Author: Jason

An active double bass performer and teacher, Jason teaches double bass at DePaul University and served on the Board of Directors of the International Society of Bassists for many years. Jason is the current President of the Illinois chapter of the American String Teachers Association.

Jason has been a member of the Elgin Symphony since 2000 and has played with the Midsummer’s Music Festival in Door County for the past decade. He is a past member of the Milwaukee Ballet and IRIS Orchestra, and has performed with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Grant Park Symphony, and numerous other professional ensembles.

356: James VanDemark on boxing, projection, and 40 years of teaching at Eastman

James VanDemark just celebrated his 40th year of teaching at the Eastman School of Music. His students have held positions with many of the world’s major orchestras, including the Cleveland, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Minnesota, San Francisco, Singapore, Taiwan, and the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, as well as the Rochester Philharmonic, New World Symphony, Oregon Symphony, and… Continue reading 356: James VanDemark on boxing, projection, and 40 years of teaching at Eastman

355: Tom Mendel on Hamilton, pedal boards, and finding joy in playing

Tom Mendel is currently playing bass for the Chicago production of Hamilton.  He has performed on over 100 musical theater productions like Wicked, The Lion King, Billy Elliot, and Book of Mormon.  Tom is also the President Emeritus of the Theatre Musicians Association. We also cover the gear that Tom is using for Hamilton. Tom uses most… Continue reading 355: Tom Mendel on Hamilton, pedal boards, and finding joy in playing

354: Derek Jones on Cirque du Soleil, gear, and being fearless

Derek Jones is the bassist for Cirque du Soleil’s show KÀ. He joined Cirque after spending time playing with Chris Thile and Nickel Creek and then with Jerry Douglas, and he has played over 5,200 performances of this show at this point. We dig into topics like: challenges of dealing with the low humidity in… Continue reading 354: Derek Jones on Cirque du Soleil, gear, and being fearless

352: Fingerboard Geometry with Joey Naeger

Joey Naeger recently wrote an article for Bass World titled Fingerboard Geometry.  Optimal fingerboard set-up is a major topic of interest for all bass players, and I reached out to Joey to chat for the podcast. We dig into: scoop why fingerboard buzzes occur what bass makers can do to help …and much more! Look… Continue reading 352: Fingerboard Geometry with Joey Naeger