- Jul 28, 2009
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Here's an interesting article. It includes an interview with Paul Zibits of the Pacific Symphony. Also has some insight from musicians from the LA Phil and LA Opera.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/music/la-ca-musicians-20101226,0,5967344.story
Paul Zibits, bass
Now bassist and personnel manager for the Pacific Symphony, Chicago native Paul Zibits, 59, has been an active studio musician since moving to California in 1979.
"I learned early on that music was what I was good at," Zibits said. "I was lucky to be good enough to make a living with it."
A father of two boys and husband to Kimiyo Takeya (a violinist in the Pacific Symphony), Zibits has seen his musical abilities extend beyond the stage and onto the big screen: He has performed on the scores of more than 500 motion pictures, including "Titanic," "Spider-Man," "Jurassic Park" and the first"Pirates of the Caribbean" film.
When he's not performing onstage or in a movie theater (or tweeting as @pzibits) Zibits can be found at the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music at Cal State Long Beach, where he teaches double bass.
For the few minutes (or hours) outside of that, he's mastering his poker face.
The hands of professional bass player Paul Zibits are in a tight grip.
Tap, click, tap, click.
There are no music sheets around and that humming isn't the sound of fingers plucking strings. The chorus comes courtesy of tapping chips at work during a game at one of the monthly poker nights Zibits hosts at his home in Long Beach.
Mastering music and mastering poker go hand in hand, he said.
"It's all about technique. In music, you learn an instrument's scales and positions. With poker, you become skilled at learning when to bet certain hands, when to raise hands, and your position at the table."
In 1999, he outplayed 233 others to finish seventh in the World Series of Poker's $2,500 buy-in, hold-'em tournament held at Binion's Horseshoe in Las Vegas — pocketing nearly $15,000 for two days' work. At this year's tournament, he pocketed just over $3,000. Not bad, considering that section musicians with the Pacific Symphony would earn about $32,775 if they were to play every concert and rehearsal offered for a year, according to the orchestra's site.
During off hours, Zibits often can be found among the herd at Commerce Casino — the "mecca of poker" as he refers to it — or Hawaiian Gardens Casino. In 2006, he became a published author and editor of the book "Poker Face 2."
"Poker is fun … and it can be a great stress reliever," Zibits said. "But it can be exhausting at times. Your mind is racing, constantly analyzing everything. It's like playing a Mahler symphony. Sometimes you need a vacation from it."
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/music/la-ca-musicians-20101226,0,5967344.story
Paul Zibits, bass
Now bassist and personnel manager for the Pacific Symphony, Chicago native Paul Zibits, 59, has been an active studio musician since moving to California in 1979.
"I learned early on that music was what I was good at," Zibits said. "I was lucky to be good enough to make a living with it."
A father of two boys and husband to Kimiyo Takeya (a violinist in the Pacific Symphony), Zibits has seen his musical abilities extend beyond the stage and onto the big screen: He has performed on the scores of more than 500 motion pictures, including "Titanic," "Spider-Man," "Jurassic Park" and the first"Pirates of the Caribbean" film.
When he's not performing onstage or in a movie theater (or tweeting as @pzibits) Zibits can be found at the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music at Cal State Long Beach, where he teaches double bass.
For the few minutes (or hours) outside of that, he's mastering his poker face.
The hands of professional bass player Paul Zibits are in a tight grip.
Tap, click, tap, click.
There are no music sheets around and that humming isn't the sound of fingers plucking strings. The chorus comes courtesy of tapping chips at work during a game at one of the monthly poker nights Zibits hosts at his home in Long Beach.
Mastering music and mastering poker go hand in hand, he said.
"It's all about technique. In music, you learn an instrument's scales and positions. With poker, you become skilled at learning when to bet certain hands, when to raise hands, and your position at the table."
In 1999, he outplayed 233 others to finish seventh in the World Series of Poker's $2,500 buy-in, hold-'em tournament held at Binion's Horseshoe in Las Vegas — pocketing nearly $15,000 for two days' work. At this year's tournament, he pocketed just over $3,000. Not bad, considering that section musicians with the Pacific Symphony would earn about $32,775 if they were to play every concert and rehearsal offered for a year, according to the orchestra's site.
During off hours, Zibits often can be found among the herd at Commerce Casino — the "mecca of poker" as he refers to it — or Hawaiian Gardens Casino. In 2006, he became a published author and editor of the book "Poker Face 2."
"Poker is fun … and it can be a great stress reliever," Zibits said. "But it can be exhausting at times. Your mind is racing, constantly analyzing everything. It's like playing a Mahler symphony. Sometimes you need a vacation from it."
