Players of the bass section of the Concertgebouw Orkest

Felix Lashmar – I have now fully switched to using 050rosin. As things stand, in the early stages of a player having just shifted away from Pops, the ‘Soft’ cake is my main rosin. I have also found that the ‘Hard’ cake has its utility for my playing when dosed in a little bit with the ‘Soft’ cake.

I have a ‘Hard’ cake in my bow case, if I want to play the kind of solo piece that invites shine and the desire to sink into the string more. And possibly also a good weapon if I find myself having to play in an orchestra in a really humid and hot climate.

Theotime Voisin – “The ‘Soft’ cake is a great rosin for the orchestra, it has a really nice sound quality and is plenty sticky ! For even heavier playing, I’ve had fun experimenting with the more recently made, ‘very soft cake’.”

Nicholas Santangelo Schwartz – “Sticky icky !! These are fun, soft rosins. From ‘Sticky Nicky’.

Marietta Feltkamp – “These are the rosins I have been waiting for my whole life. Sticky, but the sound stays good. No ugly noises and it does not dry out.’ 

Luís Cabrera

Marco Diaz

Signe Førre

https://signeforrebass.wixsite.com/signeforremusic

Teodora Nedyalkova

Teodora is the artistic director and principal cellist of Kamerorkest van het Noorden, an innovative and socially engaged ensemble that connects classical music with new audiences through interdisciplinary projects and educational outreach across the Netherlands.

She performs with various chamber music groups both in the Netherlands and abroad, throughout Europe, China, and Mexico. Her work has been awarded multiple awards and grants for artistic excellence.

Gabriele Basilico

Esat Ekincioglu

www.esatekincioglu.com

“The unbridled way in which this wild man from Turkey tackled his double bass unceremoniously elevated him to primus inter pares. The solo piece ‘Freedom Jazz Dance’ became a ‘Freedom! Jazz! Dance!’ ” Draai om je oren, NL

“He lives in complete symbiosis with his double bass.” Het Nap Magazine, HU

“Highlights included the AVA Trio, a heady blend of double bass, saxophone and Middle-Eastern style percussion. Esat Ekincioglu’s battered looking instrument appeared to be patched up with gaffer tape, but that didn’t impede his gutsy playing.” Jazzwise Magazine UK

Stefano Sciascia

Lee Man Hon Marco


Lee Man Hon Marco was born in Hong Kong. He studied double bass since he was 12 years old. He entered the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts in 2017 to study with Mr Zong Xiaoqian, the former principal of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra. While studying at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, Lee participated in performances with the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and the Hong Kong Sinfonietta. In 2018, he was honoured to be selected to perform at the Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in Amsterdam and studied and performed with Mr Dominic Seldis, the principal double-bassist of the orchestra.

After graduating from the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts in 2021, Lee won the ABRSM Scholarship and went to the Royal Academy of Music to enrol in the Master of Music program, majoring in double bass and minoring in conducting. Lee followed Prof. Graham Mitchell, the current dean of the string department of the Royal Academy of Music, Prof. Dominic Seldis, the principal double-bassist of Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest, and Tom Goodman, the double-bassist of the London Symphony Orchestra, and completed the master’s program in 2023. During his stay in the UK, Lee played in the London Symphony Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, and London Philharmonic Orchestra, and won the first runner-up in the 2021 London Symphony Orchestra Concerto Competition. He has studied with many musicians in different orchestras, including those from the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Singapore Philharmonic Orchestra, and BBC Radio Philharmonic Orchestra.

Laura Menegozzo

Laura Menegozzo was born in Naples on July 1st, 1975. She graduated with honors from the Conservatories of Venice, Naples, and Bologna, studying under the guidance of A. Farulli. She attended master courses in quartet and chamber music with renowned professors and perfected her solo and chamber repertoire with J. Levitz and Y. Bashmet.

*Discography*

– *Colori e Suoni del Novecento* (2013) – featuring works for solo viola of the XX century, performed on a Carlo Giuseppe Testore 1699 viola

– *E=Mc2 – Hindemith: 4 Sonate per viola*

– *Le son du cor* – compact with Laura Menegozzo (viola), Hiromi Arai (piano) and Elif Canbazoğlu (mezzo-soprano)

– *In Alto* (2017) – featuring the Suite for cello n. 1, op. 72 (1964) arranged for viola, published by Stefano Sciascia Production SSP2019

Antonio Muedra

Thomas Martin

Maud Montagnon Nocente & the Orchestre Azur

The Orchestre Azur is an association, a symphony orchestra, and a flexible ensemble composed mainly of young virtuosic musicians studying mostly at the CRR and the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP).

Founded in 2023 in Paris with my twin sister, violist Emma Montagnon-Nocente, the Orchestre Azur is dedicated to promoting musical excellence and supporting a new generation of artists through ambitious yet accessible projects, including collaborations with renowned guest soloists. The orchestra also regularly collaborates with internationally acclaimed artists for album recordings, including the pianist Van Toan and other leading figures of the classical music world. In 2026, we also launched the festival Les Rencontres d’Excellence, devoted to showcasing young talents and fostering connections between heritage, venues, and audiences.

Since its creation, the ensemble has had the honor of performing in prestigious venues such as the Château de Ferrières, the Polish Library in Paris, the Musée du Quai Branly, the Palais de l’Élysée of the President of France, the Paris Court of Appeal, Église Saint-Justin, Studio Ferbers, Chapelle Lariboisière, the Conservatoire à Rayonnement Régional de Paris, as well as at the Pathé Film Festival and more.

Here are the Orchestre Azur links:

Gabriele Ragghianti

has been awarded several prizes in several national as well as international competitions, among which the International Competition “Città di Stresa” and “Giovani concertisti in duo” by Corsico; first prize in the soloist Competition “C.M. Rietmann”, first prize at the National Competitions “Città di Genova” and “Isola di Capri”; second prize in the “Grandi Virtuosi” Competition, dedicated to Nicanor Zabaleta of Saint Sebastian, Spain.

He has been playing as principal double bass with the “A. Toscanini” Orchestra of Emilia Romagna, the Orchestra of Tuscany, the Municipal Orchestra of Bologna, the Chamber Orchestra of Mantova, the Italian Chamber Orchestra of Salvatore Accardo.

He played as a soloist with the Orchestra of the S. Carlo Theatre of Naples during the 1998-99 symphonic season and took part in a series of concerts with the Gulbenkian Orchestra of Lisbon both in Germany and Japan.

He has played as a soloist in numerous countries: Algeria, Argentina, Australia, Unites States, Japan, China, Chile, Colombia, Egypt, Finland, Hong Kong, Mexico, Korea, Ecuador, Estonia, India, Indonesia, Latvia, Malaysia, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Russia, Paraguay, Peru, Singapore, Thailand, Ukraine, Paraguay, Uruguay, Vietnam, Venezuela as well as all over Europe.

Since 1988 he has been playing as principal soloist with the chamber music group “I Solisti Veneti”.

He has also performed in many important concert halls like the Schauspielehaus of Berlin, the Stefaniensaal of Graz, the Auditorium of the Rice University of Houston, the Coliseo Theatre of Buenos Aires, the Salle Pleyel of Paris, the Lincoln Center of New York, the Tschaikowsky hall of Moscow, the Felsenreitschule of Salzburg and has taken part in concerts held by the “Solisti Veneti” and by the “Virtuosi of Moscow”.

He has performed numerous radio and tele-recordings in Italy as well as abroad, among which the Gran Duo Concertante of G. Bottesini for the R.A.I. third channel. He has also contributed in the recording of numerous disks in cooperation with wold-wide famous soloists.

He is currently performing an intense chamber activity in collaboration with well-known musicians such as V. Tretiakov, S. Azzolini, Pier Narciso Masi, A. Nannoni, A. Farulli, M. Postinghel.

Yeeun Kim

At the age of twelve, she became captivated by the double bass and, within just over two years of taking up the instrument, won major prizes at international competitions. Now aged fifteen, she performs actively both in Korea and abroad.

In 2025, she became the first Korean to win both the International Society of Bassists (ISB) International

Competition (14 & Under Division, USA)and the Namur International Double Bass Competition (Belgium). 

She is also a two-time First Prize winner of the Korea Contrabass Association Competition and has won top prizes at many of Korea’s leading bass competitions.

She studied at the Korea National Institute for the Gifted in Arts and later completed the Mozarteum Universität Salzburg Pre-College programme. At the age of fifteen, she earned early admission to the Bachelor of Arts programme at Mozarteum Universität Salzburg and will begin her undergraduate studies in October 2026.