Jason Heath’s Double Bass Blog

In Part VIII of Road Warrior Without an Expense Account, the topic of freelancer burnout was discussed. This is a depressing and all-too-frequent result of engaging in this type of work, and the solution to this situation is quite complicated.

Actually, this whole topic becomes quite depressing, and the more one thinks [...]

Double bass and violone player Jerry Fuller recently sent me some information about a baroque performance workshop with violinist Elizabeth Blumentstock. It will be held at the Midwest Young Artists facility in Highwood, Illinois on May 10 at 10 a.m., and I’d encourage interested parties to check it out!
Here is the complete information [...]

The following article originally appeared on Adaptistration in April, 2007 as part of the Take A Friend to Orchestra initiative. I am grateful to Drew McManus for asking me to participate in this collaborative effort. You can read the complete list of 2007 TAFTO contributors on Drew’s blog.
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Take A Friend to Orchestra
The experience [...]

After the bleak nature of the last several installments of this series, I am pleased to talk about a more positive and constructive piece in the puzzle that makes up the life of a freelance musician.
Most musicians engage in at least some degree of private teaching. The tradition of passing down skills, knowledge, [...]

I recently took a class (an undergraduate class that I had missed during my undergraduate schooling many years ago) in which any sort of technology was forbidden. We were not allowed to use laptops or voice recorders. This was a class which required both a great deal of note taking and a great deal [...]

There has been a huge interest in the latest Contrabass Conversations episode featuring National Symphony Orchestra bassist Ira Gold. Thanks to everyone who has checked out this episode, and just visit the link above if you haven’t had a chance to hear it yet The download numbers have been really high so far, [...]

National Symphony Orchestra Principal Bassist Robert Oppelt recently started a website that I think bassists out there would be interested in checking out. In addition to containing biographical information and a great photo library (click here to check out photos of double bassist Ira Gold dressed as Borat), Robert is starting a ‘tips library’ [...]

One can learn so much about good string technique from watching Jascha Heifetz perform, and this video offers a great chance to check out his bow technique. The power of YouTube to both entertain and educate is truly amazing, and I hope that small minded media giants (i.e. Viacom) get off of their high [...]

Tuesday, April 3rd, 2007 was a very exciting day for the Chicago double bass scene as Francois Rabbath made a rare trip to our Lake Michigan metropolis. Chicago Symphony member and DePaul University double bass instructor Rob Kassinger organized a master class with Francois, and at least 50 bass players and enthusiasts attended the [...]

 

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Episode 14 for Contrabass Conversations features the final part of our interview with John Grillo and a double bass recording from jazz artist Terry Plumeri. Enjoy!
CBC 14 show notes

Length: 29:23
e-mail: contrabassconversations@gmail.com
voicemail line: 206-666-6509
website: http://contrabassconversations.com
blog: http://doublebassblog.com
This episode features Part 3 of our interview with double bassist John Grillo. You can listen to the previous [...]