The double bass, also known simply as the bass, amongst other names, is the largest and, therefore, lowest-pitched chordophone in the modern symphony orchestra. Similar in structure to the cello, it has four, although occasionally five, strings.
Domenico Carlo Maria Dragonetti was an Italian double bass virtuoso and composer with a 3 string double bass. He stayed for thirty years in his hometown of Venice, Italy and worked at the Opera Buffa, at the Chapel of San Marco and at the Grand Opera in Vicenza. By that time he had become notable throughout Europe and had turned down several opportunities, including offers from the Tsar of Russia. In 1794, he finally moved to London to play in the orchestra of the King's Theatre, and settled there for the remainder of his life. In fifty years, he became a prominent figure in the musical events of the English capital, performing at the concerts of the Philharmonic Society of London as well as in more private events, where he would meet the most influential persons in the country, like the Prince Consort and the Duke of Leinster. He was acquainted with composers Joseph Haydn and Ludwig van Beethoven, whom he visited on several occasions in Vienna, and to whom he showed the possibilities of the double bass as a solo instrument. His ability on the instrument also demonstrated the relevance of writing scores for the double bass in the orchestra separate from that of the cello, which was the common rule at the time. He is also remembered today for the Dragonetti bow, which he developed throughout his life.
Giovanni Bottesini was a Italian Romantic composer, conductor, and a double bass virtuoso.
Gary Michael Karr is an American classical double bass virtuoso and teacher; he is considered one of the best bassists of the 20th and 21st centuries.
Édouard Nanny was an important French double bass player, teacher, and composer. He was a longtime professor of double bass at the Paris Conservatory.
François Rabbath is a contemporary French double-bass virtuoso, soloist, and composer.
Teppo Hauta-aho was a Finnish double bassist and composer.
Teppo is a male Finnish name that originated as a diminutive of the name Tapani.
Homer Mensch was a prominent classical bassist who was a former member of the Pittsburgh Symphony, the New York Philharmonic, the New York Pops, and the NBC Symphony. Mensch held faculty positions at Yale University, at the Manhattan School of Music, the Juilliard School, the Mannes College of Music, Rutgers University, Dalcroze School, Queens College, and Catholic University. He taught upwards of 45 students a week from beginners, to conservatory students, to professionals both in the classical and jazz fields.
A double bass concerto is a notated musical composition, usually in three parts or movements, for a solo double bass accompanied by an orchestra. Bass concertos typically require an advanced level of technique, as they often use very high-register passages, harmonics, challenging scale and arpeggio lines and difficult bowing techniques. Music students typically play bass concerti with the orchestral part played by a pianist who reads from an orchestral reduction.
Gerald Drucker was a British classical double bass player, photographer and double bass teacher. Principal Double Bass at the Yorkshire Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, New Philharmonia Orchestra, and finally the Philharmonia Orchestra of London. He formed the London Double Bass Ensemble in the 1980s.
Mark Morton is an American classical musician and academic working as Professor of Double Bass at Texas Tech University, Principal Double Bassist of the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra, Abeline Philharmonic Orchestra, and the West Texas Symphony, and the artistic director of the American School of Double Bass.
The New Philharmonic Society was a British music society, established in 1852, giving annual series of subscription concerts of orchestral music in London until 1879. The concerts in the first season were conducted by Hector Berlioz.
Miloslav Gajdoš is a Czech double bass player, music teacher, and composer.
2 Compositions (Järvenpää) 1988 is a live album by composer and saxophonist Anthony Braxton recorded in Finland in 1988 and first released on the Leo label on CD in 1996.
Uxía Martínez Botana is a Spanish double bass player.
Indi Stivín is a Czech classical double bass player, conductor and composer, winner of many international competitions. He plays double bass as a solo instrument.
Mikyung Sung is a classical double bass player.
Rinat Ibragimov was a Russian-Tatar classical double bass virtuoso, best known as the principal bass of the London Symphony Orchestra and for his solo performances and recordings.
