Bass and Violin Duets

[MikeD1687]

Does anyone have any ideas of where I can find, or what some good bass and violin duets are?

My friend and I are looking to start playing together, but I have no clue where to look for material, or what to look for.

Thanks!

[reedo35]

What playing level are you looking for? Beginner, intermediate, or advanced?

[Cory Palmer]

The J.S Bach two part inventions and Beethoven's duet with obligato eyeglasses are both good. You can get them from Lemur. http://www.lemurmusic.com/

If you are looking for a real challenge you can try the Bottesini Grand Duo.

[Stingrayz]

How about this one ? im not sure if it qualifies as a duet or not, but it is pretty cool

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wIqBtKJ2T_M

kinda like a battle or something

[MikeD1687]

Originally Posted by reedo35

What playing level are you looking for? Beginner, intermediate, or advanced?

I think we're probably looking to stay safe with begginer to intermediate level pieces right now.

With the Bach inventions, can I get them scored for specifically violin and bass? I love the Bach inventions, but I wasn't sure where to find them for bass and violin since it seems like that duet is sort of rare. More bass and cello pieces are available.

How should I search? When I look at Lemur, I get so lost in the vast amount of music they have...

Any help is appreciated.

Thank you

[bejoyous]

Just pick any violin sonata or nice melody that has a good bass line (Air on the G String - Bach for ex.) and play that. It'll sound just fine.

[sibass89]

Lemur has the Bach inventions for both Bass and Violin and Bass and Viola. They also have the 3 part inventions. While you're there just search under bass and other instruments and you will find a lot of things for bass and violin.

-Nick

[MikeD1687]

Alright, thanks everyone.

On another note...

Has anyone done a bass violin duet?

How did it sound? What did you play?

[Justin K-ski]

This is not technically a "duet" but it is as good as bass and violin playing gets.

http://www.angelfire.com/music6/kbass/

My favorite violin and bass duet is Ranjbaran's Dance of Life written for Eugene Levinson and his son Gary Levinson. There's a recording of it on Eugene Levinson's New York Legends CD on Cala. I haven't seen the music but it sounds very difficult. Also, I'm lucky enough to have Ranjbaran as my theory teacher and he's a very nice man and great teacher.

[jsbarber]

I have never performed a DB duo but here are some pieces that you can buy. I like this source, he has some interesting stuff; quite a bit by Teppo Hauta-aho and other contemporary composers. Also, David Heyes is a bassist so he tends to provide a higher proportion of DB music.

http://www.recitalmusic.info/bassduos.htm

Jim

Originally Posted by MikeD1687

Alright, thanks everyone.

On another note...

Has anyone done a bass violin duet?

How did it sound? What did you play?

[dansolobass]

I've played with many violinists and the combination of bass and violin isn't always the most rewarding. Usually if you want a good outcome you need to be creative with music because not a lot is in print for purchase. I've played the inventions with violin and they sound alright but the difference in the level of playing for the bass parts and violin parts is incredibly huge. The violin almost never has to leave first position and we have to work ridiculously hard to keep up. Usually the violinist will get bored. If I read duets with violin, I usually read music for other instrumentation. I've read music for woodwinds, brass, and strings, all in different combinations. Many work very well and are not that difficult. You could check out http://www.bridgingthegaponline.com. They do some neat things that work well and are well received.

[MikeD1687]

Originally Posted by dansolobass

I've played with many violinists and the combination of bass and violin isn't always the most rewarding. Usually if you want a good outcome you need to be creative with music because not a lot is in print for purchase. I've played the inventions with violin and they sound alright but the difference in the level of playing for the bass parts and violin parts is incredibly huge. The violin almost never has to leave first position and we have to work ridiculously hard to keep up. Usually the violinist will get bored. If I read duets with violin, I usually read music for other instrumentation. I've read music for woodwinds, brass, and strings, all in different combinations. Many work very well and are not that difficult. You could check out http://www.bridgingthegaponline.com. They do some neat things that work well and are well received.

Interesting about the inventions; that might not be a big deal though. the violinist is just getting back into playing, and he might appreciate that for a bit...Do you have any specific pieces you'd suggest that worked particularly well?

[pat1151]

Friedrich Dotzauer has a duet for violin and cello... you could arrange it for violin and bass... it won't be hard to do at all... I arranged it for flute and bass and it sounds great! It's a nice little piece.. 2 or 3 movements I believe.