double bass podcast
photos by Jack Unzicker
We’re featuring thoughts and playing from the four 2017 Bradetich Competition finalists on today’s episode:
Check out all four of these players in their semi-final and final rounds on YouTube.
Midsummer’s Music Festival members Jason Heath, Walter Preucil, and Elizandro Garcia-Montoya
Today’s episode is a live performance of Jon Deak’s quirky quintet Lucy and the Count: Love Dreams from Transylvania. Written in 1981, this is a theater piece divided into three scenes featuring the solo bass in a dramatic, virtuoso role. In the first scene, you can hear the creaking of the ship morph into a dramatic first theme. The second scene is a dinner party and features each instrument “talking” during a dinner party. The words that the instrumentalists are intended to imitate are written in the parts along with the contours of the speech, making for some crazy sonic effects. The third scene portrays a ruined chapel with a coffin containing the Count. The Count turns into a bat and visits Lucy in a particularly twisted finale.
This performance was recorded live at the Midsummer’s Music Festival for their Big Top Door County 25th Anniversary concert. I’ve had the pleasure of playing with this fine ensemble for the past decade, and it was a real treat to get to perform this soloistic work with them!
Lucy and the Count: Love Dreams from Transylvania
Live Performance: July 12, 2015
David Perry and Stephanie Preucil, violins
Allyson Fleck, viola
Walter Preucil, cello
Jason Heath, bass
Alan Kopischke, narrator
Purchase parts through J.W. Pepper
Recording by Steve Lewis
Today’s episode is a tribute to bassist, film composer, and conductor Terry Plumeri, who was found murdered in his home in Florida on April 1st of this year. This episode features comments from former Terry Plumeri student Eric Swanson plus some recordings of Terry performing and conducting. Learn more about Terry’s bass playing in this For Bass Players Only article.
Tracks featured:
bassist, composer, and conductor Terry Plumeri died on March 31, 2016
Elgin Symphony assistant principal bassist and DePaul University faculty member Jeremy Attanaseo
I’m thrilled to present this complete performance of the Prokofiev Quintet featuring DePaul University faculty member Jeremy Attanaseo on double bass. This performance was broadcast live in February on the radio in Chicago with the International Chamber Artists. I’ve known Jeremy for years—we both play in the Elgin Symphony and used to play in a bass quartet along with Michael Hovnanian of the Chicago Symphony. Jeremy’s a great guy and a great bassist, and I know that you’ll enjoy this performance of one of the greatest pieces in the double bass chamber repertoire!
Violin: Ellen McSweeney
Viola: Dominic Johnson
Bass: Jeremy Attanaseo
Clarinet: John Bruce Yeh
Oboe: Anna Velzo
Italian contrabassist Federico Marchesano
This is an all-music episode of Contrabass Conversations featuring Italian bassist Federico Marchesano and tracks from his recent release on the Solitunes label titled The Inner Bass.
