It has been a blast being a part of Barry Green’s inaugural Ohio State University Bass Camp. Barry took over as Bass faculty at OSU after moving back to Cincinnati in 2018, and he has been hard at work developing a double bass community throughout the state.
Barry took over as Bass faculty at OSU after moving back to Cincinnati in 2018, and he has been hard at work developing a double bass community throughout the state.
About Barry Green
Barry is no stranger to putting together bass camps, running a multitude of events in Cincinnati prior to his move to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1995. Barry started up the Golden Gate Bass Camp shortly after his relocation to the West Coast, and he hit the ground running after moving back to Ohio, launching an OSU Bass Day in November with Andrés Martín as guest artist.
Barry is also the author of several popular books, including The Inner Game of Music, The Mastery of Music, and Bringing Music to Life. He is also in demand internationally as a clinician and presenter, and he has spearheaded countless collaborative projects over the years, including Anna’s Way, Anna’s Gift, and Anna’s Promise.
2019 Bass Camp Faculty
For summer of 2019, Barry put together the first iteration of the Ohio State Bass Camp, bringing together students from the region and a great lineup of faculty, including:
- David Murray – Butler University Director of School of Music and bass faculty
- Tracy Rowell – Oberlin Conservatory
- Paul Robinson – OSU professor emeritus
- Doug Richeson – jazz specialist
- Garry Wasserman – Ohio University
- Mike Brosius – Columbus area orchestra director and bassist
- Joshua Tripp – The Loft Violin Shop luthier and Columbus area bassist
The camp was held at the music school at The Ohio State University, which puts on numerous camps throughout the summer. They provided both overnight and commuter camper options at quite reasonable rates.
Wednesday, June 26, 2019
Flying from San Francisco to Ohio takes the bulk of the day given distance and time zone changes. I was warmly greeted upon arrival by Barry Green, and we went out and explored Cincinnati, where Barry now lives. It’s remarkable to me what an old and fascinating city this place is. We had a great time in the Over-the-Rhine area of town, which is filled with life and teeming with interesting restaurants and nightlife.
Thursday, June 27, 2019
Barry and I headed from Cincinnati to Columbus, where Ohio State is located. Other faculty members began arriving that morning, and we had our first faculty bass ensemble rehearsal. The faculty would be performing all four days of camp with a combination of bass ensembles and solo performances.
The students began arriving after noon, checking into the dorms and finding their way to the music department. Camp officially kicked off at 2 pm with a welcome from Barry and an introduction of the faculty.
Barry proceeded to warm up the students with a new project that he has been working on called Bassercize. This is part of a larger project that he will be debuting at The Midwest Clinic this fall for all string players.
It’s cool to see students interact with this presentation, which combines visuals, audio backing tracks, instruction from Barry, and connecting emotively with the act of making music. Not having music stands blocking the connection between students adds a special energy to this warm-up exercise, which Barry would do at the beginning of each day with the students.
We then moved into our first bass orchestra rehearsal. I love being a part of this bass orchestra, which I conducted along with Barry.
We rehearsed and performed three pieces throughout the week with the bass orchestra:
- Kickstart by Tony Osborne from All In A Day’s Work
- Celtic Lament by Rachel MacAndrew (arr. David Heyes)
- Mars from the Planets by Gustav Holst (arr. John Kennedy)
After that, we had our first small bass ensemble rehearsal. I had a wonderful group of five students in my ensemble, and after reading a number of pieces, we decided on performing Bésame Mucho, arranged by the fantastic Mexican bass quartet Kiss My Bass.
Here’s a clip of Kiss My Bass in action (not Bésame Mucho):
After dinner, we had our first Cabaret Concert. For each of these Cabaret Concerts, Barry created a video highlighting some aspect of double bass history and culture. For this first night, he combined both inspiration and humor, with a powerful video of Gary Karr performing Andres Martin’s piece The Heart Knows No Borders.
The next video was a side-splittingly funny compilation of “crazy bass videos” featuring all kinds of things that’s one would’t expect from a bass. I’m planning on writing up a separate post with all of these videos included so stay tuned for that.
The faculty bass ensemble played two works for this concert:
- Oh Shenandoah (arr. James Erb)
- The Magnificent Seven for seven double basses (arr. Tony Osborne)
The concert concluded with Barry performing an abbreviated version of Anna’s Way, the first of his three multimedia works about a young bassist and her journey toward her musical discovery.
Friday, June 28, 2019
Friday morning began with another session of Bassersize, followed by large ensemble and small ensemble rehearsals to round out the morning.
After lunch, we had a series of guest presentations from some faculty, while others taught lessons during that time.
Gary Wasserman discussed bass instrument history and got the students involved trying out a variety of rosins.
Professor emeritus Paul Robinson also chatted with the student abut a variety of topics, and the afternoon sessions concluded with Tracy Rowell working on body awareness and the bow arm.
In the late afternoon, the camp counselors had games and other social activities for the students, and it was cool to see them all starting to bond as a group. By Friday, everyone seemed a part fo the same family, and the good vibes were evident everywhere.
Friday’s Cabaret Concert started off the faculty bass ensemble performing the following selections:
- AC-133 by Simón García
- On The Prowl by Kristin Korb (originally written for the International Society of Bassists Young Bassists Program)
The concert then continued Thursday’s theme of exposing students to the double bass greats, featuring a video of Francois Rabbath performing, followed by a narrated works for solo bass by Paul Robinson.
After that Tracy Rowell took the stage to perform, and I rounded out the concert with a few solo selections and a rendition of Simon Garcia’s marvelous California Duets, with an accompanying video by Barry.
Saturday, June 29, 2019
Saturday morning also began with another session of Bassersize, followed by large ensemble and small ensemble rehearsals.
Josh Tripp of The Loft Violin Shop did a cool session on bass making, using this tiny bass (!) as a demo:
Other sessions were presented by David Murray and Doug Richeson, and I did a session about the wacky circumstances that launched my blog and internet resources for the bassist.
Saturday’s Cabaret Concert featured the faculty bass ensemble performing the following selections:
- Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Harold Arlen (arr. David Young)
- The Can-Can by Jacque Offenbach (arr. David Heyes)
After that, Doug Richeson performed several selections with his piano trio, and the concert wrapped up with David Murray playing works by Bach, Paul Ramsier, and Jon Deak.
Sunday, June 30, 2019
Before we knew it, the final day of camp was upon us, and it was time to prepare for the finale concert.
We prepped the bass orchestra in one last rehearsal, tweaking musical details and putting the final polish on our three pieces.
We then did a dress rehearsal of all chamber groups, with David Murray coordinating the logistics.
After lunch, we concluded with a “pass the bow stick” session where everyone involved in camp, from students to counselors and faculty, got a chance to share favorite memories and takeaways from the week.
The first Ohio State Bass Camp concluded with a finale concert featuring the faculty bass ensemble, student chamber ensembles, and the large bass orchestra. What a great way to end four days of learning and community!
Final Thoughts
It’s so inspiring to see the spark in the eyes of these young people as they fall in love with bass and music making. IU left the week feeling rejuvenated and inspired, and I can’t wait for OSU Bass Camp 2020 next summer.
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WOW>…I think you left out the part when I went for a drink of water..but it’s pretty clear you covered every other detail!!! Thanks so much for your wonderful accounting of our memorable week. And most important thank YOU and Eastman Strings for supporting your visit. You were an indefensible part of the bass camp and I hope you will include us in your busy calendar for 2020.
You were a great conductor for the mass bass ensemble and awesome coach to your young chamber ensemble. And having you play with the faculty ensemble was an extra pleasure and asset to us all! And of course thanks for playing Simon Garcia’s California Duet together!!! Until soon and often I hope..your friend, Barry
Thanks, Barry–great times!
thanks for the recap, Jason! It was so cool to be a part of this camp!!!!
Great spending time with you there, David!
Jason, Thanks for posting all of this! You ALL did an amazing job and I now understand why Fabien is STILL beaming after his time there.
Great to meet you there, Charles–I hope you had a good drive back!