a member of the Nashville Symphony for nearly 20 years, and has served as principal bass since 2003.   A former student of Anthony Bianco and Paul Ellison, Joel spent time in the New World Symphony prior to joining the Nashville Symphony.   He also teaches bass at the Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University. We dig deep into a number of topics: what Tony Bianco was like...

Today's episode features Joe Zon of Zon Guitars plus Zon artists Michael Manring , Cody Wright , Bill Gould , and Jeff Denson . Dan Robbins joined the panel with his Ibanez 6-string and array of pedals and effects as well.   Topics include: how Joe Zon got into the business, and how he and Michael Manring first met the stability that carbon fiber necks provide the signal chain from bass to amp how...

Ethan Jodziewicz has carved out a remarkable career for himself in the world of acoustic music.   He plays bass for Sierra Hull and was featured on her GRAMMY-nominated album Weighted Mind .  A former student of Edgar Meyer, Hal Robinson, and Nicholas Walker, Ethan is forging his own path through the music world in a fascinating way.   We dig into a ton of topics, like: living a balanced and fulfi...

Donovan Stokes is a one-of-a-kind artist.   I've been captivated by his playing ever since hearing him over a decade ago, and it has been a real pleasure getting to teach alongside him at the Golden Gate Bass Camp . Donovan and I were able to carve out 30 minutes prior to a concert at the camp, and we dug into a bunch of gear-related questions that I'd been wanting to ask him, like: why Donovan pl...

Bass and Gender Talk Megan McDevitt shares her thoughts on why she has been motivated to dig into this topic and also details about the specific audience for this talk on this bonus episode. She writes: This talk is very similar to the one I have given at the ISB Convention, College Music Society Convention, and Atlantic Music Festival. In all of those settings, most of the audience was made up of...

Megan McDevitt has been covering a topic that is of critical importance: The Bass and Gender .   She presented a session on it at the 2017 International Society of Bassists Convention , and she had a session scheduled for the 2018 Golden Gate Bass Camp as well.  Megan and I dig into femininity, masculinity, and the bass, and a whole variety of topics are covered through this conversational journey...

Matthew Tucker of Bresque Basses has been innovating in a number of fascinating ways in the world of bass luthiery.   A regular attendee of the Violin Society of America / Oberlin Bass Workshop , Matthew has designed an innovative system of flatback double bass bracing that he calls Responsive Flatback Bracing . We dig into this bracing system, his path into the luthier world, his approach to repa...

We're chatting with Katie Thiroux on today's episode.   Katie's album Off Beat was named one of Downbeat's Best Albums of 2017, and she recently completed a three-month stint at Quincy Jones' Dubai Jazz club.   We dig into all kinds of topics, like: growing up in Los Angeles Katie's favorite Jazz audiences around the world What she does with six hours of practicing Advice for those embarking on a...

Micah Howard has been on my "to interview" list for years.   As a member of the Pittsburgh Symphony and faculty at Carnegie Mellon University, Micah has had a huge influence on countless bass players (including my good friend Christian Dillingham !).   I actually just found a note from 2008 that said "interview Micah Howard" - that's how long I've been hoping to do this!   A few weeks ago, I wrote...

BASS2018 Lucca  will take place July 31 - August 5, 2018.  Today, we chat with Artistic Directors Gabriele Ragghianti and Alberto Bocini  about what to expect at this event. I'll be there covering the event and having many conversations for the podcast.  We all hope to see you there!

Lauren Pierce has just released a new course called Practiceology .   As the name implies, this is a deep-dive into the hows and whys of practicing.   We dig into all kinds of topics with Lauren, like: Lauren's recent article about why practice is frustrating her video digging into warm-up routines building a practice routine intentional practice general practicing techniques eight killer practice...