I made this double bass part for John Philip Sousa’s “Stars and Stripes Forever” to help out the Berkeley Youth Orchestra’s bass section. Could come in handy for young bass players who might be having a bit of trouble decoding tuba parts:
I don’t even play violin and I am obsessed with this piece of music. I wonder if it would work on double bass?
I have sought this piece out every chance I could get, ever since hearing Alexander Barantschik of the San Francisco Symphony perform it at a private event many years back. This is the most enigmatic and heartwrenching thing Bach ever wrote.
The Chaconne is the last movement from Bach’s Violin Partita No. in D Minor. The story is that Bach wrote this in memory of his wife who had recently passed away, and whether this is true or not you can hear a fair amount of sorrow, longing, and pain in this music – qualities Bach is not typically known for.
More about this work from an interview with Arnold Stenhardt on NPR.
Excellent performance by Renaud Garcia-Fons for the NPR Tiny Desk Concert series:
For my students and for students of the double bass from anywhere who might be reading, pay attention to the left hand – how he is holding the bow. Very flexible, relaxed, agile. Also note the right hand and arm position – how it is angled for the most part at 90º to the neck of the bass, and the hand and wrist is never over-extended. Enjoy!
No, that was a sword in a field. Cracks me up every time. Really underrated film; one of my personal favorites.
I always have advocated designating a go-to place for practicing. It should be all set up and ready for you to play your instrument, without distraction. Johnathan Biss talks with NPR on his practice space and how it’s helping him get through his nine year Beethoven project: