Practice w/ NYCO

Wednesday night, I think I received one of the nicest complements in a while. During this last NYCO practice, we had the pleasure of playing with the lead double-bassist. On top of that, we had a small section session for the first part of the practice; double basses only. We got to pick apart some of our problem spots and worked through them. Most importantly, we learned how to better our technique; something that I can use a lot of work on. The sound that the lead-bassist could produce was hauntingly beautiful. It was so clean and clear and had such a rich attack that i could stop a charging rhino. Anyway, playing with him was a great experience. It wasn't until the end of practice as we were leaving that he asked me some questions about my playing. To is shock, he had discovered that I was basically self-taught. He continued to encourage all that I was doing and if I needed any help, that I could go and see him. To close, he said that, from what had heard, it sounded good. For me, hearing that I wasn't all that bad helped boost my confidence and I can't wait for another session. I could use the practice.