Contrabass Conversations

Contrabass Conversations

double bass podcast

489: Eric Hansen on teaching and learning

I was driving from Santa Cruz to San Jose with Barry Green recently.  We were talking about folks I should connect with for the podcast, and Eric Hansen was the first person Barry suggested.  Eric teaches bass at Brigham Young University and is the former principal bassist of the Winnipeg Symphony.

Eric and I met in person for the first time in December of 2017 at the Midwest Clinic. He’s great guy with a fascinating musical background, and I had a blast chatting with him about all kinds of topics like:

  • how he got into conducting
  • ways in which conducting has informed his bass playing
  • studying with Eugene Levinson, Audrey Bush, and Hal Robinson
  • what motivates students

This is a fun and spirited conversation, and I know you’ll enjoy spending this time with Eric and learning about his unique path through the music world!

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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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486: James Ham on double bass innovations

James Ham is a legend in the double bass luthier world.  After a multifaceted background that landed him in Victoria, British Columbia, James Ham created a series of revolutionary designs for the double bass.

His first instrument was commissioned by Gary Karr after a deep analysis of the various positive and not-so-positive traits of the Karr-Koussevitzky bass, Jim created a marvelous instrument on which Gary Karr still plays.  In fact, Gary will only perform somewhere these days if there’s a Jim Ham bass waiting for him!  Here’s a photo of me with Gary and his lovely Jim Ham bass.

We dig into Jim’s adjustable and removable neck system, which eliminates the need for bridge adjusters.  We also talk about Jim’s founding of the Violin Society of America Double Bass Workshop at Oberlin.  We even dig into our shared South Dakota roots!

This is a great chat with a luthier that has had a big impact on the lives of many bass players.  Enjoy!

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:

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

485: Haruki Gonai on competitions

Fellow International Society of Bassists board member Marcel Villaflor suggested that I get in touch with high school junior Haruki Gonai about winning the Yonkers Philharmonic Concerto Competition.  Haruki is the first bassist ever to win this competition!

Haruki will be performing the Koussevitzky Concerto on Sunday May 20th, 2018 at 3:00 PM at Saunders Trades and Technical High School.  The ISB has also arranged for Haruki to perform the Koussevitzky Concerto on the Karr-Koussevitzky bass!

Learn about Haruki’s background, training, and hopes for the future in this interview—my first ever with a high school student!

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:

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

481: Ole Wilson on pickups

Ole Wilson is the CEO of Wilson Pickup Systems, which have been making the signature Wilson Pickup for double bass for over 34 years.  Wilson provided the first commercially available piezo pickup systems for the double bass back in the 1980s, and it has been used by artists like George Mraz, Gary Peacock, and John Patitucci.

We dig into the history of the pickup, how the company has branded out into other string instruments, how the pickup is installed, and more in this special gear-centric episode!

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.

Contrabass Conversations production team:

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

478: Cielito de Jesus

It was a pleasure to connect with Cielito de Jesus and chat about the vibrant double bass educational scene she has built in Southern California!

As the founder of the Rabbath Institute Los Angeles, Cielito has dedicated her career to teaching Vance-Rabbath pedagogy to middle and high school students throughout the Los Angeles area.  She works with over 60 bassists each week.

Cielito has worked with many of the world’s great bass teachers, including past podcast guests François Rabbath, Patrick Neher, and Thierry Barbé.  She’s a great person and is doing wonderful things for the double bass community.  Be sure to check out the Rabbath Institute Los Angeles for more information about this great event!

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:

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