The following is a short excerpt from the E-Bass Line Newsletter from the International Society of Bassists. Receiving this newsletter each month is one of the many benefits for ISB members, including special rates on instrument insurance, the excellent journal Bass World, the paper edition of the Bass Line, and much more! Check out the International Society of Bassists website for more information on joining if you’re not a member–I’ve been a member since I was a teenager, and I highly recommend it for bassist of all ages.

Also, doublebassblog.org will be doing live coverage of this summer’s ISB convention at Penn State (June 8-13, 2009). That’s only a few months away, and it will be a real blast, so be sure to join up with the ISB and check out this fabulous event!

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? On April 26, 2009, Deep Tones for Peace, twenty internationally recognized bassists, will perform for live audiences from two cities in an appeal for peace in the Middle East. The three-part concert will be streamed worldwide on the Internet: at 8 PM Jerusalem/1 PM New York; at 11PM Jerusalem/4PM New York; and 8PM New York/3AM Jerusalem. Performers, composers and improvisers include Barre Phillips (USA/France), Mark Dresser (USA), J.C. Jones (Israel), Bertram Turetzky (USA), Thierry Barbe (France), Irina-Kalina Goudeva (Bulgaria/Denmark), William Parker (USA), Michael Klinghoffer (Israel), Ora Boazsson (Israel), Ken Filiano (USA), Mark Helias (USA), Han Han Cho (Taiwan), David Phillips (USA), Henry Grimes (USA), Rob Nairn (Australia), Sarah Weaver (USA) and Chi Chi Nwanoku (UK). To learn more about Deep Tones for Peace or to make a donation, go to www.isimprov.org.

About the participants

Mark Dresser is a fellow ISB board member, and we’ve featured Israeli bassist J.C. Jones on Contrabass Conversations plus text interviews with Rob Nairn.

Live Streaming also at ISB Convention

On a similar note, we’ll also be doing a lot of streaming (with yours truly as host!) at this summer’s ISB convention. That way you can get a taste of the excitement that occurs at this biannual event… though a web stream won’t be able to capture the real excitement. Be sure to get out to Penn State this June if you can!

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More information available to ISB members–sign up online today, and be sure to check out the new ISB online store for all sorts of cool recordings, DVDs, and sheet music.