Contrabass Conversations

Contrabass Conversations

double bass podcast

1022: Steve Husted on San Francisco, Austin, and his new album

Steve Husted began his musical journey at the ripe old age of 6. From there, he was always involved in everything musical, from school band to private instruction to playing at local parties for friends. At age 15, Steven moved from CT. to San Francisco, where he jumped head first into the study of jazz. By the time Steven was 23, he was one of the top call bassists in the San Francisco Bay Area, including 6 years teaching at the acclaimed Stanford Jazz Workshop. Steven has played with many jazz greats, including Kenny Burrell, Billy Higgins, and Vince Wallace. Now residing in Austin, TX, Steven remains an in-demand bassist/composer and band leader.

We talk about growing up in San Francisco, his new album Standards and Then Some, how life led hi to move to Austin, and much more.  Enjoy, and be sure to check out Steve’s cool new album and also follow him on Instagram and his website!

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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.

  • theme music by Eric Hochberg
  • 00:00 Introduction and Guest Introduction
  • 00:43 Conversation with Steve Husted
  • 00:55 Discussing San Francisco and Austin Music Scenes
  • 06:14 Reflecting on the Impact of the Pandemic
  • 13:05 Sponsor Shoutout: Carnegie Mellon University
  • 14:27 Continuing the Conversation: Life in Austin and Music Career
  • 25:54 Discussing the Stanford Jazz Workshop
  • 30:45 The Unpredictability of a Music Career
  • 31:17 The Challenges of Being a Musician
  • 31:32 The Impact of Internet on Music Industry
  • 32:03 The Art of Bass Playing
  • 32:40 The Importance of Technique in Playing Instruments
  • 32:54 The Role of Internet in Learning Music
  • 33:28 The Difference Between Arco Playing and Pizzicato in Jazz
  • 33:46 The Struggles of Learning Classical Music
  • 34:20 The Fear of Performing Solo
  • 35:25 The Mastery of Arco Jazz
  • 35:33 The Influence of Christian McBride in Arco Playing
  • 36:18 The Art of Playing Double Bass
  • 37:06 The Challenges of Playing Different Instruments
  • 39:09 The Importance of the Right Equipment in Music
  • 39:18 The Influence of Heavy Metal in Bass Playing
  • 56:16 The Experience of Touring with Different Bands
  • 01:02:55 The Journey of Podcasting

951: Richard Andersson on his jazz bass journey

Richard Andersson is a Danish/Faroese/Icelandic bass player and composer based in Copenhagen, Denmark.  He has gained great recognition for his work as a composer and bass player in the modern jazz field and has released several albums as a bandleader with Danish and international musicians.

We talk about his musical background, studies in New York City, what it’s like being a jazz musician in Denmark, his recent album Inviting, and much more.

Enjoy, and be sure to follow Richard on his website, Spotify, bandcamp, and YouTube!

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Connect with us:

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

Check out my Beginner’s Classical Bass course and Intermediate to Advanced Classical Bass course, available exclusively from Discover Double Bass.

Thank you to our sponsors!

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.

Carnegie Mellon University Double Bass Studio – CMU is dedicated to helping each student achieve their goals as a musician. 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!

878: Orchestra vs Jazz Pizz

Today’s deep-dive takes a look at the similarities and differences between orchestral and jazz pizzicato—enjoy!

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Check out our Online Sheet Music Store with 100+ wide-ranging titles for bassists.

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

Check out my Beginner’s Classical Bass course and Intermediate to Advanced Classical Bass course, available exclusively from Discover Double Bass.

Thank you to our sponsors!

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.

Dorico – Dorico 4 is here to supercharge your workflow. Steinberg’s latest major version of music notation and composition software for macOS & Windows is packed with powerful new features that are designed to accelerate your workflow and make it quicker and easier than ever to go from inspiration to finished product. If you’re a composer, arranger or orchestrator, you’ll be delighted by the sophisticated new tools on offer – and there are improvements across the whole application, whatever your focus. For more information and to download a free 30-day trial  of Dorico 4 visit steinberg.net/dorico.

Carnegie Mellon University Double Bass Studio – CMU is dedicated to helping each student achieve their goals as a musician. 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.

Contrabass Conversations production team:

735: Chris Lightcap on forging a path in jazz

Chris Lightcap is a bassist and composer with over 80 album credits and six critically acclaimed albums of original music.  Chris is known for his work with Marc Ribot, Regina Carter, Craig Taborn, and many other noted artists, and his 2019 album SuperBigmouth was listed by Rolling Stone in their Best Jazz of 2019 article.

We dig into Chris’ early years, his circuitous path through the music world, his appearance on the burning ambulance podcast, and much more.

Enjoy, and be sure to check out Chris and his great albums on his website and follow along with him on Facebook snd Instagram!

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

Check out my Beginner’s Classical Bass course, available exclusively from Discover Double Bass!

Contrabass Conversations production team:

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680: Working as a Jazz Bassist

Today’s episode features the following past podcast guests on the topic of what it’s like working these days as a jazz bassist:

Listen to more “best of” episodes at contrabassconversations.com/highlights.

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

Contrabass Conversations is sponsored by:

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.

Steve Swan String Bass

Steve Swan String Bass features the West Coast’s largest selection of double basses between Los Angeles and Canada.  Located in Burlingame, just south of San Francisco, their large retail showroom holds about 70 basses on display. Their new basses all feature professional setups and come with a cover at no additional cost. Used and consignment instruments receive any needed repairs and upgrades before getting a display position on the sales floor.

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.

The Bass Violin Shop

The Bass Violin Shop offers the Southeast’s largest inventory of laminate, hybrid and carved double basses. Whether you are in search of the best entry-level laminate, or a fine pedigree instrument, there is always a unique selection ready for you to try. Trade-ins and consignments welcome!

Modacity

Modacity is a practicing app that helps musicians be more effective at practice.  They help you get the results you want, while keeping you encouraged and motivated to stick with it and reach those goals – however big, or small, they may be.  

Kolstein Music

The Samuel Kolstein Violin Shop was founded by Samuel Kolstein in 1943 as a Violin and Bow making establishment in Brooklyn, New York. Now on Long Island, over 60 years later, Kolstein’s has built a proud reputation for quality, craftsmanship and expertise in both the manufacture and repair of a whole range of stringed instruments, and has expanded to a staff of twelve experts in restoration, marketing and production.

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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