Classical Masters Interview Series - Question 1
In the last few months at Discover Double Bass, while more of us are spending more time at home due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we have been working on a major new project. We aimed to create a free series of videos to educate, entertain and inspire the double bass community at this time. As we already have a wealth of insights from our fantastic faculty of tutors through their interviews, we reached out to more of the world’s best double bass classical soloists and asked them a series of questions. Their responses to the first question are in the video below.
This video features François Rabbath, Gary Karr, Renaud Garcia-Fons, Joel Quarrington, Edicson Ruiz, Lorraine Campet, Božo Paradžik, Roman Patkolo, Christine Hoock, Leon Bosch and DaXun Zhang! Find out more about the artists below, as well as links to the music they talk about.
Thank you to all the artists who have taken part in these videos, and to each of you watching at home. We hope that everyone in the double bass community is keeping safe.
Timecodes, subjects mentioned, artist bios and websties are listed below.
…and there’s more. Take a look out our other series, Legends of Jazz Bass which features John Patitucci, Ron Carter, Brian Bromberg, Chuck Israels, Robert Hurst, Larry Grenadier, Linda May Han Oh, John Clayton, Rufus Reid, and Carlos Henriquez. If you are a fan of jazz bass, be sure to check it out!
The videos in both interview series are listed here:
CLASSICAL MASTERS
Q1: What are you practicing right now?
Q2: Who did you study with and what did you learn from them?
Q3: What are your favourite solo pieces?
Q4: Can you recommend a favourite technical exercise?
Q5: What double bass, bow, and strings do you use?
LEGENDS OF JAZZ BASS
Q1: What are you practicing right now?
Q2: Who did you study with and what did you learn from them?
Q3: What have been some of your most memorable concerts?
Q4: Can you recommend a favourite exercise?
Q5: What gear are you currently using?
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TIMECODES AND LINKS
00:35 - Gary Karr
Ludwig van Beethoven, Romance in F major, Horn Sonata, G minor and D major Cello Sonatas
Aaron Copland, Sonata for Violin and Piano
Paul Hindemith, Double Bass Sonata
Akira Tana, Karatachi No Hana. Performance with Harmon Lewis.
10:16 - Renaud Garcia-Fons
Django Reinhardt, Nuages
Manuel de Falla
14:41 - DaXun Zhang
International Online Double Bass Summit
Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf, Double Bass Concerto
Big Fish and Begonia
Orchestral Excerpts
Johann Sebastian Bach, Six Cello Suites
17:17 - François Rabbath
Johann Sebastian Bach, Cello Suites
François Rabbath, New Technique for Double Bass
18:05 Božo Paradžik
Festival Ljubljana recital on August 12th, 2020.
20:08 - Joel Quarrington
Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Garden Scene
Giovanni Bottesini, Allegro Di Concerto, "Alla Mendelssohn"
Georg Matthias Monn, Cello Concerto
Johann Sebastian Bach, Six Cello Suites
25:42 - Roman Patkolo
Johannes Matthias Sperger, Double Bass Concertos
Pyotr Tchaikovsky, The Nutcracker Suite
26:36 - Christine Hoock
Adolf Mišek, Double Bass Sonata.
Giovanni Bottesini, Elegy
Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf, Double Bass Concerto
Franz Schubert, Arpeggione Sonata
Jean Françaix, Concerto pour Contrebasse et Orchestre
Manuel de Falla, Suite Populaire Espagnole
34:42 - Leon Bosch
Domenico Dragonetti, 12 Waltz for Double Bass
Pedro Valls, Humoresque
The South African Double Bass
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Sonata for Piano and Violin No. 21 in E minor, K. 304.
Ludwig van Beethoven, Horn Sonata in F major, Op. 17.
Franz Schubert, Arpeggione Sonata.
36:38 - Edicson Ruiz
Johann Sebastian Bach, Cello Suite #4 & #5
46:11 - Lorraine Campet
Edgar Meyer, El Cinco Real
Nicholas Walker, Chorale
Giovanni Bottesini, Concerto
Johann Sebastian Bach, Cello Suites
Edgar Meyer and Chris Thile, El Cinco Real. Performance with Lucas Henri.
ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES (IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE)
Gary Karr
garykarr.com
Gary Karr is one of our most loved soloists, educators and exponents of the double bass. Acclaimed as "the world's leading solo bassist" by Time Magazine, Gary was the first double bass soloist in history to make that pursuit a full-time career. Since his debut with Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic in 1962, Gary Karr has performed as a soloist with many of the world's best orchestras. His virtuosic technique, lyrical approach and ability to connect with an audience has forever changed the public perception of the double bass.
However, his influence extends beyond that of a player or educator, as in 1967 Gary Karr founded the International Society of Bassists. With over 3,000 members in over 40 countries, the ISB is an organisation dedicated to the double bass.
Renaud Garcia-Fons
renaudgarciafons.com
Renaud Garcia-Fons is a highly accomplished French double bassist and composer who studied under Rabbath at Conservatoire de Paris. He is recognised for his unique, melodic sound and is sometimes referred to as the “Paganini of the Bass” for his advancement of possibilities on the bass. Garcia-Fons has played with French double-bass ensemble L’Orchestre de Contrebasses and the Orchestre National de Jazz. He has released 15 solo albums and has played and recorded with artists across genres including jazz artists Jean-Louis Matinier, Sylvain Luc and Spanish flamenco artist, Gerardo Núñez.
DaXun Zhang
daxunzhang.com
DaXun Zhang is a double bassist from China who has performed worldwide as a soloist and was the youngest artist to win the ISB solo competition in 2001. He has performed extensively with Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble and has played with prominent orchestras including the Minnesota Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Lukes, the Tokyo Symphony and the Pacific Symphony. He has travelled the world with his diverse recital programs which include western classical music and Chinese folk music.
Francois Rabbath
artofthebow.com
A renowned soloist and pedagogue, François Rabbath’s contribution to the development of our beloved instrument is immense! As a soloist, his profound musicianship and dazzling virtuosity is world renowned. In addition, his three-volume New Technique for the Double Bass is considered essential reading for modern bassists.
Božo Paradžik
bozoparadzik.com
Božo Paradžik is a successful double bassist and has held positions with leading symphony orchestras such as the Residentie Orchestra in the Hagie, the Radio Symphony Orchestra in Stuttgart, and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra in Munich. He was invited by Claudio Abbado to play principal double bass in most of Abbado's orchestral projects in 2008-9 with Orchestra Mozart and Mahler Chamber Orchestra. He is also a sought-after soloist, releasing his first popular solo CD in 2000 and recently recording using surround sound technology. Paradžik is known for recording and performing works originally written for other instruments by composers including Beethoven, Brahms, and Schubert and his popular YouTube channel.
Joel Quarrington
joelquarrington.com
Joel Quarrington is an internationally-recognised double bass soloist from Canada. He is former principal double bass at London Symphony Orchestra and has performed with many of the world’s leading string quartets and the Pinchas Zukerman Chamber Players. He played the piece for solo bass written by Glenn Gould’s soundtrack to Timothy Findley’s ‘The Wars’ (1982), Gould’s last composition. In 2005, Quarrington had the honour of playing the world premiere of John Harbison’s Concerto for Bass with the Toronto Symphony. He has released several critically-acclaimed solo recordings of double bass repertoire and received the Special Recognition Award for Outstanding Solo Performance and Orchestral Performance from the ISB in 2011 and 2015 respectively.
Roman Patkolo
romanpatkolo.com
Roman Patkolo is a Slovak double bassist who was a scholarship holder of the Anne-Sophie Mutter Foundation from 1999-2011. He has performed solo concerts and duets with Anne-Sophie Mutter around the globe at concert halls including Carnegie Hall, Berlin Philharmonic, Kennedy Centre, Barbican Centre and the Smetana Hall. He has also played with prestigious orchestras such as the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin and at music festivals such as the Luzern Festival. Alongside Mutter, Patloko has performed new duos for violin and double bass written by contemporary composers such as Krzystof Penderecki and Sir Andre Previn.
Christine Hoock
christinehoock.de
Double bassist Christine Hoock is internationally renowned as a soloist and chamber musician. She has a varied discography across genres including classical, jazz, world music, and electronic compositions with artists such as Benjamin Schmid, Alessandro Taberna, and Quadro Nueve. She regularly performs at festivals across the world such as the Berlin and Salzburg Festivals and played in WDR Symphony Orchestra as a soloist under several different conductors. Christine Hoock is also president of the International Johann Matthias Sperger Society for Double Bass and artistic director of the International Rhodius Academy for Double Bass.
Leon Bosch
leonbosch.co.uk
Leon Bosch is a virtuoso double bass soloist with a wealth of recordings exploring the double bass repertoire including the works of Bottesini, Domenico Dragonetti, Dittersdorf, and Menotti. He has performed concertos worldwide under conductors including Pinchas Zukerman, Nicolas Kraemer, Nicolae Moldoveanu and Guido Romstadt. He also has played with a range of chamber groups including the Lindsay, Belcea and Brodsky quartets, the Moscow Virtuosi and with solo performers such as Peter Donohoe, Vladimir Ovchinikov and Maria João Pires.
Edicson Ruiz
edicsonruiz.com
Born in Caracas in 1985, Edicson Ruiz decided to play the bass when he was just eleven years old. His first teacher and mentor Felix Petit guided him through his studies in "El Sistema", the Venezuelan national youth orchestra foundation.
At the age of 15, Edicson Ruiz took 1st Prize at the International Society of Bassist Competition in Indianapolis, USA. In 2001 he became the youngest member of the history of Orchestra Academy of the Berlin Philharmonic, where he studied with Prof. Klaus Stoll. At age 17, Ruiz became the youngest member of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.
Edicson Ruiz is a Guest Professor at the Fachhochschule des Nordenschweiz in Basel, Switzerland.
Lorraine Campet
lorrainecampet.com
Lorraine Campet has wowed the music world with her virtuosic performances, both on double bass and violin. A student of Thierry Barbé and Petru Iuga her virtuosic technique is matched with a sophisticated musical sensibility.
Since 2015, she has been associate principal bass for the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France.