Introduction
Fingerings
Method Books
Solo Music for Contrabassoon
About the writer

Of all the double reed instruments, and perhaps of all the commonly used musical instruments, the contrabassoon is certainly the least understood, and often the least well-played. Several reasons help to explain this.

1 . Contrabassoon keywork is by no means standardized; due to the enormous expense of the instruments, many essentially antique contras are still in use.

2. Competent instruction on the contrabassoon is very difficult to acquire. Oftentimes, a beginning student has nothing more to go on than an abbreviated fingering chart and an ancient reed.

3. Most people don't expect much from the contrabassoon and substandard playing is frequently considered to be acceptable.

4. There are few opportunities to hear a contrabassoon played well so it is difficult for students to develop any concept of what a contra should sound like. There are no well-known contrabassoonists who perform regularly and there are almost no commercially available recordings of contrabassoon solos.

5. Contrabassoons are so expensive that few private individuals own one. Often a student can only use a school instrument and then only on a very limited basis. For example, in the Seattle area I am aware of only four contras - two in private hands, one owned by the contrabassoonist in the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, and one at the University of Washington.

Despite these obstacles it is still possible for a dedicated bassoonist to become a fine contrabassoonist. For several years now I have been working on the contrabassoon and I have discovered that the only way to become proficient is to practice! More particularly, I feel that it is essential to practice major and minor scales slowly and in tune throughout the entire range of the instrument. I also practice the Milde and Weissenborn etudes; I really see no special advantage in the etudes specifically written for the contra by Piard or those found in Das Fagott vol. VI. In other words, approach the contrabassoon as you would the bassoon, or any other instrument for that matter.

The three problems which many beginning contrabassoonists suffer from are poor tone quality, poor intonation, and inadequate knowledge of fingerings. Tone production on the contrabassoon is similar to that on the bassoon except that the pharynx and oral cavity must be even more open. Obviously, writing about improving tone quality does next to nothing; you have to practice and listen carefully. If possible, have a musician (preferably a bassoonist or contrabassoonist) listen to you as well. A decent reed is important, but I won't cover that topic as information is available elsewhere.

Intonation problems can normally be solved by practicing with a tuner and by being familiar with alternate fingerings for out-of-tune notes. Poor intonation on the contra is no more acceptable than poor intonation on the bassoon.

Just as all bassoonists must use different fingerings for various notes depending on the circumstances, so must contrabassoonists be familiar with alternate fingerings; knowing only one fingering for a particular note severely limits one's abilities. Because of the enormous variation between instruments, some of the following suggestions may be useless on a particular contrabassoon. The only way to learn new fingerings is to sit down and actually play around with them while using a tuner to check pitch; it's also a good idea to have someone listen to you to help you decide which fingerings produce the best sound for you.

This low E fingering is considered to be standard by many bassoonists and it works the same way on the contra - the sound is a little fuller and slightly lower in pitch.

On those contras not possessing an alternate Eb key, this fingering is the only other possible one that I know of. It works very well for the Eb to F trill (see the F fingering).

Combine this E fingering with the previous Eb fingering for a very smooth Eb to E trill.

This fingering produces a more stable and in-tune note on many instruments. There are many variations of this fingering using the fingers of the right hand.

This fingering is given as the preferred one in Das Fagott vol. VI. For me, it has a far superior sound and is more stable. Unfortunately, for piano attacks it breaks on my instrument. To circumvent this problem, I use the other standard fingering,

and then quickly shift (sort of a modified "flick"!). This is my method for starting the unaccompanied solos in Strauss' Salome.
Once again, I find this fingering to be far superior to the standard fingering, with little tendecy to break.
This is a handy fingering which works well in fast chromatic passages and also for the C# to D trill. It is not a good fingering for a sustained note. It will work in the lower octave as well (without the octave key) but it is even less stable then.

This fingering is a little muted, but very stable and has a less hard edge to it.

The notes from Eb to Bb all have multiple fingering possibilities. Rather than describe the fingerings which I prefer on my contra, I would suggest examining the fingering chart in Das Fagott vol. VI which has several fingerings for each note.

High B is one of the most difficult notes to play in tune on the contra. This is my own favorite fingering and it is not mentioned in the fingering chart of Das Fagott vol. VI although six other fingerings are listed!

This fingering gives a very good, clear high C.

This is the preferred fingering as listed in Das Fagott vol. VI and is not listed in any other method book.

The following are some trill fingerings which are not listed in Das Fagott vol. VI.

Start on Gthen go to Ab

then trill with the first finger of the right hand.

Method Books...

I am aware of four contrabassoon method books which are currently available. The following comments are my own personal opinions regarding their contents.

1. Piard, Marius - Enseignement du Contrabasson (1952) published by Alphonse Leduc. This was the first modern contrabassoon method book to be published. Although written for the French contrabassoon, it works well for the German contra also (it appears, in fact, that the fingering system is nearly the same on both). The included fingering chart is very limited and is rather difficult to decipher. The etudes are playable but not particularly exciting. There is a good selection of wellknown orchestral contra passages at the end of the book.

2. Biggers, Cornelia Anderson - The Contra-bassoon (1977) published by Elkan-Vogel, Inc. This book goes into more depth about reeds and tone production, and discusses fingering as well. The fingering chart gives a good selection of alternate fingerings and goes up to high E. The contents are more informational and there are no etudes or excerpts.

3. Henegar, Gregg - Modern Exercises for the Contrabassoon (1984) published by Gregg Henegar. This book includes exercises written by Mr. Henegar, but its main value is in the extreme high register fingerings (contrissimo?) which are necessary for the Erb contra concerto. Several excerpts from the Erb concerto are also included.

4. Seltmann, Werner and Gunter Angerhofer - Das Fagott vol. VI das kontrafagott (1984) published by VEB Deutscher Verlag fur Musik Leipzig. This tutor is invaluable to contrabassoonists because of its excellent fingering chart. Multiple alternate fingerings are given for all of the most problematic notes; there is also a complete trill chart. Be aware that in the diagram of the contrabassoon the labels for octave keys I and 2 are switched around. There is a fairly extensive selection of difficult orchestral passages although many of them are from pieces which are rarely, if ever, performed by American orchestras. The book also contains numerous exercises and etudes. Many of the etudes are of daunting rhythmic complexity and would seem to be of little use to all but the most proficient contrabassoonists.

Solo Music for Contrabassoon...

After developing a competent technique, the fledgling contrabassoonist will soon be searching for music written specifically for the instrument; the following pieces are the only ones of which I am currently aware.

1 . Schulhoff, Erwin - Bass Nightingale, published by Emerson Music (1980). This is the only piece for unaccompanied contrabassoon which has been published to date. It is composed of three movements - Fugue, Perpetual Motion, and Melancholy. Arthur Grossman has recorded the piece on Crystal record S342.

2. Davis, William - Variations on a Theme of Robert Schumann, published by Southern Music Co. (1982). The piece is written for either bassoon or contrabassoon and is based on "The Happy Farmer". It is an easy novelty piece which is very effective on contra.

3. Bertoni, Umberto - Scherzo for Piccolo and Contrabassoon with Voice Narration, published by Fernando Righini (1974, composed in 1910). This is a very easy little duet that works well for childrens' concerts. The narrative must be altered somewhat to make sense as the translation from Italian to English is very poor.

4. Migot, Georges - Prelude for Contrabassoon and Piano, published by Alphonse Leduc (1954). This piece is fairly difficult but playable. I've never gotten a pianist to tackle the formidable accompaniment, so I really can't say what it sounds like.

5. Atwood, Charles - Four Duets for Eb Clarinet and Contrabassoon, unpublished (1986). Copies of the duets may be obtained directly from Mr. Atwood at 471 S. Summit #84, Bowling Green, OH 43402.

6. Schuller, Gunther - Concerto for Contrabassoon and Orchestra (1978). The world's first contra concerto! This piece was commissioned by the National Symphony Orchestra and was premiered by the symphony with Lewis Lipnick as soloist. Since then it has also been performed by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra with Carleton Jones as soloist. This concerto is a major work and calls for a technique which is as capable as any good bassoonist's. To my knowledge, you can't buy the music for this concerto yet. I have a Xerox copy which I obtained from Arthur Grossman who got a manuscript copy from Gunther Schuller! The concerto was broadcast on National Public Radio and it may be possible to get a cassette copy from the National Symphony.

7. Erb, Donald - Concerto for Contrabassoon and Orchestra, published by Theodore Presser (1984). This concerto was commissioned by the Houston Symphony Orchestra and was premiered by Gregg Henegar. I find this concerto to be a little easier to play than the Schuller concerto with the exception of the stratospheric high notes which are called for in places (ossias are included). Theodore Presser has the music but I had a terrible time getting it from them. After several letters, including correspondance with Donald Erb, Presser finally sent me the manuscript score from which I copied the solo part. Although a commercial recording is not available, it may be possible to buy a cassette recording from the Houston Symphony.

8. Takacs, Jeno - Quodlibet for Contrabassoon and Piano, published by Doblinger (1984). 1 have tried ordering this piece from the publishers, but as yet have never received it.

9. Hess, Willy - Quintet for Contrabassoon and String Quartet, published by Amadeus (1979). What a bizarre combination! This is another piece which I have been unable to acquire as of the moment.

10. I am aware of other pieces for contra such as "Leviathon" for contra and orchestra by Ruth Gipps, Henk Bading's Double Concerto for Bassoon and Contrabassoon, and a concerto for bassoon quartet (using contra) by Karl-Heinz Koper, but I've never seen the music nor heard any of it and have absolutely no idea where to find any of it!

11. Fucik, Julius - The Old Brown Bear, arranged for woodwind quintet, published by TrevCo Music (1985). This piece was originally composed for bassoon and orchestra and this quintet version calls for bassoon, but in my opinion it is much more effective when performed on contra. Actually, a lot of music composed for bassoon sounds good when played on contra; there certainly is no reason why a contrabassoonist can't perform Vivaldi concertos, for example.

I sincerely hope that this brief introduction to contrabassoon technique and music will stimulate further interest in the instrument and will inspire other people to share their thoughts and ideas. Since the inception of the I.D.R.S. only two articles have even broached the contrabassoon and any aspect of its actual playing. Usually, when the contra is mentioned at all it is as a footnote, which it most certainly is not!

About the writer...

Michel Jolivet is an active bassoonist and contrabassoonist in Washington State; his former teachers include Arthur Grossman and Sidney Rosenberg. He has participated as contrabassoonist with the Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra Seminar and has played contrabassoon with the Soni Ventorum Wind Quintet on several occasions. In addition, he is currently serving as principal bassoonist and contrabassoonist with numerous community orchestras. Dr. Jolivet is a practicing veterinarian in Seattle, Washington and owns Heckel contrabassoon #239.

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