Michael Kurth has had a remarkable career both as a member of the Atlanta Symphony bass section and as a composer.  The Atlanta Symphony has commissioned and premiered many of his orchestral and choral works. A recording on the ASO Media label is scheduled for commercial release on CD and digital platforms in February 2019, including Everything Lasts Forever, A Thousand Words, May Cause Dizziness, and Miserere featuring Grammy Award-winning mezzo-soprano Kelley O’Connor.   We talk about Michael’s background, the entertaining way in which he won a spot in the ASO, his composing routines, and much more.  Enjoy and be sure to check out Michael on Facebook, Instagram, and his website!   Subscribe to the podcast to get these interviews delivered to you automatically!   Check out our Online Sheet Music Store with 80+ wide-ranging titles for bassists.   Listen to Contrabass Conversations with our free app for iOS, Android, and Kindle. Check out my Beginner's Classical Bass course, available exclusively from Discover Double Bass.   Thank you to our sponsors!   Dorico - Dorico helps you to write music notation, automatically producing printed results of exceptional quality — and plays it back with breathtaking realism. It is easy enough for anyone to learn, yet has hundreds of advanced notations, features, options and sounds to satisfy even the most demanding professionals.  With its streamlined, natural user interface, students and those with less experience in scoring can compose and arrange straight into Dorico, making learning the language of music notation much faster and more intuitive. Editing and making changes — such as instrument, time signature or key — are straightforward, with the notation instantly and correctly adapting to include them, reinforcing the learning outcome.   Ear Trumpet Labs - They make hand-built mics out of Portland, OR and they have an excellent mic for upright bass called Nadine. The Nadine is a condenser mic with a clear natural sound and incredible feedback rejection. This mic is a completely new design -- the head mounts in between the strings above the tailpiece with a rubber grommet, and the body securely straps to the tailpiece with velcro elastic. A 14-inch Mogami cable connects the two parts making it easy to place on any bass. It’s durable and holds up to the demanding needs of the instrument while offering excellent sound quality. Ear Trumpet Labs is offering a free t-shirt just for Contrabass listeners with the purchase of a mic, just visit EarTrumpetLabs.com/contrabass to claim yours and check out the Nadine!   Practizma - The Practizma practice journal is packed with research based strategies to turn your ho-hum practice into extraordinary practice.  Develop your curiosity, discipline, creativity, daring, tenacity and zen.  Take a journey with four elements each week: goal setting, reflection prompt, action challenge, and journal pages to track your practice.  Curious? Download the introductory chapter of the journal for free - this gives you an idea of what it's all about.   Modacity - Are you a practice-savvy musician? Get Modacity – the music practice app that organizes, focuses, and tracks your progress.  Recorder… metronome… tone generator… timer… note taking… Do away with the random assortment of music practice apps in your arsenal. Modacity™ combines all the tools you need into one easy to use, music practice tool.  Organize, focus, and reflect on your practice – motivating you to increase retention in less time.  Modacity has a special offer for Contrabass Conversations listeners that includes lifetime access to the app.   Contrabass Conversations production team: Jason Heath, host Michael Cooper and Steve Hinchey, audio editing Mitch Moehring, audio engineer Trevor Jones, publication and promotion Krista Kopper, archival and cataloging theme music by Eric Hochberg