Jason Heath’s Double Bass Blog

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Over the summer I applied for a professional blogging position with an internet media company. I made the short list but didn’t get the gig, which is probably a good thing in hindsight. I have no idea how I would have been able to keep up the time commitment this job would [...]

In this second installment of my series on professional freelance life as a musician, I would like to offer some commentary on trends that I see in the world of professional classical music performance. This installment of the series is geared toward orchestral performance. Other musicians, educators, and industry professionals may find [...]

Drew McManus wrote a recent post about a pair of articles he edited for Jonathan Boen, Principal Horn for the Lyric Opera of Chicago. The concerto was commissioned from Jan Bach, and the articles (available on Polyphonic.org) chronicle Jonathan’s experiences with the entire commissioning, rehearsing, performing, and recording process. It is an interesting [...]

A couple of years ago a very funny thing happened at the Lyric Opera of Chicago involving orchestra musicians, administrators, and wacky street musician hustlers. I did not witness any of this, but I have heard the same tale from several Lyric musicians, so I hope I’ve got all of my facts right. [...]

The Google Operating System blog recently reviewed the 12 biggest developments for Google in 2006. This is a great post that is definitely worth checking out.
One of the most interesting aspects of this post is the way in which search results are censored in China. Here are the results you get if you [...]

This Friday evening I will take part in Chicago’s annual Salute to Vienna concert at Symphony Center downtown. I have played in this event for several years, and it is always a lot of fun. The conductor for this year’s event is Sascha Goetzel. Here is an excerpt from Mr. Goetzel’s bio [...]

When you play a piece like Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Ballet time after time, year after year, sometimes you long for something (anything!) different to happen. Variety is good, even if it is a bad kind of variety. Well, last year at the Milwaukee Ballet we had some REAL variety down in the pit that [...]

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 [...]

I realized yesterday that I had not added the excellent blog Adaptistration by Drew McManus to my music blogroll. I just did so, and you can find it in my sidebar on the left. Drew’s blog is about the changing face of the symphony orchestra, and it is a really excellent classical music [...]

Here are the double bass jobs and festival auditions currently available in the U.S. and Canada according to the most recent International Musician:
Jobs:
Hartford Symphony OrchestraSection Bass (Basic) - This position is a permanent Basic Orchestra position. The 2006-2007 per service rate is $112.00, with a guarantee of 115 services, resulting in a weekly salary [...]