Jean-Yves Bénichou (member of the Strasbourg Philharmonic and author of the recent article on polishing ebony fingerboards on this blog) recently sent me a link to this wonderful rendition of the Hans Fryba Suite by double bassist Christophe Dinaut.
This is, in my opinion, a great piece that is worth serious study by double bassists everywhere. I also performed this work several years ago (you can here my vastly inferior rendition here), and it was a real treat to work up. You can view Christophe’s biographical information (in French) here or visit his website here.
Click on any of the links below to listen to Christophe’s rendition of the Hans Fryba Suite (right-click and choose ‘save as…’ to download)
1.Prélude
2.Allemande
3Courante
4.Sarabande
5.Gavottes 1 et 2
6.Gigue
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Thanks for posting this Jason!
I have just discovered your site a few days ago and am already enthralled by the amount of valuble information a bass player can find here. After having lived in France for such a long time, I think that it is important to share it all of these links and such with my fellow American collegues.
I enclose a simple translation of the accompanying preface written by Christophe, to help you better understand the reasons he recorded this full version of the Fryba.
“Having worked on the Fryba, I decided to record this piece by myself, in order to pin-point and revise certain passages.
These recordings are selections made during practice sessions and have been put together without editing. In spite of their authenticity; they are on no account to be considered of professional quality.
The main purpose of uploading these excerpts is to make the Double Bass known to a larger audience and to make it possible for potential students to study the work”.
Happy listening!
Christophe Dinaut.
Thanks to everybody involved in making this available! Christophe’s rendition of this piece has been among my favorite listening the last couple of days (nicely counterbalancing the William Parker improvisation I’m just in the process of transcribing). The sections I like best – if I may say such a thing – are the Prélude and the Sarabande, but this has to do more with the composition in itself than with Christophe’s playing, which is of rare excellence all the way, to be sure! In the latter section in particular, I’m still fascinated, after numerous listenings, with the vivid acoustic illusion of actual polyphony that Christophe creates, as opposed to „merely“ double stopping. The way he maintains the lyricism of the top line while contrasting this so effectively with the sometimes almost pumping sound of the bass/tenor lines in the lower part is extraordinarily impressive. Well, I guess here’s a player with outstanding bow technique…
By the way, does anybody have any information at all about the composer, Hans Fryba? I understand he was a student of Eduard Madenski’s, which would roughly place him to the first third of the 20th century, and the suite (which seems to me an obvious bow to the Cello Suites) offers a lot of insight into the way they heard Bach’s music back then. If my guess is about correct, that would make Fryba a contemporary of Casals, whose interpretations of the Cello Suites differ quite dramatically from the way this music is being performed nowadays.
Talking about Madenski, I can’t help posting this little aside: Get out, all ye fellow jazz players, and find a copy of his „Fundamental Studies for Double Bass“ and „Instructive Scale and Chord Studies“. These are two great non-jazz but jazz books if ever there was such a thing 😉
Anyway, thanks again, Jason, for posting this, and to Christophe for his masterful and very inspiring playing (as a matter of fact, I went to the web site of my favorite sheet music dealer immediately and ordered more or less everything that they have by Fryba).
Thanks for the excellent and enthusiastic feedback Rainer!
Concerning Hans Fryba, I think that he was a member of L’Orchestre de la Suisse Romande in Geneva about 50 years ago. It is difficult to find any info on him directly.
In my opinion, this suite is Fryba’s answer to the Bach cello suites, and stands out as one the greatest compositions of our repertoire. It a “must” for everyone of us. I too have worked on it for years, and I admit that Christophe surely plays it the way it should be played.
I personally think that Fryba’s 2 other pieces, Arabésque, and Concert Study are not as dynamic as the Alten Suite and in fact almost sound the same. They are nevertheless important to have as part of our collection.
Hi Benjy, thanks for the feedback and extra information on Fryba. My sheet music dealer sent me two thirds of my order today. The „Concert Study“ seems to need a couple of more days – do they have do reprint that one, maybe? 🙂 – so I can’t say anything too specific about that piece. The „Suite“ was copyrighted in 1955 and „Arabesques“ four years later, both of which indicates that your estimation is probably more correct than mine. It’s interesting to note that „Arabesque“ was dedicated to Édouard Nanny (who died in 1943, I’m told). After a first rundown of the latter piece, I’d say I’m considerably less dismissive of the work than you are – for the moment, that is. I like its plausible use of odd meters and its overall use of challenging rhythmic devices, so that – all things considered – it appears to be (given the time and context) an honest approximation of Arabic styles by a dyed-in-the-wool European virtuoso. Since I’m somewhat of a dilletant Oud player, I was kind of prepared for the fact, but yes, it’ll cost me some time working out good fingerings for the piece.
As a matter of fact, in my opinion pieces that incorporate „ethnic styles“, as it were, provide a considerable portion of the „attractive“ repertoire in contemporary music for the double bass. Rabbath’s solo compositions are a case in point: just think of how many of them obviously make use – and quite efficient use, at that – of Flamenco, celtic or oriental music, you name ’em… Of course, the music of the last forty years or so abounds with tendencies of that kind, but still I feel that the double bass, more so than the other instruments of the string section, lends itself so well to this kind of treatment. Coming back to the Fryba suite, I found another recording of that piece only this afternoon. It’s by one of our local Berlin bass vituosos, I won’t dwell on him too long because I happen to know that cat a little bit and, …well you know. Suffice it to say that I still much prefer Christophe’s version. Maybe it comes down to this: yes, it’s an unedited audio track, but that’s where real mastery shows. I’d appreciate if more music were available in that unpolished state – after all, most everybody can sound reasonably good after 153 cuts 😉
Thanks for your responses to my latest uploads Rainer, especially the one about polishing fingerboards.
About 30 years ago, I had seen an autographed edition of Fryba’s suite signed by Fryba himself, and dedicated to Francis Marcellin, presumably another bassist of la Suisse Romande. I am sure that you’ll like his other works when you start to work on them. BTW, I did not know that Arabèsque was dedicated to the famous Nanny.
You would be interested to know that I was a former member of the Toulouse Chamber Orchestra back in 1976-84. The group officially began in 1953 and was comprised of 11 strings with only 1 bass. The original bassist, Jean Cros, died 2 years ago at the age of 104 and 4 months. (the bass does keep a player young!) He was Nanny’s last living student and told me much about him. I even have a picture that I Photoshopped of the 1922 Paris conservatory bass class, which I shall soon submit to Jason for everyone’s viewing pleasure.
I fully agree with you concerning Rabbath’s pieces and their variety of colorful styles. After stumbling upon his “Solos for the Double Bass” book in 1983, I did my utmost to meet this musical phenomenon and went to Paris to play 3 of his works for him. He asked me to come and study with him that summer (we were only 8 back then!). It is also interesting to note that he too is an Oud player on the side and had recorded an album in the 60’s.
Lastly, it would be nice if Christophe Dinault knew that his recording has been heard by the readers of this site, and that people are talking about him! He’s very hard to contact, either by cellphone or by e-mails. I have never really personally met him.
Benjy, thanks a lot for even more information – and great stories, too! Those must have been fantastic days – a bunch of no more than eight students gathering around Rabbath… I assume all of you had the time of your lives?
I was absolutely taken aback by the fact that, you, too, have never even met Christophe Dinaut in person. It’s really a pity, because I had allowed myself to hope that I could send some kind of indirect Thank You and Kudos to him through you.
Sort of fits well with the composer of the „Suite“. Elusive chap, this Fryba guy 😉 I tried to trace him in the digitalized version of the mid-90s „MGG“ edition I am happy to own („Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart“, that being something like the German equivalent of the „New Grove“ and, in general, comparably well-informed). Other than a brief mention of his compositions – dead silence. His family name sounds Czech to me, but I might be wrong in the first place, and second, that’s not too much of a clue.
Well, since Jason’s blog seems to be one of the most frequently visited places on all things double-bassic in the world today, I guess there’s still hope someboby will come up with more information. It’s not fair that the person behind this music should vanish into complete oblivion.
It would certainly be nice to be able to get in touch with Christophe. I really enjoy his playing of the Fryba Suite. I have always liked this piece a lot–I did it on a recital about four years ago, and I play select movement of it from time to time for different occasions.
Very nice playing.
Thank you so much.I am a student from Tauwan.
I discovered your blog by reading a magzine.
There is an article about you.
I am preparing the college entrance exam.
And this will help me so much.:)