Interviews - Page 20

Rounding out our interviews from the Gerald Veasley Bass Boot Camp is our conversation with Adam Nitti. Based in Nashville, the bassist and educator has run the gamut of the music industry, from session work to touring to producing to teaching and more. His credits include working with artists like the Dave Weckl Band, Steven Curtis Chapman, Susan Tedeschi, Mandisa,...

Bassist, singer and songwriter Rhonda Smith‘s musical resume is as impressive as they come. Born in Halifax, Nova Scotia to a musical family, Rhonda started on baritone horn, keyboard and guitar. Picking up the bass, she said, was all thanks to her brother. “He brought a bass home one day and told me not to touch it.” Most recently, Rhonda...

Though he learned bass without taking lessons, Anthony Wellington has become one of the most renowned and respected bass and music educators. Through teaching at virtually every bass camp and Bassology, his own Maryland-based bass studio, Wellington teaches about 100 students per week. Although Wellington views himself as an educator first, it’s no wonder that Wellington’s passion and dedication has...

Attend just one of Gerald Veasley‘s Bass Bootcamps, and you’ll likely call yourself a Bootcamper for life. BBC, as the attendees call it, just celebrated its tenth anniversary this year, with Veasley maintaining a very active role. In addition to an impressive line-up of clinicians, bassists Victor Wooten and Stanley Clarke stopped by to check things out and share with...

Last week, while enjoying a video from a television show featuring the duo of Ryan Madora on bass and Don Evans on guitar (see below), it reminded me of other playing situations where drummers were not present. This seemed like a perfect opportunity to hear first hand from Ryan on how playing without a drummer has impacted her experience as...

Bryan Beller is a difficult bassist to classify. A quick check of the list of projects finds him spanning all sorts of genres, all sorts of gigs, and a healthy travel itinerary. Perhaps best known now for his work on Adult Swim’s Metalocalypse show as the bassist for Dethklok, Bryan has a strong foot in rock, jazz (or as Bryan...

Fifteen years ago, Victor Wooten released a solo electric bass album that inspired countless bassists to push themselves to new limits. Today, you’d be hard pressed to find a “best of” or “reader’s choice” list of top bassists without him. Victor is a busy bassist, teacher, and more recently, record label owner. We caught up with him during one of...

Stu Hamm is a name synonymous with instrumental rock bass, but what you may not know is that the bassist himself has a very rich musical background, with interests spanning just about every genre and time period. Hamm recently unveiled proof of his diversity as well as his playing and compositional talents on his sixth solo album, Just Outside of...

Doug Johns’ virtuosity on bass and compositional prowess plants him firmly as one of the top funk players in a genre with a reputation for precise attack and ultra “in the pocket” approach. Johns’ playing and compositions span multiple styles, making him a sought after musician. The bassist has performed alongside artists as diverse as Victor Wooten, Chuck Rainey, Buddy...

Percy Jones is one of the definitive figures who carved out a role for the fretless bass and helped establish its place on the contemporary music scene. Best known for his work with jazz-fusion band Brand X, Percy collaborated with likes of Phil Collins and Robin Lumley. Brand X’s early 70’s debut Unorthodox Behaviour established the band as one of...

If you’re a bassist who spends any time on Youtube, there’s no doubt you’ve run into at least one video by MarloweDK. After watching all his great playalongs and lessons for over a year, we decided it was time to find out more about the man himself, Thomas Risell. Here’s our interview… We know you attended the Copenhagen Music Conservatory....

Following our review of John McLaughlin and the 4th Dimension’s To The One, we had the chance to ask bassist Etienne Mbappé a few questions about the album, working with Joe Zawinul, and about all the great bass that comes out of his native Cameroon. How did the “To The One” project come together? I met John McLaughlin in 2002...