All American Bass
Vittorio Giannini composer
John Carbon composer
William Thomas Mckinley composer
Richard Fredrickson double bass
Slovak Radio Orchestra | Kirk Trevor conductor
A champion of repertoire and lauded by the New York Times as a virtuoso, double bassist Richard Fredrickson brings his instrument to the forefront on ALL AMERICAN BASS, an album of works composed specifically for him. Joining the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra and conductor Kirk Trevor, Fredrickson flawlessly navigates the works by Vittorio Giannini, John Carbon, and William Thomas McKinley. From Giannini’s darkly profound and agitated Psalm 130 to Carbon’s Endangered Species, which portrays the double bass as a wild and powerful beast that gracefully reins itself in, to McKinley’s modern, somber-then-lively Passacaglia, Fredrickson’s command of tone and melody creates an unforgettable recording and serves as an encapsulation of the instrument’s potential.
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Track Listing & Credits
| # | Title | Composer | Performer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Psalm 130 | Vittorio Giannini | Richard Fredrickson, double bass; Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra | Kirk Trevor, conductor | 17:43 |
| 02 | Endangered Species | John Carbon | Richard Fredrickson, double bass; Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra | Kirk Trevor, conductor | 15:56 |
| 03 | Passacaglia | William Thomas McKinley | Richard Fredrickson, double bass; Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra | Kirk Trevor, conductor | 13:10 |
Recorded at the Slovak Radio Building in Bratislava, Slovakia; all pieces are World Premiere Recordings.
Session Producer Emil Niznansky
Session Engineer Hubert Geschwandtner
I would like to extend my deepest thanks and appreciation to Arthur Reid, Stephen Magowan, Kyoshi Tamagawa, and last but not least, my father, Milton Fredrickson, who helped make this recording possible.
This recording is dedicated to the memory of my father. — Richard Fredrickson
Executive Producer Bob Lord
A&R Director Brandon MacNeil
A&R Danielle Sullivan
VP of Production Jan Košulič
Audio Director Lucas Paquette
VP, Design & Marketing Brett Picknell
Art Director Ryan Harrison
Design Edward A. Fleming
Publicity Patrick Niland, Aidan Curran
Artist Information
Richard Fredrickson
Hailed as a “virtuoso” by Donal Henahan of the New York Times, “an extraordinary musician” by The Washington Post, “stupefying” by L’Est Vaudois (Switzerland) and “one of America’s outstanding virtuoso double bass players,” with “eloquent playing, reinforced by his marked beauty of tone” by The Strad (magazine), Richard Fredrickson made his Carnegie Recital Hall debut at the age of 24 after winning the Concert Artists Guild award. This marked the first time the award had ever been presented to a double bassist.
William Thomas McKinley
Born in Kensington PA, near Pittsburgh, William Thomas McKinley (December 9, 1938 - February 3, 2015) began playing piano at local jazz clubs when he was a boy, and, at the age of 12, undoubtedly became the youngest member of the American Federation of Musicians. He went on to perform, record, and compose for some of the great jazz artists such as Dexter Gordon, Stan Getz, Eddie Gomez, Gary Burton, Rufus Reed, Dave Holland, and Billy Hart, among others. On the classical side, McKinley has earned numerous awards from such institutions as the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, the Koussevitzky Foundation, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and eight NEA grants, along with commissions from The London Symphony, The Lincoln Center Chamber Music Society, the Fromm Foundation, and the Naumburg Foundation. He has composed over 300 works.
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra
The Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra (SOSR) was established in 1929 as the orchestra of the Bratislava-based branch of the Radiojournal radio institution, being the first professional symphony orchestra in Slovakia.
Vittorio Giannini
Vittorio Giannini was born into a musical family in Philadelphia. His father was a successful operatic tenor, his mother a professional violinist. All three of his siblings were musicians, the most renowned was his sister Dusolina, a dramatic soprano who sang in Europe and the United States, especially at the Metropolitan Opera. He began taking violin lessons from his mother at age 5, and at 9 was awarded a scholarship to study violin and composition at the Verdi Conservatory in Milan, then taking a graduate degree at the Juilliard School in New York. He taught for decades at Juilliard, the Manhattan School of Music, the Curtis Institute of Music, and then became the founding president of the North Carolina School of the Arts.
John Carbon
Born in Chicago, John Carbon began his studies of the piano and clarinet at an early age. He studied composition at Rice University and the University of California, Santa Barbara. His teachers were Thea Musgrave, Paul Cooper, and Peter Racine Fricker. He is now Professor of Music at Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster PA. Carbon’s music — which has been gaining prominence due to an increasing number of high-profile performances and recordings — includes two operas, Marie Laveau and Benjamin, along with many choral, orchestral, vocal, and chamber works.
Kirk Trevor
Internationally renowned conductor, recording artist, and teacher Kirk Trevor was born and educated in England, graduating cum laude in cello performance and conducting, and furthering his studies with Adrian Boult and Paul Tortelier. He came to the United States in 1975 on a Fulbright grant and subsequently became resident conductor of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra.
