— Visit the Double Bassist’s Guide to Colleges – U.S. Edition —
Though it’s always interesting to get feedback from readers and conduct surveys like this, I feel obligated to point out that studying music is not a “one-size-fits-all” affair. What is a great choice for one person might be a poor choice for another. The smart move is to do your research but then visit the places that you’re serious about studying and get a lesson with the bass teacher. That bass teacher/student relationship is priority number one if you’re going into performance, and it needs to be a good fit.
With that disclaimer out of the way, here are the top ten bass programs according to 343 current readers. We will do this poll again in a few months and publish any updated results:
#10 – DePaul University
Double bass faculty: Alex Hanna, Rob Kassinger, Jason Heath
Chicago, IL
Student body: 23.799
About the bass faculty:
The DePaul double bass studio brings together the talent, experience and insight of four of Chicago’s leading bass players. Rob Kassinger and Alex Hanna, of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Jason Heath comprise the classical bass teaching team. The result is a learning environment that reflects the Chicago music scene itself: world-class, diverse, hard-working and innovative. click for bios and studio information
Listen to Alex Hanna and Rob Kassinger on Contrabass Conversations
#9 – Eastman School of Music
Double bass faculty: James VanDemark
Rochester, NY
Student body: 900
About James VanDemark:
One of the most brilliant virtuosi ever to perform on the double bass, James VanDemark was hailed by the New York Times at his Lincoln Center recital debut as “an exceptionally gifted string player and a musician of taste, intelligence and the best spontaneous musical instincts, with an unerring sense for exact intonation.” The San Francisco Chronicle praised his “wonderful facility for making really musical phrases, relaxing, building, shading with unlimited subtleties – and a capacity to dig into whole pages of rip-roaring coloratura and make every note count.” click for complete bio
#8 – Northwestern University
Double bass faculty: Andrew Raciti
Evanston, IL
Student body: 20,336
About Andrew Raciti:
Andrew Raciti is the acting principal bass of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. He is also the head of the double bass studio of the Bienen School of Music at Northwestern University. Before joining the Milwaukee Symphony in 2006, Mr Raciti was associate principal bass of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in Australia. He has also performed with the Detroit Symphony, the Minnesota Orchestra, the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. In the summers he has been the principal bass of the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra and performs orchestral and chamber music at the Grand Teton Music Festival. He is also a regular professor of the Filharmonica Joven de Colombia in South America. In 2011 he performed the United States premiere of the Concerto for Double Bass and String Orchestra by Macedonian composer Zivoin Glisic. A recognized authority in bass pedagogy and performance, Mr Raciti has published articles in the quarterly for the International Society of Bassists. He is currently involved with the BATUTA foundation of Colombia, South America, where he is developing the bass portion of a comprehensive string pedagogy that will be used throughout it’s 17,000 member nationwide network. click for complete bio
Contrabass Conversations Interview with Andy Coming Soon!
#7 – University of Southern California
Double bass faculty: David Allen Moore
Los Angeles, CA
Student body: 43,000
About David Allen Moore:
David Allen Moore graduated Summa Cum Laude from the USC Thornton School of Music in 1993 where he studied with Dennis Trembly, Paul Ellison, and John Clayton. Moore continued his studies in Boston, working privately with BSO principal bass Edwin Barker while performing with Boston Baroque, the Rhode Island Philharmonic, Emmanuel Music, and the Boston Pops Esplanade orchestra. Moore performed as a substitute with the Los Angeles Philharmonic during the 1995-96 season, after which he was a member of the Houston Symphony bass section under maestro Christoph Eschenbach, from 1996 to 1999. click for complete bio
Listen to David Allen Moore’s Contrabass Conversations Interview
#6 – University of North Texas
Double bass faculty: Jeff Bradetich
Denton, TX
Student body: 36,486
About Jeff Bradetich:
Proclaimed by the New York Times as “the master of his instrument,” Jeff Bradetich is regarded as one of the leading performers and teachers of the double bass in the US today. Since his New York debut in Carnegie Recital Hall in 1982 he has performed more than 500 concerts on four continents including his London debut in Wigmore Hall in 1986. He has won many major solo competitions, recorded six solo albums of music for double bass and piano and has been featured on radio and television throughout North and South America and Europe including CBS, CNN, BBC and NPR. click for complete bio
Listen to Jeff Bradetich’s Contrabass Conversations Interview
#5 – Boston University
Double bass faculty: Ed Barker
Boston, MA
Student body: 30,009
About Ed Barker:
Edwin Barker has performed and recorded with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Symphony Chamber Players, and with Collage, a Boston-based contemporary music ensemble. He is also a frequent guest performer with the Boston Chamber Music Society in Boston’s Jordan Hall. Edwin Barker performed the world premiere of James Yannato’s Bass Concerto (which was written especially for him) with ALEA III and subsequently with Collage. He was the featured soloist at the New England premiere of Gunther Schuller’s Bass Concerto, conducted by the composer, with the Boston Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra of Boston. click for complete bio
Listen to Ed Barker’s Contrabass Conversations Interview
#4 – Juilliard School
Double bass faculty: Timothy Cobb, Albert Laszlo, Eugene Levinson, Harold Robinson
New York, NY
Student body: 927
About the bass faculty:
Visit this page for detailed information about these four teachers.
#3 – Indiana University
Double bass faculty: Bruce Bransby, Kurt Muroki
Bloomington, IN
Student body: 48,514
About the bass faculty:
Bruce Bransby was principal double bass with the Los Angeles Philharmonic (1978-1986) under Zubin Mehta, Carlo Maria Giulini, and Andre Previn, and was principal double bass with the Kansas City Symphony (1971-1978). He studied with Nat Gangursky, Peter Mercurio, and Stuart Sankey. complete bio
An artist member with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Kurt Muroki began his musical studies on the violin at the age of six and subsequently performed concerti with the Honolulu Symphony and the Maui Symphony. He went on to study the double bass at the age of 13 and entered the Juilliard School of Music at the age of 17, studying with his Homer R. Mensch. complete bio
Listen to Kurt Muroki’s Contrabass Conversations Interview
#2 – Curtis Institute
Double bass faculty: Harold Robinson, Edgar Meyer
Philadelphia, PA
Student body: 166
About the bass faculty:
Appointed principal bass of the Philadelphia Orchestra beginning with the 1995-96 season, Harold Hall Robinson served for ten years as principal bass of the National Symphony Orchestra and eight years as associate principal of the Houston Symphony. Prior to that he was a member of the Santa Fe Opera Orchestra. complete bio
Edgar Meyer began studying bass at age five with his father and continued with Stuart Sankey. He is the winner of numerous awards, including a 2002 MacArthur Award, and is the first bassist to receive the Avery Fisher Career Grant (1994) and the Avery Fisher Prize (2000). Equally renowned as a performer and composer, Mr. Meyer premiered his Concerto for Double Bass, Quintet for Bass and String Quartet, and Double Concerto for Bass and Cello. complete bio
#1 – Rice University
Double bass faculty: Paul Ellison, Timothy Pitts
Houston, TX
Student body: 6,621
About the bass faculty:
Performing solo and ensemble concerts as well as giving master classes on the double bass and period instruments on four continents, Paul Ellison is the Lynette S. Autrey Professor of Double Bass and chair of strings at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, Visiting Artist-Faculty University of Southern California and guest tutor at the Yehudi Menuhin School, the Royal College of Music, and Bass Club, England. Current summer positions include principal bass at the Grand Teton Music Festival, faculty/performer at the Sarasota Music Festival and faculty/performer at Festival Domaine Forget, Quebec. Former students hold titled positions in major ensembles and institutions of higher learning on five continents. complete bio
Timothy Pitts has distinguished himself as one of the most versatile double bassists of his generation. As a soloist, chamber and orchestral musician, he has been heard in many of the world’s greatest concert halls. Mr. Pitts’ orchestral career began as a member of the Cleveland Orchestra after which he was appointed principal bass of the Houston Symphony, a position he held for seventeen years. Mr. Pitts also served as principal double bass of Boston’s Handel and Haydn Society and the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra under the direction of John Williams. complete bio
Contrabass Conversations Interview with Paul Coming Soon!
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Hi Jason,
I really appreciate your blog and contribution to the bass world. My students and I use this information frequently, thank you!
Just one quick thought…..why is it only the classical faculty listed on these top ten schools…..all of these schools also have amazing bassists on the jazz faculty and if we are rating Top 10 bass schools shouldn’t the jazz faculty and programs be a factor?
Good point! I’ll list the jazz faculty the next time I put out one of these surveys, or (probably better) I’ll do one specifically for jazz and for classical.