Recent content by mattgray

Hi all, After taking a break from the bass, I'd like to get back into it but need a string with light tension so I can incrementally get my left hand strength back. I've heard that Corellis are good for this - I'm not concerned about getting a big heavy tone back at this point, but rather a...

The idea he's referring to is that most conductors 'see' forte as having fast strokes in the bass section. Where I imagine this comes from is a reaction to watching violinists playing off-string strokes - the action appears fast, but the actual contact with the string is balanced relative to the...

If you're itching and feeling like a road trip, Mario Lamarre in Montreal (Quebec, Canada) is consistently praised for his set-up work. Another option (whose work I have not seen but would imagine to be a good bet) would be Nick Lloyd in Cincinnati, OH. I've played on several of his basses and...

Explore both ideas. Realize that regardless of if you're standing or sitting, playing the bass is ultimately an unnatural action and each way is imperfect. Try standing with a straight pin, bent pin, sitting with a high stool, low stool, etc. Eventually you'll come up with a formula that works...

At the end of the day you have to ask yourself what kind of an experience are you looking for - something which takes you out of your comfort zone, or one which will be as musically fulfilling (and challenging) as possible? You have a very wide spread and you should probably ask yourself a...

One benefit I've heard of sitting with a bent pin is that less of the bass's actual weight is on you/your left thigh, so it will feel 'lighter' than playing with a straight pin due to the changing of the center of gravity. I can't personally attest to this (since my bass still isn't drilled) but...

Alpine Symphony is just so well-composed, I can't get enough of it. It's rewarding to play both for its own merit as a bass part as well as inclusion with the rest of the string section.

I'm gonna go out on a limb and suggest: Maybe they didn't like what they heard that day. No matter what, an orchestra doesn't hold an audition looking to not hire anyone. Usually, it's for good reason.

Do you think he rosins his strings? [hearsay experience on Dave rosining his strings through a friend of a friend's dog of a friend] He must be using Corelli Extra-Lights.

Does that fee still include housing/meal plan?

If only we could jump on to the lunar calendar, then EVERYONE would be a winner!

I think it's just a result of a very limited line of thinking, usually influenced by audition 'jockeys' who get more wrapped up in the competition than the actual music. Having been in that situation myself, I think you do feel validated because you see one of your colleagues achieve something...

For all you college students out there as well, it's also up on the Naxos Music Library.

Canadians are impervious to American sarcasm over the internets. It's science.

Go to a school where you can see yourself learning for the next 4-5 years - think back to how you saw high school as a freshman, and what you think of it now. The same amount of change within you will happen at college. Think the same thing about the teachers you'll be learning from. Get in...