Daniel Chiva Sanz returns to the podcast to discuss his latest project, Daily Mozart, a new technique book that applies concepts from his School of Patience books to the second movements and minuets of Mozart symphonies.

Daniel shares how his work as a performer, teacher, and creator has led him toward a brass-inspired approach to sound, pitch center, and hand-shape precision, and he reflects on how fundamental technique has shaped his audition preparation, orchestral playing, and overall confidence on the bass.

We dig into why Mozart's slower movements make such effective daily studies, how Daniel uses color-coded markings to focus on hand shapes, same-note/different-string work, and short shifts, and why playing in tune with yourself may be one of the most important skills for auditions and excerpts.

Daniel also talks about "training before the playbook," the athletic side of audition preparation, making technique engaging through variety and repetition, and his broader goal of giving bassists accessible tools to raise the overall standard of intonation and confidence in the bass community.

Enjoy, and learn more from Daniel on his YouTube channel and Instagram, and check out a featured video from Daniel's School of Patience here.

Thank you to our sponsor, Wiedoeft Double Bass Rosin

We want grip and longevity from rosin. Most fail at one of them. We get a lot of rosin sent our way to evaluate on the job. Wiedoeft is the one we keep using, from symphony stages to theatre pits.

All Season — Balanced grip across normal swings in temperature and humidity.

Ultra-Grip — A softer blend built for cold halls and dry climates. Use code DBHQ for free shipping, direct from Wiedoeft.

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Gear used to record this podcast

• Zoom H6 studio 8-Track 32-Bit Float Handy Recorder
• Rode Podmic
• Sony Alpha 7 IV Full-frame Mirrorless Interchangeable Lens Camera
• Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
• Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM Lens

When you buy a product using a link on this page, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting DBHQ.

Theme music by Eric Hochberg

Mark Morton joins Jason to discuss his decades-long project creating practical Urtext editions of Giovanni Bottesini's music.

Drawing on 3,656 photographs of manuscripts from the Biblioteca Palatina in Parma, Mark has completed editions of 11 works so far, with the goal of eventually covering all 84 of Bottesini's compositions. He explains how he compares multiple surviving versions, preserves the composer's choices, and avoids imposing editorial preferences—including in familiar pieces such as Elegy No. 1.

The conversation explores the advantages of writing the bass part in the sounding octave, or suono reale, as well as Bottesini's minor-third solo tuning and its effects on projection, orchestral balance, and tone. Mark also shares the story behind his research in Parma, the practical decisions involved in preparing piano accompaniments, his recording Bottesini's Greatest Hits, and the possibility of future editions with suggested fingerings and bowings.

Enjoy, and learn more about Mark Morton on his website and YouTube channel!

Thank you to our sponsor, Wiedoeft Double Bass Rosin

We want grip and longevity from rosin. Most fail at one of them. We get a lot of rosin sent our way to evaluate on the job. Wiedoeft is the one we keep using, from symphony stages to theatre pits.

All Season — Balanced grip across normal swings in temperature and humidity.

Ultra-Grip — A softer blend built for cold halls and dry climates. Use code DBHQ for free shipping, direct from Wiedoeft.

Connect with DBHQ

• Join Our Newsletter
• Double Bass Resources
• Double Bass Sheet Music
• Double Bass Merch

Gear used to record this podcast

• Zoom H6 studio 8-Track 32-Bit Float Handy Recorder
• Rode Podmic
• Sony Alpha 7 IV Full-frame Mirrorless Interchangeable Lens Camera
• Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
• Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM Lens

When you buy a product using a link on this page, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting DBHQ.

Theme music by Eric Hochberg

Cole Davis is a bassist, composer, educator, and the creator behind Better Bass Lessons, where he brings a playful, practical approach to jazz bass education. In this episode, Cole and Jason Heath trade lessons across the classical/jazz divide, building on their previous New Simandl collaboration and digging into Cole's ideas around walking lines, open strings, and groove.

Jason then turns the tables with a bow lesson for Cole, covering fresh rosin, French bow hold, using the whole bow, vibrato as its own hand position, "uni-finger" concepts, and finding a thicker arco sound through bow weight, contact point, gravity, and relaxation.

Enjoy, and follow Cole at Cole Davis, Better Bass Lessons, Instagram, and check out his Simandl quiz and his Double Bass HQ collection.

Thank you to our sponsor!

We want grip and longevity from rosin. Most fail at one of them. We get a lot of rosin sent our way to evaluate on the job. Wiedoeft is the one we keep using, from symphony stages to theatre pits.

All Season — Balanced grip across normal swings in temperature and humidity.

Ultra-Grip — A softer blend built for cold halls and dry climates. Use code DBHQ for free shipping, direct from Wiedoeft.

Connect with DBHQ

• Join Our Newsletter
• Double Bass Resources
• Double Bass Sheet Music
• Double Bass Merch

Gear used to record this podcast

• Zoom H6 studio 8-Track 32-Bit Float Handy Recorder
• Rode Podmic
• Sony Alpha 7 IV Full-frame Mirrorless Interchangeable Lens Camera
• Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
• Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM Lens

When you buy a product using a link on this page, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting DBHQ.

Theme music by Eric Hochberg

New York City jazz bassist Neal Miner joins the podcast to talk about his new book of original bass-feature compositions, an 11-song collection designed for students and professionals to use in ensemble settings.

Neal shares how longtime collaborator Chris Byars encouraged the project, how the book grew into play-alongs and a My Music Masterclass, and how his work as a bassist, teacher, composer, and documentary filmmaker all connect through a patient "chip away" creative process.

We dig into Neal's love of bass melodies, contrafacts, gut strings, his longtime Juzek bass, Golden Spiral strings, DPA mic setup, recording acoustic bass, and the realities of playing unfamiliar instruments on the road. Neal also talks about his YouTube documentaries, his trio album Invisibility on Cellar Music, and life as an active New York jazz musician.

Enjoy, and learn more at Neal's website, follow him on Instagram, and check out his work on YouTube! Be sure also to check out Neal's excellent appearance on Discover Double Bass.

Thank you to our sponsor!

Carnegie Mellon University Double Bass Studio – CMU is dedicated to helping each student achieve their goals as a musician. Every week each student receives private lessons and participates in a solo class with Micah Howard. Peter Guild, another member of the PSO, teaches Orchestral Literature and Repertoire weekly. They encourage students to reach out to the great bassists in their area for lessons and direction. Many of the bassists from all of the city's ensembles are more than willing to lend a hand. Every year members of the Symphony, the Opera and the Ballet give classes and offer our students individual attention. Click here to visit Micah's website and to sign up for a free online trial lesson.

Connect with DBHQ

• Join Our Newsletter
• Double Bass Resources
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• Double Bass Merch

Gear used to record this podcast

• Zoom H6 studio 8-Track 32-Bit Float Handy Recorder
• Rode Podmic
• Sony Alpha 7 IV Full-frame Mirrorless Interchangeable Lens Camera
• Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
• Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM Lens

When you buy a product using a link on this page, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting DBHQ.

Theme music by Eric Hochberg

Kathryn Schulmeister joins the podcast to talk about Imagining Hands, her debut solo album on Protomaterial Records. A bassist, improviser, composer, and University of Wisconsin faculty member, Kathryn brings together contemporary music, storytelling, extended technique, and deeply personal experience in a project shaped by her time at UC San Diego, her work with Mark Dresser, and the narrative world of Clarissa Pinkola Estés' Women Who Run With the Wolves.

We dig into the album's connection to The Handless Maiden, the thread-and-tabletop bass techniques behind "Underground Forest," the prepared-bass sounds of "Harrowing," the role of injury and recovery in "Silver Hands," and how contemporary music can expand what bassists imagine is possible on the instrument.

Kathryn also reflects on growing up in Hawaii, discovering contemporary improvisation at New England Conservatory, studying at McGill and UCSD, working with ELISION Ensemble in Australia, and why classical, experimental, and improvisational practices can strengthen each other.

Enjoy, and follow Kathryn on her website and Instagram, and listen to Imagining Hands on Bandcamp, Spotify, and Apple Music!

Thank you to our sponsor!

Carnegie Mellon University Double Bass Studio – CMU is dedicated to helping each student achieve their goals as a musician. Every week each student receives private lessons and participates in a solo class with Micah Howard. Peter Guild, another member of the PSO, teaches Orchestral Literature and Repertoire weekly. They encourage students to reach out to the great bassists in their area for lessons and direction. Many of the bassists from all of the city's ensembles are more than willing to lend a hand. Every year members of the Symphony, the Opera and the Ballet give classes and offer our students individual attention. Click here to visit Micah's website and to sign up for a free online trial lesson.

Connect with DBHQ

• Join Our Newsletter
• Double Bass Resources
• Double Bass Sheet Music
• Double Bass Merch

Gear used to record this podcast

• Zoom H6 studio 8-Track 32-Bit Float Handy Recorder
• Rode Podmic
• Sony Alpha 7 IV Full-frame Mirrorless Interchangeable Lens Camera
• Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
• Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM Lens

When you buy a product using a link on this page, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting DBHQ.

Theme music by Eric Hochberg

SoJung Kim joins the podcast to share her journey from discovering the double bass in Korea to joining the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra. A graduate student at the Colburn Conservatory studying with Peter Lloyd, SoJung has performed with the One Korea Youth Orchestra and Orchestra Ensemble Seoul, spent summers at the Pacific Music Festival and Music Academy of the West, and first came to the instrument after hearing the deep resonance of a bass ensemble at her cousin's concert.

We talk about SoJung's move from solo repertoire into the world of orchestral excerpts, the wake-up call of studying alongside highly prepared Colburn colleagues, and the practice routines that helped her prepare for a massive San Francisco Opera and Ballet audition list. She shares why long tones and glissando work became central to her warmup, how recording lessons and asking for feedback shaped her preparation, and what she has learned from playing Nutcracker and other ballet repertoire night after night. Enjoy, and check out the video version of this podcast here.

Thank you to our sponsor!

Carnegie Mellon University Double Bass Studio – CMU is dedicated to helping each student achieve their goals as a musician. Every week each student receives private lessons and participates in a solo class with Micah Howard. Peter Guild, another member of the PSO, teaches Orchestral Literature and Repertoire weekly. They encourage students to reach out to the great bassists in their area for lessons and direction. Many of the bassists from all of the city's ensembles are more than willing to lend a hand. Every year members of the Symphony, the Opera and the Ballet give classes and offer our students individual attention. Click here to visit Micah's website and to sign up for a free online trial lesson.

Connect with DBHQ

• Join Our Newsletter
• Double Bass Resources
• Double Bass Sheet Music
• Double Bass Merch

Gear used to record this podcast

• Zoom H6 studio 8-Track 32-Bit Float Handy Recorder
• Rode Podmic
• Sony Alpha 7 IV Full-frame Mirrorless Interchangeable Lens Camera
• Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
• Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM Lens

When you buy a product using a link on this page, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting DBHQ.

Theme music by Eric Hochberg

Orion Miller joins the podcast to talk about his path from growing up in New York City to joining the San Francisco Symphony bass section. Orion studied at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University with Tim Pitts and spent formative summers at places like Tanglewood, Music Academy of the West, and Aspen Music Festival.

We dig into Orion's audition journey, including getting cut from the San Francisco Symphony preliminaries, rethinking how he prepared, and eventually winning the job after a trial week. Orion shares the practice system that changed everything for him, from 25% tempo work and Galamian-style rhythms to mock auditions, detailed listening, score study, and learning to trust the process. We also talk about focus, phone distraction, sustainable preparation, life in the SFS bass section, and his advice to young bassists.

Listen, watch, and read this conversation in ​full audio and HD video on Double Bass HQ​. Photo credit: San Francisco Symphony

Thank you to our sponsor!

Carnegie Mellon University Double Bass Studio – CMU is dedicated to helping each student achieve their goals as a musician. Every week each student receives private lessons and participates in a solo class with Micah Howard. Peter Guild, another member of the PSO, teaches Orchestral Literature and Repertoire weekly. They encourage students to reach out to the great bassists in their area for lessons and direction. Many of the bassists from all of the city's ensembles are more than willing to lend a hand. Every year members of the Symphony, the Opera and the Ballet give classes and offer our students individual attention. Click here to visit Micah's website and to sign up for a free online trial lesson.

Connect with DBHQ

• Join Our Newsletter
• Double Bass Resources
• Double Bass Sheet Music
• Double Bass Merch

Gear used to record this podcast

• Zoom H6 studio 8-Track 32-Bit Float Handy Recorder
• Rode Podmic
• Sony Alpha 7 IV Full-frame Mirrorless Interchangeable Lens Camera
• Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
• Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM Lens

When you buy a product using a link on this page, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting DBHQ.

Theme music by Eric Hochberg

Dominik Wagner returns to the podcast for a wide-ranging conversation recorded during his visit to San Francisco for the 2026 Golden Gate Bass Camp. A prizewinner for many major solo competitions, Dominik has built an extraordinary career as a soloist, chamber musician, recording artist, and pedagogue, with albums including Giovanni Bottesini - Revolution of Bass, Chapters - A Double Bass Story, and Double Bass Rhapsody. He currently teaches at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna, and his work continues to expand what is possible on the double bass.

We dig into Dominik's daily "musical hygiene," his thoughts on posture, motion, sound, vibrato, setup, great instruments and bows, and how teaching keeps pushing his own playing forward. Dominik also shares what he looks for in students, how he thinks about auditions and the German-speaking orchestral world, why competitions should reward compelling soloists and creative programming, and how the bass community can keep evolving while honoring tradition. Follow Dominik on Instagram, YouTube, and his website, and experience this episode in full audio and video on Double Bass HQ.

Thank you to our sponsor

Carnegie Mellon University Double Bass Studio – CMU is dedicated to helping each student achieve their goals as a musician. Every week each student receives private lessons and participates in a solo class with Micah Howard. Peter Guild, another member of the PSO, teaches Orchestral Literature and Repertoire weekly. They encourage students to reach out to the great bassists in their area for lessons and direction. Many of the bassists from all of the city's ensembles are more than willing to lend a hand. Every year members of the Symphony, the Opera and the Ballet give classes and offer our students individual attention. Click here to visit Micah's website and to sign up for a free online trial lesson.

Connect with DBHQ

• Join Our Newsletter
• Double Bass Resources
• Double Bass Sheet Music
• Double Bass Merch

Gear used to record this podcast

• Zoom H6 studio 8-Track 32-Bit Float Handy Recorder
• Rode Podmic
• Sony Alpha 7 IV Full-frame Mirrorless Interchangeable Lens Camera
• Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
• Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM Lens

When you buy a product using a link on this page, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting DBHQ.

Theme music by Eric Hochberg

Don Prell passed away in 2026 at age 97. Born in 1929, Don went on the road with the Frank Ortega Band, played with people like Buddy Rich and Chet Baker, and was in the original Bud Shank Quartet.

He played for the San Francisco Symphony for 30 years and, after retirement, formed his own group called the Sea Bop Ensemble, which played at various San Francisco spots, including the legendary Bay View Boat Club.

Thank you to our sponsor!

Carnegie Mellon University Double Bass Studio – CMU is dedicated to helping each student achieve their goals as a musician. Every week each student receives private lessons and participates in a solo class with Micah Howard. Peter Guild, another member of the PSO, teaches Orchestral Literature and Repertoire weekly. They encourage students to reach out to the great bassists in their area for lessons and direction. Many of the bassists from all of the city's ensembles are more than willing to lend a hand. Every year members of the Symphony, the Opera and the Ballet give classes and offer our students individual attention. Click here to visit Micah's website and to sign up for a free online trial lesson.

Connect with DBHQ

• Join Our Newsletter
• Double Bass Resources
• Double Bass Sheet Music
• Double Bass Merch

Gear used to record this podcast

• Zoom H6 studio 8-Track 32-Bit Float Handy Recorder
• Rode Podmic
• Sony Alpha 7 IV Full-frame Mirrorless Interchangeable Lens Camera
• Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
• Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM Lens

When you buy a product using a link on this page, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting DBHQ.

Theme music by Eric Hochberg

Noa Eve (NoaBass) joins the podcast to celebrate the long-awaited release of *Late Bloomer,* a debut album that blends virtuosic arco playing with the rhythmic grit of bluegrass, old-time, and acoustic music-making. We talk about the "10 years in the making" arc from Jason first hearing Noa play in the Bay Area to recording the album over three intense days in Portland, plus what it takes to bring a bass-forward project to life with a full band.

Along the way, Noa shares how touring and real-world gig reps shaped their groove, arranging instincts, and confidence, plus why Edgar tuning and a lighter, more agile sound concept can unlock an entirely different palette on the instrument.

We also dig into influences ranging from Edgar Meyer to video game music, how to chase what you're obsessed with (even when it's not the "linear" path), and why making music that reaches beyond "sweaty bass nerds" can be both the hardest and most rewarding goal. Follow Noa on Instagram, find everything at Linktree, and stream Late Bloomer on your platform of choice. Noa would also like to give a big shout out to Lauren Pierce for her support over the years!

Thank you to our sponsor!

Carnegie Mellon University Double Bass Studio – CMU is dedicated to helping each student achieve their goals as a musician. Every week each student receives private lessons and participates in a solo class with Micah Howard. Peter Guild, another member of the PSO, teaches Orchestral Literature and Repertoire weekly. They encourage students to reach out to the great bassists in their area for lessons and direction. Many of the bassists from all of the city's ensembles are more than willing to lend a hand. Every year members of the Symphony, the Opera and the Ballet give classes and offer our students individual attention. Click here to visit Micah's website and to sign up for a free online trial lesson.

Connect with DBHQ

• Join Our Newsletter
• Double Bass Resources
• Double Bass Sheet Music
• Double Bass Merch

Gear used to record this podcast

• Zoom H6 studio 8-Track 32-Bit Float Handy Recorder
• Rode Podmic
• Sony Alpha 7 IV Full-frame Mirrorless Interchangeable Lens Camera
• Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
• Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM Lens

When you buy a product using a link on this page, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting DBHQ.

Theme music by Eric Hochberg