Over the past 18 months, I have been working on a full-length concerto for contrabass and orchestra. Although this project has been percolating for many years, it has just now finally made its way out of my brain, onto paper, and into the gifted hands friends and colleagues Todd Seeber and Heinrich Christensen.

Once the first movement was completed, I approached Todd and Heinrich about doing a recording, having already completed an orchestral reduction for organ. In the spring of 2024 we were able to record and film it, and after managing various delays, we now have a final edit and mix.

The final concerto will be in four movements. The first movement features an orchestration with winds, limited brass (horns and tuba) and strings. Movement 2 is orchestrated for percussion and solo contrabass only, followed by a 3rd movement for solo contrabass and bass choir. The final movement’s orchestration features the full band, including winds, brass, percussion, and strings.

At the time of this writing, I am in the completing the final composition of the 2nd and 4th movements (movement 1 and 3 are already complete), with a target of completing the entire work in the early spring of 2025.

—GGR