Contrabass Conversations

Contrabass Conversations

double bass podcast

477: Christian McBride

What a pleasure to chat with Christian McBride for the podcast!  Christian just won his sixth Grammy for the Christian McBride Big Band’s new album Bringin’ It, and he has a course available titled Fundamentals of Jazz Bass and Beyond.

Christian and I dig into all kinds of topics (including many suggestions from podcast listeners!), like:

  • the story behind his Benedict Puglisi bass
  • what Christian looks for in a bass setup
  • hearing Ray Brown play live for the first time
  • Christian’s heartwarming story about James Brown from The Moth
  • staying in shape on the road
  • working his bow chops

…and much more!

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

Contrabass Conversations is sponsored by:

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.

D’Addario Strings

This episode is brought to you by D’Addario Strings! Check out their Zyex strings, which are synthetic core strings that produce an extremely warm, rich sound. Get the sound and feel of gut strings with more evenness, projection and stability than real gut.

A440 Violin Shop

An institution in the Roscoe Village neighborhood for over 20 years, A440‘s commitment to fairness and value means that we have many satisfied customers from the local, national, and international string playing communities. Our clients include major symphony orchestras, professional orchestra and chamber music players, aspiring students, amateur adult players, all kinds of fiddlers, jazz and commercial musicians, university music departments, and public schools.

Contrabass Conversations production team:

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475: The Bass Player’s Guide to the Trio

When I heard that Danny Ziemann was filming courses for Discover Double Bass, I couldn’t wait to sit down with Danny and Discover Double Bass founder Geoff Chalmers to learn more details about the project.

Both Danny and Geoff are past podcast guests, and they happen to be two of my favorite people in the bass world.  This new course is called The Bass Player’s Guide to the Trio.  It’s set to launch on April 24th, and you will be able to pick it up at disoverdoublebass.com.

Learn more about what’s offered in this new course, what it’s like filming a course like this, what both Geoff and Danny like about the online course learning environment, and more!Continue Reading …

470: Dan Chmielinski on Jazz at Juilliard

I’ve known Dan Chmielinski for over a decade, and it has been a real pleasure watching his career unfold.  Dan grew up in metro Chicago, and I had the privilege of being his bass teacher through middle and high school.   

Dan started playing bass at age 3 with Virginia Dixon, and he has one of the most natural and fluid approaches to the bass that I’ve ever seen.  After high school, Dan attended Juilliard for for his bachelor’s and master’s degrees, whee he studied with Ron Carter.

Dan has toured the world, performing with artists such as Joey Alexander, Wynton Marsalis, The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, and Jeff “Tain” Watts.  His main project right now is Four by Four.  Here’s a link to their trailer on YouTube.

We dig into all kinds of topics:

  • what the Juilliard jazz studies audition is like (hint: it’s intense!)
  • the Richard Davis Foundation Conference – Dan attended as a student from ages 3-18, and he is now a faculty member
  • teaching for the Jazz at Lincoln Center Jazz for Young People Program
  • the focus required to develop a career as a New York City jazz bassist
  • advice for younger musicians

Be sure to follow Dan on Instagram to keep up to date with his latest activities!

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

Contrabass Conversations is sponsored by:

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.

D’Addario Strings

This episode is brought to you by D’Addario Strings! Check out their Helicore strings, which are are designed, engineered, and crafted at the D’Addario string factory in New York and come in orchestral, hybrid, pizzicato, and solo string sets.

A440 Violin Shop

An institution in the Roscoe Village neighborhood for over 20 years, A440‘s commitment to fairness and value means that we have many satisfied customers from the local, national, and international string playing communities. Our clients include major symphony orchestras, professional orchestra and chamber music players, aspiring students, amateur adult players, all kinds of fiddlers, jazz and commercial musicians, university music departments, and public schools.

Contrabass Conversations production team:

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

467: Chuck Israels on Bill Evans and a life in music

I had the opportunity to spend some time with Chuck Israels during my recent trip to Portland, Oregon.  In fact, we even took a trip together to visit Seth Kimmel’s shop in Eugene!

Both Chuck and Seth are past podcast guests, and I thought that a rebroadcast of my conversation with Chuck was in order.  Chuck and I dig into a wide range of topics, including:

  • meeting Charlie Mingus
  • playing with Bill Evans
  • Bill’s use of rhythm
  • the importance of having concrete and specific role models
  • Balinese wood carving
  • not creating your own artistic world without the traditions that preceded you
  • the perils of the “parallel case”
  • commonalities among how great artists approach their craft

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

Contrabass Conversations is sponsored by:

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.

D’Addario Strings

This episode is brought to you by D’Addario Strings! Check out their Helicore strings, which are are designed, engineered, and crafted at the D’Addario string factory in New York and come in orchestral, hybrid, pizzicato, and solo string sets.

Contrabass Conversations production team:

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