Robert Oppelt's Website

Welcome to my website!

I am the Principal Bassist with the National Symphony Orchestra, the resident orchestra of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. I intend this website to be a portal of information about the art of bass playing. Drawing on 28 years of experience, I will post advice that might aid musicians who are in the early stages of their career. I invite email exchanges and will post those of interest to the bass community-at-large. Also, on this site I give more detailed information about my CD, The Double Bass, which was released in December of 2006, and about the University of Maryland bass program.

Being a member of the National Symphony Orchestra has been a rewarding experience. I've enjoyed tours to many interesting parts of the world, such as Asia, the Baltics, Europe, Russia, the Philippines, and South America. My 13 years with Mstislav Rostropovich as Music Director amounted to a front row seat at one of the "greatest shows on earth". His personal charisma and profound musicianship won him access to many corridors of power, and hearing him play the cello countless times indelibly influenced my approach to musical expression. Most importantly, I've been privileged to sit in the middle of a fine orchestra, awash in the sounds of the greatest music ever written...

Let me start by stating the obvious about playing the bass - it is really "cool". There's not much that compares to the full-body massage one gets when drawing out some of the lowest tones on the planet. And when you get together with your buddies in a symphony orchestra to "crank out" the bass parts of Brahms, Bruckner, Dvorak, Mahler, Strauss, Tchaikowsky, and Wagner...it's tremendous fun.

But how can one make a career of it? Well, there's no easy answer. For sure, it requires dedication and perseverance.

Auditioning for an orchestra is very competitive. There might be upwards of 100 bassists vying for one position - most players not making it out of the preliminaries. Increasingly, I tell my students to be well-rounded, to be prepared in case they don't make it to the "big show". This might mean broadening their studies to include administration, composition, music history, or teaching. One should also not rule out education in a field other than music to secure a means of employment.

If one doesn't make it into a major symphony orchestra, there are still possibilities for a rewarding life in music as a professional or semi-professional performer. Known as freelancing, it means not being dependent upon any one musical ensemble for work. Many freelancers even prefer the variety of "gigs" to the idea of playing with the same group all the time. There are some downsides however, like in order to get an engagement you might have to wait for the contractor to call (which can be disheartening when they don't). And you might log a lot of time on the road in your car (which can be taxing for you and your vehicle). Finally, it's not very lucrative unless you land a long-running broadway show or a block-buster movie sound track.

I've given a little straight talk in parental fashion (two children!). I don't want to discourage anyone, but, it's important for young musicians to know what they might be facing. Pursue your dreams (as I did), but get the best available advice, training, and education along the way...

Good luck!

Hello Bob,

I have a question...I don't expect to ever have to play the Doctor Atomic solo, but I'm curious why you wouldn't use the D, A (and E) harmonics around the neck instead of the hassle of the thumb up higher? I'm sure you have a good reason....

All the best…

Interesting comment about the fingering...well, I think there were a few reasons I didn't put much effort into playing the harmonics (and closed F) in the lower positions. (I should note first that Adams didn't write those notes as harmonics, but one can't avoid some A and D harmonics.) For one thing, I think the string crossings and fingerings are a bit less intuitive in the lower positions, which might take more time to learn and be less comfortable under pressure. The F certainly sounds clearer there. But for me it's more natural to have the fingering (and string crossing) follow the direction of the written line where possible. You'd also have the problem of jumping up to finger a succession of notes from 633 on, coming back down, then jumping back up, etc., which is not without risk and considerable effort. (Every time there's a B, B flat, and after the C sharp in 640 it could get dicey.) I found that if I treated most of it as one extended position higher up it flowed pretty well in both the left and right hands. (The left hand creeps around, reaching rather than shifting, as the notes are all accessible.) True, the thumb has to dance a bit, but it's not more than a half-step in any direction.

I didn't practice it any other way, but there are doubtless some viable alternatives...

Thanks, Robert Oppelt