Audition-related Episodes

206: Auditioning for Music Schools

Trevor Jones and Jason Heath talk music school options at the 2016 Chicago Bass Festival

Trevor Jones and I have done joint clinics in the past, but this is the first one since restarting the podcast, and I figured that it would make sense to put it out this week since we just released our conversation a few days ago.

This talk was held at Ravinia’s Bennett Gordon Hall as part of the 2016 Chicago Bass Festival, which is an event put on by the Midwest Young Artists Conservatory. Michael Cameron of the University of Illinois and Allan Dennis, former double bass professor at the University of Wisconsin and the MYA executive director, were both in the audience, so you’ll hear us refer to both of them a couple of times during the talk.

I left Curtis off of my list of schools putting out successful auditions, but of course that should be at the top of the list! My mistake.

Some of the questions from the audience are kind of hard to hear, you’ll get the gist of the question as soon as Trevor and I start talking again.

We talk about Don Greene’s excellent books on auditioning—all three are highly recommended:

201: Ira Gold on bow strokes, musical curiosity, and practicing techniques

National Symphony bassist and Peabody Institute faculty member Ira Gold is back for a “round two” interview!

We’re featuring National Symphony bassist and Peabody Institute faculty member Ira Gold on today’s episode. Ira was one of the very first interview guests for the podcast, and we spread it out over three episodes: 15, 18, and 43. This “round two” interview was conducted almost a decade after the first conversation, and Ira has been incredibly active with all sorts of new projects.

In this interview, we talk about physical fitness and how it helps with all aspects of life, making the transition to standing full-time, what Ira listens for on an audition committee, wanting to make music with people who share the same musical values, how being a “curious person” opens yourself up to new experiences in playing, practicing techniques, turning practice into puzzle solving, and many other topics.

We also talked about the three summer camps at which he’ll be teaching:

You can learn more about Ira and all his activities on his website. Enjoy!

180: Ian Hallas on winning a Lyric Opera bass section spot, effective excerpt practicing, and routines for audition success

Ian Hallas is the newest member of the Lyric Opera of Chicago double bass section

Today’s guest is Ian Hallas, the newest member of the double bass section of the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Ian successfully auditioned for Lyric in January of 2016 and joins a section with former Contrabass Conversations guests Greg Sarchet and Andrew Anderson. Ian studied with Paul Ellison at Rice University and David Allen Moore at the University of Southern California. Ian also happens to be a former student of mine!

We talk through the audition process for Lyric (number of rounds, the audition list, what he played in particular rounds), his routine in the days, weeks, and months approaching an audition, his previous auditions taken, books that have shaped his audition preparation, and advice for people embarking upon the audition trail. Enjoy!

176: Andrew Raciti on living in Australia, studying with Paul Ellison, and helpful student mindsets

Milwaukee Symphony acting principal bass and Northwestern University double bass faculty member Andrew Raciti

We are featuring Andrew Raciti on this week’s show. Andy 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.

We talk about Andy’s experiences growing up in Milwaukee, studying at UW-Madison, studying with Paul at Rice, the Sydney Symphony, the Northwestern University bass studio, how Andy approaches lessons, the Laborie endpin, his Tester bass, and several other topics. We also feature excerpts from Zivojin Glisic’s Concerto for Double Bass and String Orchestra with Andy and the University of Wisconsin-Madison Chamber Orchestra. Enjoy!

About Andrew:

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.

175: Ju-Fang Liu on growing up in Taiwan, the path from student to principal bassist, and a love of teaching

Indianapolis Symphony principal bassist Ju-Fang Liu

Today’s episode features Indianapolis Symphony principal bassist Ju-Fang Liu. We had a great conversation about growing up in Taiwan, her years studying at the Interlochen Arts Academy and at Indiana University with Lawrence Hurst and Bruce Bransby, her time in New World, teaching, playing jazz, studying bass overseas, and several other topics.

We also feature excerpts from her wonderful solo album, which I highly recommend checking out—it really is bass playing at its finest. Enjoy!

About Ju-Fang:

Ju-Fang Liu was appointed Principal Bass of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra by Maestro Mario Venzago in 2003, shortly after receiving her bachelor and master’s degrees in double bass performance from Indiana University. There she studied with notable bass pedagogues Bruce Bransby and Larry Hurst. In addition, she has worked with other internationally-known teachers such as Edwin Barker, Edger Meyer, Harold Robinson, Stuart Stankey, Lawrence Wolf and Tim Cobb.

Ms. Liu’s musical interests encompass all aspects of musical performance. She was a repeat performer in the world-renowned Marlboro Music Festival working with the top chamber music professionals of our time as well as performing in the Aspen and Tanglewood Music Festivals. A sensitive and thoughtful performer, she is constantly in demand in Indianapolis’ various chamber music venues.

Ju-Fang has been a finalist for the Boston Symphony as well as for the Atlanta Symphony Principal position in 2014, and has appeared with the Chicago Symphony. In addition, she has performed as co-principal with the New World Symphony. Her solo concerto performances have included the Bottesini, Koussevitzky and Tubin concerti, the latter performed under the baton of Maestro Venzago. She is also the first performer to win both the Solo and Orchestral Categories (Adult/Professional) of the International Society of Bassists competitions.

Ju-Fang has always had a serious interest in teaching and pedagogy and has previously taught at DePauw University and Indiana University. She joined the faculty of the Butler University School of Music in Indianapolis in 2014. Ms. Liu has given master classes in Columbia, working with the Filarmónica Joven de Colombia and has been a guest artist at the Taipei National School of the Arts and the Beijing Central Conservatory and other conservatories in China and Taiwan, performing recitals and giving classes.

Always seeking to improve her musical scope, Ju-Fang was awarded a Creative Renewal Grant from the Arts Council of Indianapolis and has added the electric bass and jazz study to her resume. Her solo cd is available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/JuFangLiu.