Double bassist Greg Sarchet (Bass Club Chicago, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Northeastern Illinois University) sent in this great photo of the late jazz giant Art Davis (see obituary here) posing with a very fitting ice sculpture:Greg has contributed frequently to both the...
I spent the past two weeks performing with the Grant Park Symphony. This has been a real treat for me, both musically and personally. The GPSO is a great ensemble, and we played a lot of excellent repertoire, including Beethoven 2, Mahler 5, and the Firebird Suite....
Bill Harrison wrote a great piece on his blog recently elaborating on some of the issues I discussed in the latest installment of This Crazy Business. He writes: There’s an old joke in the biz: Q: “How do you make a musician complain?” A: “Give...
Matt Wengerd (104 Weeks blog) pointed out to me yesterday that AllAboutJazz.com was using the Contrabass Conversations logo on their site for a series on jazz bass players. Jacque Harper (Chicago Bass Ensemble) sent me the following screen shot to demonstrate the...
Some people play golf or do needlepoint during their later years in life. Chicago Symphony principal bassist Joe Guastafeste decided instead to create Basshenge, a fascinating monument for both Stonehenge and the double bass in the north woods of Minnesota. Bassists,...
