The class offerings and activities reflect the growth of Suzuki double bass programs across the nation in recent years. Many of the presenters are new to the conference this year. Teachers of young bassists will benefi t from Tracy Rowell’s “Starting a Bass Program from Scratch,” Nicole Castleberry’s “Book One Bass-ics” and Kathryn Jones’ “From the Bottom Up.” Dennis Whittaker’s “Teaching Points of the Bach Cello Suites,” will be fascinating for teachers of all levels, as the cello suites represent an important milestone in any bassist’s development. Michael Fanelli will discuss the pedagogical merits of teaching young students to stand or sit. Finally, there will be a panel discussion regarding the late George Vance, his contributions to bass pedagogy.
For students (and teacher observers) there will be Bass master classes and several Bass group classes, as well as the Bass Choir. And of course, there will be a special performance by the Bad Boyz of the Double Bass, an all-star bass quartet made up of four past winners of the International Society of Bassists Solo Competition—David Murray (Butler University), Volkan Orhan (University of Iowa), Anthony Stoops (University of Oklahoma), and Paul Sharpe (University of North Carolina School of the Arts). The Bad Boyz repertoire ranges from Bach to Jobim and Borodin to Michael Jackson. Performances are always fresh and entertaining.
–Paul Sharpe, Bass Coordinator
