Blue Bell takes over from Big Red

My new blue Bell bassoon, aka Blue Bell, is a total joy and came through like a champion for all of the concerti and studio recording that I did in springtime 2022. I have chosen to commit to Bell bassoons and sell my glorious 15k Heckel aka Big Red to the immensely gifted powerhouse principal bassoonist of the Oregon Symphony, Carin Miller.​

My Professional Bassoons…. Heckels to Bells

I have played many bassoons and in particular, several Heckels since the start of my life as a bassoonist,  from the 5000 series (made in the first decade of the 20th century) loaned to me as a student by Christopher Millard; to the 6000 series (1920s)  loaned to me by the Curtis Institute of Music when I decided to sell my fancy Püchner; the 10k series (late ’50s through 1960s); the 12k series (1970s); the13k series (1980s) and finally, Big Red, a 15k series Heckel from 2008.

My last three Heckels really suited my style of playing and led me forward to greater power and expressivity. As bassoonists know, all top-of-the-line professional bassoons take considerable time to make. Waiting times for Heckels increased with each passing year, and the last official notice that I saw from Heckel indicated a 16-year waiting list; they have closed orders until they can catch up. Which puts a huge premium on the already costly newer model Heckels in the 15000 and 16000 series.

With the 10k series Heckel that I won my second bassoon position with Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal… back when I wore long black skirts and earrings🤣

Handing Big Red to Carin

I hand-delivered Big Red to Carin Miller in Portland and I will forever cherish the texts and jaw-dropping debut video that she sent upon playing this bassoon for the first time. I keenly look forward to hearing Carin as she continues her own strong career as an orchestral bassoonist, soloist, chamber artist and renowned teacher and founder of Bassoons Without Borders.

I am proud that my former bassoons are still being played by other top players in the world.

Big Red and I did a lot of work together, and before him, Black Beauty and Mr. Brown

You can still hear me playing Big Red and the others on many commercial recordings and recorded live performances:  Hummel Grand Concerto, Lachner Concertino, Weber Andante & Rondo, Oddbird Concerto, Sicilian Proverbs, Thirteen Seconds, Vivaldi Concerti, Scarlatti, J-D Braun 24 Solos, Lussier Oddbird Concerto, Double Concerto, Song of Love and Sorrow, (and so many more works), Glenn Buhr’s man will only grieve if he believes the sun stands still, Marc Mellits’ Dark Matter, Paul Frehner’s Apollo X, Constantine Carravasilis’, Silver Angel.… and there is so much chamber music to hear and works with piano. Big Red has made his mark on my life and I’ll never forget him. 

Black Beauty, my former 13000  Heckel can be heard in many Montreal Symphony recordings and in the award-winning concerto album Bacchanale (Hindemith and Lussier Double Concerti) and many chamber music albums, including Musica Franca and Caliban Quartet.

The brown 12000 Heckel can also be heard on many Montreal Symphony recordings, along with the 10,000 series horn that I won the second bassoon position in 1981.