Contrabass Conversations

Contrabass Conversations

double bass podcast

1084: The Artemis Bass Initiative with Nina DeCesare

Today’s podcast features a conversation with Nina DeCesare about The Artemis Bass Initiative, an organization dedicated to advancing the careers of women and nonbinary bassists through mentorship, orchestral training, and professional development.

We explore the origins of this project and discuss its key programs, including upcoming seminars, orchestral training, and mentorship opportunities.

To learn more, check out Nina’s past podcast appearances here and visit their website to subscribe to their newsletter. You can also support their mission through their crowdfunding campaign.

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Thank you to our sponsor!

Upton Bass – From Grammy Award winners and Philharmonic players like ME Max Zeugner of the New York Philharmonic, each Upton Bass is crafted with precision in Connecticut, USA, and built to last for generations.  Discover your perfect bass with Upton Bass today!

1078: The Legacy of Francois Rabbath, from Cincinnati 1978–95 to the World!

Join Barry Green, Frank Proto, Debbie Taylor and special guest Maggie Cox at their Bass Club Cincinnati live event honoring Francois Rabbath. This episode includes Zoom tributes from Gary Karr, Paul Ellison, Hal Robinson, Dennis Trembly, Patrick Neher, Johnny Hamil, and many more.

This episode also includes live performances from:

  • Renaud Garcia-Fons
  • Sandor Ostlund
  • Tracy Rowell
  • Etienne Lafrance
  • Nina DeCesare
  • Hans Sturm
  • Ted Botsford
  • Nicholas Walker

Check out the entire livestream of this event on YouTube here.

Subscribe to the podcast to get these interviews delivered to you automatically!

Connect with us:

Thank you to our sponsor!

Upton Bass – From Grammy Award winners and Philharmonic players like ME Max Zeugner of the New York Philharmonic, each Upton Bass is crafted with precision in Connecticut, USA, and built to last for generations.  Discover your perfect bass with Upton Bass today!

890: Nina DeCesare in San Francisco

Nina DeCesare was recently in San Francisco as the guest artist for the 2022 San Francisco Winter Bass Bash.  We talk about her recital, her recent faculty appointment to the Peabody Institute, and much more.

Enjoy. and be sure to follow Nina on her website, Instagram, and YouTube Channel!

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Check out our Online Sheet Music Store with 100+ wide-ranging titles for bassists.

Listen to Contrabass Conversations with our free app for iOS, Android, and Kindle.

Check out my Beginner’s Classical Bass course and Intermediate to Advanced Classical Bass course, available exclusively from Discover Double Bass.

Thank you to our sponsors!

Upton Bass String Instrument Company – Upton’s Karr Model Upton Double Bass represents an evolution of our popular first Karr model, refined and enhanced with further input from Gary Karr. Since its introduction, the Karr Model with its combination of comfort and tone has gained a loyal following with jazz and roots players. The slim, long “Karr neck” has even become a favorite of crossover electric players.

Dorico – Dorico 4 is here to supercharge your workflow. Steinberg’s latest major version of music notation and composition software for macOS & Windows is packed with powerful new features that are designed to accelerate your workflow and make it quicker and easier than ever to go from inspiration to finished product. If you’re a composer, arranger, or orchestrator, you’ll be delighted by the sophisticated new tools on offer – and there are improvements across the whole application, whatever your focus. For more information and to download a free 30-day trial  of Dorico 4 visit steinberg.net/dorico.

805: Nina DeCesare on moving to Baltimore

Nina DeCesare recently joined the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra in 2020 after spending several seasons playing with the Oregon Symphony.  She studied at Rice University with Paul Ellison and leads an active performing and teaching life outside of the orchestra.

We talk about what the pandemic has been like for her, auditioning for a job while holding down another job, how non-ideal audition circumstances can lead to positive results, moving across the country during the pandemic, life in the Baltimore Symphony, and much more.

Enjoy, and be sure to follow Nina on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube!

Subscribe to the podcast to get these interviews delivered to you automatically!

Check out our Online Sheet Music Store with 100+ wide-ranging titles for bassists.

Listen to Contrabass Conversations with our free app for iOS, Android, and Kindle.

Check out my Beginner’s Classical Bass course, available exclusively from Discover Double Bass.

Thank you to our sponsors!

Dorico – Dorico helps you to write music notation, automatically producing printed results of exceptional quality — and plays it back with breathtaking realism. It is easy enough for anyone to learn, yet has hundreds of advanced notations, features, options and sounds to satisfy even the most demanding professionals.  With its streamlined, natural user interface, students and those with less experience in scoring can compose and arrange straight into Dorico, making learning the language of music notation much faster and more intuitive. Editing and making changes — such as instrument, time signature or key — are straightforward, with the notation instantly and correctly adapting to include them, reinforcing the learning outcome.

Ear Trumpet Labs – They make hand-built mics out of Portland, OR and they have an excellent mic for upright bass called Nadine. The Nadine is a condenser mic with a clear natural sound and incredible feedback rejection. This mic is a completely new design — the head mounts in between the strings above the tailpiece with a rubber grommet, and the body securely straps to the tailpiece with velcro elastic. A 14-inch Mogami cable connects the two parts making it easy to place on any bass. It’s durable and holds up to the demanding needs of the instrument while offering excellent sound quality. Ear Trumpet Labs is offering a free t-shirt just for Contrabass listeners with the purchase of a mic, just visit EarTrumpetLabs.com/contrabass to claim yours and check out the Nadine!

Modacity – Are you a practice-savvy musician? Get Modacity – the music practice app that organizes, focuses, and tracks your progress.  Recorder… metronome… tone generator… timer… note taking… Do away with the random assortment of music practice apps in your arsenal. Modacity™ combines all the tools you need into one easy to use, music practice tool.  Organize, focus, and reflect on your practice – motivating you to increase retention in less time.  Modacity has a special offer for Contrabass Conversations listeners that includes lifetime access to the app.

Contrabass Conversations production team:

252: Nina DeCesare on injuries, auditioning, and George Vance

Nina DeCesare

Nina DeCesare‘s creative musical quest is inspiring.

First, she won the 14 and under International Society of Bassists solo competition. Then she won it again for the 15-18 division.

She studied at Rice University, Tanglewood, and Domaine Forget. Also, she won a scholarship to study with François Rabbath in Paris. Nina ended her time at Rice by winning a position with the Oregon Symphony.

She has done more in her brief career than many do in their entire life.

But it hasn’t always been easy for her.

In fact, she went through a serious playing injury during her time at Rice University.

Her bass playing ground to a halt for months.

But through careful analysis, she changed her approach to the bass. She problem-solved her way out of the injury and changed her approach to the bass in the process.

We talk about what it was like studying with George Vance and Paul Ellison, playing in Portland bars, thoughts on training as a soloist versus as an orchestra player, and much more!

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Links to check out:

Nina’s Website

Nina’s YouTube Channel

How an Injury Saved my Playing (blog post by Nina)

Too many young double bassists prioritise solo technique over orchestral expertise (by Chi-Chi Nwanoku – from The Strad)