Early Start on the Double Bass

This bilingual volume in German and English is devoted to introducing higher positions, up to and including the third position. As an aid to orientation, all position changes are marked with lines. Climbing games and slippery glissandos help learners to develop a playful attitude toward their instrument. Recurring melodies in different positions are used to combine new course contents with existing skills. This ensures that students develop confidence by retaining control of intonation in simple transpositions. The varied songs and melodies are now complemented by easy pieces for two basses, including several duets specially composed for this tutor by Boguslaw Furtok to encourage fun in music-making and to pave the way to ensemble playing. The authors Bärenreiter's double bass tutor was written by J. Peter Close and Holger Sassmannshaus on the basis of preparatory work by Egon Sassmannshaus and the double bass teacher Ulrich Schwarz. “Früher Anfang auf dem Kontrabass” transfers the principles and experience gained from the violin tutor, combining them with modern methods of double bass playing to ensure quick progress on this special instrument. Holger Sassmannshaus, the son of Egon Sassmannshaus, is a double bass player in the Lower Rhine Symphony in Mönchengladbach/Krefeld. He also teaches double bass and plays in other ensembles. J. Peter Close, Egon Sassmannshaus's son-in-law, works as a cello and double bass teacher in Munich. The combined knowledge and experience of the Sassmannshaus/Close family makes these three volumes the most thoroughly researched and thought-through double bass tutor for beginners all over the world.