Auditoning - a young person’s game?
As a guy who’s been freelancing for quite some time now, I’ve got some thoughts on the hidden dangers of getting too enmeshed in the freelance scene while you’re auditoning for jobs. While I’m being a little overly dramatic with the title for this post, there is a real danger to getting spread too [...]
Top 7 considerations for music school applicants
For more on my thoughts about music schools (and what it really means to pursue a career in music these days), check out my book Road Warrior Without an Expense Account.
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Applying to music school? Think about the following points during the application process–they’re in order of most important to least important (in my opinion, [...]
Nine dynamite practice room accessories
When it’s time to hit the woodshed and do some serious practicing, there are a handful of no-brainer items that everyone needs–instrument, music, and music stand. Adding a few extra tools into the mix can make for much more productive and enjoyable practice sessions, however.
This list starts off with some obvious tools, but the ones [...]
The puzzle of our lives
The title for this post is flagrantly ripped off from Doug Yeo, bass trombonist for the Boston Symphony and the author of yeodoug.com, a fabulous internet resource for all classical musicians and students. Doug wrote a great article with this exact title that I remember reading 10 years ago, and it really shaped my thinking [...]
What’s the best bass car?
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 [...]
Choosing bass strings - what’s right for you?
What bass player doesn’t love to roll their sleeves up and start seriously feeling out on bass strings? In fact, it can almost become a sickness, and many players get to a point where they feel compelled to try out every single darn string they can get their hands on.
Also, strings seen to really come [...]
Considerations When Teaching Beginners
The following excerpts are from an upcoming book by double bassist and educator Peter Tambroni. Peter has written an excellent double bass method book titled An Introduction to String Playing, and he has been a guest on Contrabass Conversations as well. In addition to a career as an active double bass performer and teacher, Peter [...]
Common Problems With Basses
The following excerpts are from an upcoming book by double bassist and educator Peter Tambroni. Peter has written an excellent double bass method book titled An Introduction to String Playing, and he has been a guest on Contrabass Conversations as well. In addition to a career as an active double bass performer and teacher, Peter [...]
Audition preparation advice with Matt Heller
Calgary Philharmonic bassist Matt Heller (a frequent subject of posts here at doublebassblog.org) recently put out an excellent audition preperation breakdown on his blog hellafrisch.blogspot.com. Matt is an excellent bassist and blogger (and a swell guy to boot–we’ve been friends for years) who was featured in the New York Times by columnist Dan Wakin while [...]
Ira Glass on sticking with it
This video of Ira Glass (via 43 Folders) really resonates with me. He describes the conundrum that creative people continually face–knowing what really is good before having the experience and technical command to actually create something good. I’ve faced this my entire life (in bass playing, blogging, podcasting, and many other endeavors) and this video [...]
