Anatomy of a musical giant
The classical backbone
Jazz, slap, and rockabilly
The extreme and the bizarre
YOUR GOAL
Master of The secret life of the double bass
maestro The 19th-century Italian composer holds his unique three-stringed bass with thin strings.
maestro Match the symphonic basslines to discover how the double bass anchors the entire orchestra.
Solos in disguise: Composer Camille Saint-Saëns used the double bass to depict an elephant dancing a clumsy waltz in his 1886 suite.
The lowest part of a musical composition, which supports the harmony and rhythm. Ludwig van Beethoven revolutionized this orchestral foundation in his Fifth Symphony, premiered in Vienna in 1808.
Before the 19th century, what instrument's musical line did the double bass almost always double?
maestro Beethoven challenged double bass players with a notoriously fast symphony passage.
Who was the famous 19th-century Italian virtuoso known as the 'Paganini of the double bass'?
How does the double bass section help the rest of the symphony orchestra stay in tune?
What mechanical device is attached to some orchestral double basses to play notes lower than a low E?
Which composer famously wrote an independent, rapid double bass passage in his Fifth Symphony in 1808?
What is the acoustic term for the deep, fundamental notes that the double bass provides to the orchestra?