271: George Amorim on building a double bass empire - a podcast by Jason Heath

What happens if you get hired to teach double bass... and there are zero students?

That's what George Amorim faced when he joined the faculty of the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.

Where do you even begin?

But George wasn't deterred.  First, he visited high schools in the area.  Lots of bass players, but lots of work to be done.  

More high school visits from George.  People took notice.  Slowly, things began to grow.

Then George started ¡Viva el Bajo!  The response was immediate, and it grew bigger over time.  Students got better.  Word began to spread.

Fast-forward to the present.  

George has created a double bass powerhouse in South Texas.  His bass quartet featuring himself and his students Andres Vela, Daniel Morehead, and Gabriel Preusse played a stellar recital.

Piece #1 on the program: an arrangement of Peter and the Wolf by UTRGV faculty member Justin Writer.  Justin also narrated!

Piece #2 on the program: an original composition by Gabriel Preusse called Afro Sambas.

By the way, Gabriel's quartet is published and available! Contact him to learn more.

How did George enact this long-term plan to transform a double bass vacuum into one of the most vibrant bass scenes in the country?  What can others do to build their own double bass scene, no matter where they live?

That's what we dig into in this interview.

Learn more about my coverage of music teaching at contrabassconversations.com/teaching.

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