Jason Heath's Double Bass Blog » podcasting

The John Grillo podcast oeuvre

Jason — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:00:01 +0000

Here’s the podcast rundown (I don’t think I missed any) from my always excellent Contrabass Conversations co-host John Grillo and all of his wonderful contributions to the podcast over the years:

CBC 158: Charles DeRamus interview

Jason — Sun, 22 May 2011 22:49:20 +0000

We’re bringing you an interview with double bassist Charles DeRamus on Contrabass Conversations this week. Charles is a member of the Gothenburg Symphony and has worked extensively in both Europe and the United States during his professional career. Charles has recently written a children’s concert for double bass quartet and narrator called “Greta’s Dream” which has been performed at many venues in the United States and Sweden. This piece will be performed at the 2011 International Society of Bassists Convention in San Francisco, so be sure to check out their session if you can attend the convention.

Following the interview, we feature two excerpts from a live performance of Greta’s Dream (right around the 57 minute point in the podcast if you want to jump right to them), and more information about this piece will be provided in the coming months.

Be sure to check out the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra Bass Quartet on Facebook–they’ve got a great page!

About Charles:

Charles DeRamus has a career that spans from North America to Scandinavia, where he is currently a member of the Gothenburg Symphony and has worked extensively with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Bergen Philharmonic, Malmo? Symphony Orchestra, Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, and the Swedish Chamber Orchestra. In the United States he has performed, recorded and toured with the Atlanta Symphony, Detroit Symphony, Houston Symphony, San Antonio Symphony, Virginia Symphony, and the Colorado Music Festival. His studies include degrees from Indiana University and Rice University, after which he was a member of the New World Symphony and participated in numerous summer festivals including Tanglewood, Schleswig-Holstein, National Repertory Orchestra, Pacific Music Festival, and the National Orchestral Institute.

Equally at home in various musical venues, Charles has performed with the Houston Grand Opera, Atlanta Opera, Ohio Light Opera, NorrlandsOperan, Malmo? Opera, as well as the Dayton Bach Society, the contemporary ensemble “Black Box Band”, Sweden’s acclaimed new music ensemble Gageego, and the Persian/European influenced Rumi Ensemble. Recent solo engagements include a unique performance with the National Orchestra of Sweden for a concert celebrating newly naturalized Swedish citizens, as well as performances of Piazzolla’s Le Grand Tango and Beethoven’s F Major Romance with the Eureka Symphony in the United States.

Charles is a dedicated teacher and currently serves on the faculties of the Sequoia Chamber Music Workshop and the Idyllwild Arts Summer Festival Programs. Previously he has served on the All-State at Interlochen and University of Michigan Summer Arts Institute faculties, as well as given masterclasses in Norway, Sweden, the United States, and at the Royal College of Music and Yehudi Menuhin School in England. As a composer/arranger, in the 2010/11 season Charles will celebrate the premier performances of “Greta’s Dream”, his newly written children’s concert for Double Bass Quartet and narrator. Following in his father and grandfather’s footsteps, Charles is the third generation bassist in his family.

Koussevitzky & Edgar Meyer Highlighted on the Composers Datebook

Phillip Serna — Sun, 27 Feb 2011 16:30:54 +0000

The February 25th, 2011 edition of the Composers Datebook Radio Program & Podcast entitled “Basics” by Koussevitzky and Meyer highlights the double bass.

Music featured includes the classic Gary Karr Recording of Serge Koussevitsky’s 1905 Concerto (Op.3) with Uros Lajovic conducting the Berlin Radio Symphony (Koch-Schwann 11063) & Edgar Meyer’s Quintet recorded with the Emerson String Quartet (DG 453 506)

For the February 25th Edition of the Composers Datebook, click http://download.publicradio.org/podcast/composers_datebook/2011/02/25/datebook_20110225_128.mp3

For a daily dose of music history, subscribe to the podcast’s rss feed here or in iTunes, click here. To visit the Composers Datebook archive of programs at American Public Media, click here.

From their site: The Composers Datebook is produced by American Public Media in association with the American Composers Forum, with initial support from the William and FLora Hewlett Foundation. The creator of the series and its principal writer is John Michel of American Composers Forum. The Composers Datebook Web site is maintained by American Public Media with content provided by ACF.

CBC 156: Gunnelpumpers

Jason — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 20:49:16 +0000

This week, we’re featuring the title track from the nth wave, the debut album from the Gunnelpumpers. Enjoy!

Links:

CBC 151: Barre Phillips

Jason — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 11:00:00 +0000

We’re featuring music from jazz and free improvisation bassist Barre Phillips on this week’s podcast episode, as well as bass news and updates. Enjoy!

Podcasting at the Chicago Bass Festival

Jason — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 12:00:15 +0000

While I always have to be a little careful not to overcommitt and schedule myself so heavily that I have no timeto enjoy the event, there will almost certainly be some podcasting happening at the Chicago Bass Festival this Sunday. At the very least, I’ll be recording the two lecture/Q&A sessions I’m doing (one on how to get into a top music school and one about developing audition chops of steel).

If you’re at the event on Sunday, come up and say hi! I’ll have some gear with me and will be perhaps doing some “man on the street” short hellos, so maybe you can say hi to the greater bass community and let podcast listeners know what you’re getting out of the festival.

CBC 149: Doug Stuart and news

Jason — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0000

This week, we’re featuring the double bass stylings of Doug Stuart, a former University of Michigan student who is currently active in the San Francisco Bay area. We’ll be hearing “Wake Up” and “Gratitude” from The Pear and the Pepper, Doug’s latest EP. Learn more about Doug and his playing at myspace.com/dougstuart.

Green Arts Network continues to develop

Jason — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 14:04:11 +0000

I’ve been checking in with the Green Arts Network, the latest project from double bassist Barry Green (former Contrabass Conversations guest). This site is growing larger every week and is definitely on my list of frequently visited bookmarked sites. Check it out if you haven’t yet, and check out our interview with this important figure in the double bass world as well.

Here’s a video of Tony Osborne’s Intrada Duet with Barry Green and David Murray (another former Contrabass Conversations guest):

CBC 147: Barry Green interview

Jason — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 12:00:43 +0000

We’re featuring double bassist Barry Green on Contrabass Conversations this week. In addition to being an influential bassist and teacher (he served as Principal Bass for the Cincinnati Symphony for 28 years, has written many method books, and currently teaches in the San Francisco Bay Area), Barry is the well-known author of The Inner Game of Music, The Mastery of Music, and Bringing Music to Life.

In this interview, we chat about Barry’s early years on the bass, his time as a member of the Cincinnati Symphony as at the bass instructor at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, writing the Inner Game of Music and his subsequent books, the influence of François Rabbath, teaching younger bassists, and his many and varied musical activities in the Bay Area. We also feature Barry performing Cri of Venice by François Rabbath. He is accompanied by pianist Heather MacLaughlin.

Learn more about Barry Green, the Inner Game, and his many activities at thegreenartsnetwork.com.

Commemorate the New Year with Guy Tuneh on Contrabass Conversations

Jason — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 13:00:00 +0000

We’re offering a one-of-a-kind treat for podcast listeners out there this New Year’s Day. Guy Tuneh, the marvelous double bass virtuoso who has made many appearances on the blog and podcast in the past, has asked me to release this complete and unedited recording of him performing Bruch’s Kol Nidrei for a very special concert. Double bassist Radu Mantu did an audio recording of Guy Tuneh performing on a borrowed bass for children with terminal illnesses, and this emotionally powerful experience is something that Guy Tuneh would like to offer up in commemoration of the new year.

After speaking with Mr. Tuneh a few days ago, we agreed that it would be fitting for him to offer up a few words wishing listeners all the best for the new year, so this episode will open up with a few sentences from him.

This is the only complete performance of a musical work that Guy Tuneh has made available to the public on the Internet.