Contrabass Conversations

Contrabass Conversations

double bass podcast

724: Jonathan Haskell reflects on new directions

I had a wonderful conversation with Jonathan Haskell a few years ago, and a lot has changed in his life since then.

He recently retired from L’Orchestre De La Suisse Romande in Switzerland, and he has been diving deep into the world of contemporary music.  He also wrote a thoughtful article for the Chicago Tribune about the conflicting emotions surrounding retiring after 40 years on the job.

We talk about a wide range of topics, including diving into contemporary music, how he approaches learning a piece, the bass’ role in contemporary ensembles, how he has been handling the pandemic, and much more.

I hope you enjoy this wide-ranging conversations from one of the most interesting musicians I know!

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723: T. Alan Stewart on his musical journey

T. Alan Stewart wears many musical hats in the Baltimore/Washington DC area.  

In addition to serving as principal bass with the Williamsburg Symphony and Roanoke Symphony, Alan has performed with the Baltimore Opera, National Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, Spoleto Festival, Alexander Schnieder String Orchestra; and many other ensembles in the area.

We cover a lot of ground in this conversation, digging into topics like Alan’s path through the music world, his time in the New World Symphony and subsequently working with Mstislav Rostropovich and the National Symphony, audition preparation, The Artist’s Way, diversity and inclusion in classical music, freelance life, and much more.

I hope you enjoy Alan’s thoughtful insights and perspectives, and I can’t wait to spend some more time with him in the future!

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722: Andrea Beyer on auditions and teaching

Andrea Beyer is a bassist, teacher, and advocate for social growth.  Having recently finished up three years with the New World Symphony, Andrea has relocated to Austin, Texas.  

She recently started blogging for AuditionCafe.com, where she has been focusing on how all kinds of musicians are handling the pandemic and lockdown.  Andrea also recently asked me to write a piece for the blog, which was a pleasure for me to do.

We talk about her background, the teaching and performing that she has done in Mexico, El Salvador, Uruguay, Bolivia, and other countries, the work that she does for the MusAid Organization, how she has been handling the pandemic, and much more.

Enjoy, and be sure to follow Andrea and her great work on AuditionCafe.com and Instagram!

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721: Gahlord Dewald on water tank acoustics

It was great to connect with Gahlord Dewald about his latest album Coherent Light Enclosed Without.  This album was recorded at The Tank Center for Sonic Arts on a hill above the town of Rangely, Colorado.

We talk about this fascinating performance venue, how Gahlord found himself heading to The Tank for this project, what it’s like preparing to record in such a unique acoustic space, and much more.  Enjoy, and measure to follow Gahlord on YouTube and check out this new album here!

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720: Giovanni Sanguineti on visual composition

It was great to connect with Giovanni Sanguineti for the podcast.  

We start off talking about an online workshop that past podcast guest Danny Ziemann has been doing online.  Giovanni is obsessed with learning and growing as a player, and we dig into a number of resources, including Dennis Whittaker’s new series Incredibly Useful Exercises for Double Bass.

We also talk about the time we spent together in Lucca, Giovanni’s latest album Remember The Future, how he has been handling the pandemic, his visual approach to composition, and much more.  Enjoy!

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Contrabass Conversations production team:

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