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Contrabass Conversations

Contrabass Conversations

double bass podcast

1005: Lauren Pierce on Scales

Lauren Pierce has written a new book titled Scales, Scales, Scales: A Progressive Technical Journey for the Double Bass.  We dig into the inspiration for this book and catch up with Lauren and her current projects in this wide-ranging conversation.

Check out her new book here, and be sure to give Lauren a follow on Instagram and YouTube!

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Thank you to our sponsors!

Carnegie Mellon University Double Bass Studio – The School of Music at CMU highly values each and every individual who wants to be a part of an innovative fine arts community immersed in a top research university. 

Every week each student receives private lessons and participates in a solo class with Micah Howard. Peter Guild, another member of the PSO, teaches Orchestral Literature and Repertoire weekly. They encourage students to reach out to the great bassists in their area for lessons and direction. Many of the bassists from all of the city’s ensembles are more than willing to lend a hand. Every year members of the Symphony, the Opera and the Ballet give classes and offer our students individual attention. Click here to visit Micah’s website and to sign up for a free online trial lesson.

Dorico – Unlock Dorico for iPad – For Life! Want to enjoy all of Dorico for iPad’s subscription-only features – including support for unlimited players, freehand annotations in Read mode with Apple Pencil, support for third-party Audio Unit plug-ins, and much more – but don’t want to pay a monthly or annual fee? Dorico for iPad now provides a lifetime unlock option, so you can access all current and future subscription-only features for a single, one-off in-app purchase. Visit the App Store today and unlock Dorico for iPad for life!

  • theme music by Eric Hochberg
https://traffic.libsyn.com/contrabassconversations/Lauren_Pierce_scales_mixdown.mp3

686: Dennis Whittaker on Incredibly Useful Exercises

Houston Grand Opera principal bassist and University of Houston bass faculty Dennis Whittaker recently launched a YouTube Channel called Incredibly Useful Exercises.

Dennis has 45 of his favorite exercises that he is putting on YouTube and also into a series of 16 volumes plus an appendix.  He rates each exercise on a scale of 1-5 for the following attributes:

  • Control
  • Mindfulness
  • Expression
  • Power
  • Velocity
  • Coordination
  • Endurance

We dig into his inspiration for the project, efficiency and mindfulness in practicing, and much more.  Enjoy!

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

I’d also like to thank the sponsors who have supported us over the months and years. If you’d like to help the bass community recover as quickly as possible, consider visiting their site and making a purchase: 

  • D’Addario Strings
  • Upton Bass
  • The Bass Violin Shop
  • Steve Swan String Bass
  • Kolstein Music
  • A440 Violin Shop
  • Modacity

Contrabass Conversations production team:

  • Jason Heath, host
  • Michael Cooper and Steve Hinchey, audio editing
  • Mitch Moehring, audio engineer
  • Trevor Jones, publication and promotion
  • Krista Kopper, archival and cataloging

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

http://traffic.libsyn.com/contrabassconversations/686_-_Dennis_Whittaker_-_4_9_20_8.09_AM.mp3
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