David Allen Moore

279: Round Two with David Allen Moore

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When I got the podcast going again in 2015, I knew that I wanted to do “round two” interviews with past guests. Los Angeles Philharmonic bassist and USC Thornton School of Music professor David Allen Moore was at the top of my list.

I had David on the show back in 2009, which has been one of the most popular interviews from the first-generation podcast episodes (nearly 14,000 downloads at the moment).

A lot has changed for David since we last spoke:

He took a sabbatical and, after analyzing Edgar Meyer’s technique, developed the concept of fractal fingerings.
He wrote a book on Fractal Fingerings.
He became an ultra-marathon runner.

Several of my former students have studied with David over the years. When I asked them who had the biggest impact on them as a musician and as a person, David was the first person they mentioned.

I headed down to Los Angeles and we met up at his USC studio. Here’s a shot of us along with bassists Fernando de la Fuente and Dan Carson (another former student of mine!).

Fernando de la Fuente, David Allen Moore, Dan Carson, and Jason!

We dig into all kinds of topics, including:

building an internal map
how bass pedagogy is still catching up to reality
analyzing Edgar Meyer’s bass playing
the concept of framing
Rabbath’s approach and the German bow
how practicing is a creative process
how running changed David’s approach to various aspects of life
fractal fingering
peak performance
raising your floor as well as your ceiling
reveling in your successes

…and much more!

Links to check out:

David’s previous podcast appearance
Videos on Musaic (New World Symphony’s great service)
Domaine Forget (David teaches there in the summer)
David’s LA Phil page
David’s USC page

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162: David Allen Moore Interview (from the archives)

We’re featuring an interview from the podcast archives with Los Angeles Philharmonic bassist and University of Southern California bass instructor David Allen Moore on the podcast this week. David also teaches bass during the summer at the Domaine Forget program in Quebec. In this interview, we chat about his early years on the instrument, teachers that have influenced him, his time in the Houston Symphony and Los Angeles Philharmonic, challenges of learning repertoire for a professional orchestra, his studies with François Rabbath, German and French bow differences, and many other topics.

After the interview, we feature a track of David playing the Bohemian Dance from Frank Proto’s Carmen Fantasy. Enjoy!

David’s faculty page on USC website

Domaine Forget Festival

About David:

DAVID ALLEN MOORE graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Southern California 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.

In January of 2000 Moore became a full-time member of the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s bass section and was promoted to the 4th chair by audition in October of the same year.

Moore has participated in numerous festivals including Tanglewood, the Grand Teton Music Festival, Mainly Mozart, the Portland Chamber Music Festival, and Kent/Blossom Summer Music Festival. He is an active recitalist and chamber musician, having performed in the Houston area with the Greenbriar Consortium, in Los Angeles with the Philharmonic’s New Music Group, and in San Diego with the Mainly Mozart Festival. He has been a featured clinician at the 2012 TCU International Double Bass Festival, the 2011 International Society of Bassists convention, the 1999 Texas Double Bass Symposium. From 2003-2009 Moore was a faculty member at the Colburn Conservatory in Los Angeles. Moore has been a faculty member of the University of Southern California’s Thornton School of Music since 2000, and since the Fall of 2010 he has been part of the full-time faculty as an Assistant Professor while maintaining his position in the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Since 2007 Moore has been a faculty member at Domaine Forget in Quebec, Canada.

In November of 2007 he began studies with internationally renowned double bass pedagogue and soloist François Rabbath in Paris. Moore received both the Diploma and Teaching Certificate from the Institut International Rabbath in February of 2009.

Moore has presented clinics and master classes at Juilliard, The Curtis Institute of Music, Northwestern University, and Rice University, among others. He has former students performing in major orchestras in The U.S., Canada, Australia, Europe, and Asia.

The double bass that Moore performs on with the Philharmonic is an instrument by Nicolo Gagliano made in 1735.His solo bass is a modern instrument by French luthier Christian Laborie. Moore uses bows designed especially for him by Paris bowmaker Boris Fritsch that are a unique French/German hybrid and are designed to be played either overhand or underhand.

This interview originally aired on July 18, 2009 on CBC Episode 128.

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CBC 128: David Allen Moore interview

David Allen Moore.png

We’re featuring an interview with Los Angeles Philharmonic bassist and University of Southern California bass instructor David Allen Moore on the podcast this week. David also teaches bass during the summer at the Domaine Forget program in Quebec. In this interview, we chat about his early years on the instrument, teachers that have influenced him, his time in the Houston Symphony and Los Angeles Philharmonic, challenges of learning repertoire for a professional orchestra, his studies with François Rabbath, German and French bow differences, and many other topics.

After the interview, we feature a track of David playing the Bohemian Dance from Frank Proto’s Carmen Fantasy. Enjoy!

About David:

DAVID ALLEN MOORE, the newest member of the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s bass section, joined the orchestra in January 2000 and was appointed to the 4th chair in October 2000. He graduated in 1993 from the University of Southern California, 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.

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.

Moore has participated in numerous festivals including Tanglewood, the Grand Teton Music Festival, Mainly Mozart, and Kent/Blossom Summer Music Festival. He is an active chamber musician, having performed in the Houston area with the Greenbriar Consortium, and in Los Angeles with the Philharmonic’s New Music Group. He was also a featured clinician at the 1999 Texas Double Bass Symposium. Moore currently is on the faculty of the University of Southern California.