Giovanni Bottesini

Giovanni Bottesini was an Italian composer, conductor, and virtuoso double bassist from the romantic era. He is best remembered for his many innovative contributions to double bass technique, and for its acceptance as a solo instrument. He was born into a musical family in Crema, Italy in 1821. At a very young age, he received musical training from his father, who was a composer and a clarinetist. Throughout his childhood and early teenage years, he studied the violin with Carlo Cogliati, and he performed as both a singer and a timpanist at several local venues. When he was 14 years old, he applied to the Milan Conservatory, but he needed a scholarship because his family couldn't afford the tuition. Upon learning that there were scholarships available for the double bass, Bottesini immediately obtained an instrument to learn on. Within a few weeks, he learned the double bass well enough to pass the audition, and he earned the scholarship. At the conservatory his professors were Nicola Vaccai, Francesco Basili, and he studied double bass with Luigi Rossi. He progressed so rapidly that by the time of his graduation in 1839, the conservatory awarded him 300 francs for his high level of musicianship as a soloist. This enabled him to purchase an instrument made by Carlo Giuseppe Testore, which he equipped with only three strings tuned higher than usual. He made his debut in 1840 at the Teatro Comunale in Crema, which was a huge success and led to several invitations to perform in Italy and Vienna. He was also appointed principal bassist of the Teatro San Benedetto in Venice, which at the time was preparing Verdi’s opera I due Foscari. Bottesini met the composer around this time, and they developed an enduring friendship. He toured widely through the 1840s, with performances in New York, London, Havana, and many major venues in Europe. He was admired for his astounding technique, precise intonation, and expressive phrasing. He also explored the use of harmonics and other extended techniques, which enabled him to play pitches far beyond the standard range of the instrument. He continued touring through the 1850s, and in the early 1860s he became the musical director at several prominent theaters in Palermo, Barcelona, Madrid, and Portugal. It was also around this time when he started devoting more of his efforts to conducting, and composing quartets and quintets for strings, 14 operas, and a large volume of works for the double bass. His solo fantasias on the operas of Bellini are exciting showpieces that are still performed by the most virtuosic players. He completed his instructional method for the double bass in 1869, and in 1871 he was selected by Verdi to conduct the world premiere of Aida in Cairo, Egypt. Bottesini’s opera Vinciguerra from 1870 had a successful run of 40 performances in Paris, but audiences were less enthusiastic about his later offerings. Regardless of his shortcomings on the opera stage, he remained highly respected as a conductor and double bassist, and with Verdi’s recommendation he was nominated to become the director of the Parma Conservatory in 1889. Six months after accepting the position, Bottesini passed away from unknown causes. In modern times, his works have appeared on Bottesini: Three Gran Duettos for Cello and Bass featuring Martin Rummel and Christine Hoock, and also on Mikyung Sung and Jaemin Shin’s Colburn Sessions.
© RJ Lambert /TiVo