Fee! Fie! Foe! Fum! A very interesting combination of fairy tale and double bass is on the docket in the foreseeable future. I smell the blood of an Englishman. Harold Robinson, Principal Bassist of the Philadelphia Orchestra, is scheduled to perform this week as a featured soloist with the Youngstown Symphony Orchestra. On the evening of November 10th at 8:00, he will be playing the double bass concerto “Jack and the Beanstalk” composed by fellow bassist Jon Deak. Be he ‘live, or be he dead, This will be a very engaging and exciting experience for bassists and non-bassists alike. I’ll grind his bones to make my bread.
It has been said that double bassists are very rarely soloists and the repertory for concerto appearances is basically non-existent. Leave it to Mr. Robinson to debunk these myths. This concert will be his second concerto appearance in less than a year. Last January, he performed John Harbison’s “Concerto for Bass Viol” with the Philadelphia Orchestra. I was fortunate to be able to hear one of these concerts and I enjoyed it very much. Harold has also performed “Jack and the Beanstalk” with the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington D.C. He was formally the principal bass of the National Symphony Orchestra, before he moved to Philadelphia for his current position.
Double bassist and composer Jon Deak has written several pieces for double bass. For example, some frequently performed works are B. B. Wolf, The Ugly Duckling, and The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, just to name a few. Jon Deak is the associate principal bass of the New York Philharmonic. For more information about Mr. Deak click here.
In addition to his playing responsibilities, Harold Robinson is an avid and very sought after teacher. He is the double bass instructor at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. In addition, he is a frequent guest clinician at music festivals and universities worldwide. For more information about Harold Robinson click here.
A long standing tradition has been brewing at the New World Symphony for 8 consecutive years. On Oct 20, 2007 the New World Symphony held its 8th Annual Oktoberfest. I founded this tradition 8 years ago and I am so proud to see that it has continued to this day. The first Oktoberfest was held on Oct. 15, 2000. It was an absolutely beautiful day and we all had a wonderful time. We gorged on over a dozen entrees and sidedishes, then washed it down with 3 Kegs of some great Oktoberfest beer.
The summer prior to the event, about 12 of us from New World attended the Pacific Music Festival in Sapporo, Japan. Sapporo is one of the premier beer cities in the world and we were fortunate to be able to experience the amazing beers that they produce. To kick the whole experience to another level, many players from the Vienna Philharmonic were playing and teaching at the festival. We enjoyed many nights at the various Beer gardens of Sapporo with the Vienna Philharmonic. All of us there will never forget the night when they took the whole PMF orchestra to the Sapporo Beer Garden and paid for all of us. We were singing and cheering all night long having an awesome time. It was so amazing being around these musicians from one of the worlds most famous orchestras. Upon returning to Miami, I wanted to recreate those amazing times we had with our friends from the Vienna Philharmonic. I do think this was one of the motivating factors in starting this tradition.
One of the most interesting qualities about this feast is that it continues to evolve year after year since that fateful day back in 2000. Since the inception, a great local brew pub called The Abbey Brewing Company has started donated kegs of their amazing beer to the feast. A pig roast has also been incorporated into the event. Countless side dishes and desserts are also prepared by the orchestra members to meet everyones fancy.
Many people have stepped up to the plate to be financial sponsers to ensure that this Oktoberfest will continue. Many players from various orchestras like the Philadelphia and Cleveland Orchestras have graciously donated money so that the tradition will continue. The musicians at New World are always grateful for this kind support.
Like milk and cookies, beer and music are intrinsically linked. It is hard to imagine one without the other. I will never forget about our Vienna Philaharmonic friends telling us about how they have Guiness on tap in their musicians lounge. What a dream that would be to be playing Don Giovanni and having a lusicious Guiness in preparation for Act 2. No wonder why they sound so amazing.
Thanks to all that have kept this tradition going and I look forward to hearing about many future Oktoberfests at the New World Symphony. Cheers!!!
This past weekend I was privileged to play my first concert with the Iris Orchestra in Memphis, TN. The program consisted of Osvaldo Golijov’s Last Round, Samuel Barber’s Violin concerto and Brahm’s Symphony #3. The soloist for the Barber was Cho-Liang Lin. Cho-Liang sounded really great. It was such a pleasure playing this piece with a musician of such a high caliber. The Golijav piece consisted of a string orchestra split into 2 parts. It is a very passionate, exciting piece that written as an homage to the Argentinian composer Astor Piazzola. We finished the first half with the Barber Violin Concerto. Following the concerto, we played a Piazzaola encore with Cho-Liang. We concluded the concert with Brahms Symphony #3.
The conductor of the Iris Orchestra is Michael Stern. He is the son of the late great violinist Issac Stern. He is an excellent musician and I enjoyed working with him a great deal. One interesting point that he made about the concert was that in the time of Brahms, they played most of the symphonies with a smaller orchestra that we usually do today. We had an orchestra just a little bigger than a chamber orchestra. The result was fascinating. You can hear so much of the color changes and all these interesting lines and figures that would probably be covered up in a larger symphony orchestra.
This is the first post for my new blog. My intention for this medium is to be a hub for news in the Classical Music world. The media has always been a double edge sword for Classical Music. On one hand it is great to have an article about a concert or orchestra. On the flip side, there are so many negative stories around (example the business is dying off, graying audiences, doom and gloom!) With this site, I want to be a reliable and credible source for everything that is happening in the Classical Music Business. I have been involved with blogs for about 8 months now and they are amazing. I have been a contributor on Jason Heath’s Doublebassblog.org. This is an amazing blog and has really taken the bass world by storm. Starting a project like this can be a daunting one; however, I am very excited about the unlimited potential of new media to influence our industry. I want to thank my new readers and I appreciate your patience while this site undergoes its non-stop construction. Please feel free to contact me at anytime and post comments. This project has been in my mind for some time now, and now it is time to put it into action. To all musicians, conductors, composers, and fans of the Classical Music Genre, Let’s GO!!!!!!
I recently read a very interesting article in Newsweek about how Classical Music recording revenue is on the rise. This is an example of how the new digital media world can influence our business. Check that story out here:
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About John Grillo
John started playing Double Bass at the age of 11. He attended The Julliard School during high school and was a scholarship student at Indiana University School of Music in Bloomington, Indiana where he studied with Lawrence Hurst. After graduating from IU, he attended the Manhattan School of Music completing his Masters Degree. (more)
A long standing tradition has been brewing at the New World Symphony for 8 consecutive years. On Oct 20, 2007 the New World Symphony held its 8th Annual Oktoberfest. I founded this tradition 8 years ago and I am so proud to see that it has continued to this day. The first Oktoberfest was held on Oct. 15, 2000. It was an absolutely beautiful day and we all had a wonderful time. We gorged on over a dozen entrees and sidedishes, then washed it down with 3 Kegs of some great Oktoberfest beer.
