Jason Heath’s Double Bass Blog

Taiwanese bassist Mark Lock just got in touch with me. He has started a double bass blog, and it contains some really excellent writing. He also said some really nice things about my blog. Thanks a lot, Mark!
You can find his blog Firebird Winters in my bass blogroll over on the [...]

There is quite a discussion going on in the comments for a recent post on Michael Hovnanian’s CSO Bass Blog. Michael mentioned that the Chicago Symphony has made their ‘Welcome Yule’ concerts a required part of the season rather than a “members of” optional service. This prompted many comments from people [...]

Matt Wengerd recently sent me a link for a photoset from Flickr user cess van de van. This particular set features shots of 147 different (mostly jazz) bassists. These photos tend to be very evocative and artistic. Here is a small sampling:
Click here to view his entire bass photoset.

Matt Wengerd (104 weeks) recently wrote a very detailed post about the many modifications he made to his Rumano Solano bass. This is an interesting post which covers many of the gear modifications that bass players in the United States are doing these days. Matt had a K.C. Strings extension with chromatic stops [...]

I have decided to quit all of my orchestral work and start a Marimba Queens tribute band. Scott Kreger from the Milwaukee Symphony (and the new double bass instructor and the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater) sent me this video. Check out the bass player in this band. He has the most fabulous upright slap [...]

Here is another great video of Stefano Sciascia playing the double bass. This is a very different style than the Cancion de Amor video from Stefano that I posted earlier. I recommend checking out Stefano’s website for more information, and I will keep posting his videos every few days (there are a lot [...]

Here is a great shot courtesy of Greg Sarchet featuring the great double bass pedagogue Franz Simandl in full ceremonial dress. I especially like the sword he has on his belt. That Simandl was one fearsome bass teacher–one false move in your bass lesson with him could have proved to be your last.

I just got an e-mail from my friend John Grillo, and I realized that I have never mentioned him on the bass blog. This is surprising, because John is one of the most interesting and original musicians I have ever met. John performs frequently with the Pittsburgh Opera and has been studying with [...]

Double bassists looking for a great comprehensive reference for the life and times of Serge Koussevitzky should visit his excellent Wikipedia page. The former music director of the Boston Symphony and double bass soloist left quite a footprint on both the double bass world and the classical music world in general. Check out [...]

Here is a great video of jazz bassist Marco Panascia soloing over rhythm changes. Notice how Marco uses a positional approach to his soloing. He tends to cross stings and do pivots to stay in a position for a length of time rather than shifting up and down the string. This is [...]