James Oesi - Interview & Solo Performance at the Dutch Double Bass Festival

We managed to catch the great James Oesi for an interview and a stunning solo performance during the 2021 Dutch Double Bass Festival.

James Oesi is a virtuoso double bass soloist based in the Netherlands and is a well-known artist in the classical and contemporary music world. He also founded and is Artistic Director of the Dutch Double Bass Festival, now in its third edition, which shares the beauty and versatility of the bass with wider audiences. We were invited to the 2021 festival by James to host their 'Talking Bass' live Q&A sessions with some of the performing artists including Dave Holland, Ben Williams, and Božo Paradžik We had a fantastic time at the festival and are looking forward to their next edition in 2023. You can find out about the incredible lineup of artists at the 2021 festival here: https://ddbf.nl/?lang=en

In this interview, we find out about the theme behind this year's festival, the fascinating story behind James' bass and gear, and get to hear his unique bass in action. Don't miss James' solo performance at the end of the video (28:58), filmed right in the middle of the foyer at the beautiful Theatre Zudplein in Rotterdam, host of the 2021 Festival. He plays J.S. Bach's Suite for Solo Cello, No. 2, Sarabande.

TIMECODES:
00:00 Introduction
01:09 DDBF line up 2021
02:24 The bassist’s revolution
05:32 Balancing programmes with old and new music
10:32 James’ bass + demo
16:18 The story of James’ bass
22:30 Strings
24:26 Bow
27:05 What’s next for DDBF?
28:58 Performance

Links to artists/gear mentioned in the video: https://discoverdoublebass.com/interv...
Our Talking Bass sessions from the festival:    • Talking Bass Q&A Sessions - Dutch Dou...  


Find James Online:
Website: https://www.jamesoesi.com/
@James Oesi
Bach video:    • Prelude from Bach's Cello Suite no. 1  
Festival website: https://ddbf.nl/?lang=en
Festival Highlights:    • Dutch Double Bass Festival '21 Afterm...  


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