Homer Mensch
Encyclopedia
Homer Mensch was a prominent classical bassist
who was a former member of the Pittsburgh Symphony, the New York Philharmonic
, the New York Pops, and the NBC Symphony. Mensch held faculty positions at Yale University
, at the Manhattan School of Music
(in both the college and pre-college divisions), the Juilliard School
(also in both divisions), the Mannes College of Music
, Rutgers University
, Dalcroze School, Queens College, and Catholic University. He taught upwards of 45 students a week from beginners, to conservatory students, to professionals both in the classical and jazz fields.
principal bassist, Anselme Fortier, at the Manhattan School of Music. As a teenager, he played with the Dick Messner Big Band at the Hotel McAlpin in order to pay for his bass lessons. He was also an excellent tennis player in his youth, and originally wanted to pursue a career in tennis. However, he was also a promising bassist and eventually chose music over tennis. "This was at the start of the Great Depression
", he told the Juilliard Journal, "so pursuing a career in music was pretty risky. I was lucky that my parents didn't try to make me go into a field that was a safer bet."
Mr. Mensch joined the Pittsburgh Symphony in 1932 after winning the audition on the stage of Carnegie Hall
in front of Otto Klemperer
. He was assistant principal bass under Klemperer and Fritz Reiner
until 1938. He then joined the New York Philharmonic under John Barbirolli. In 1943, Mr. Mensch left the Philharmonic to serve in the U.S. Army in Texas during which time he played bass in the U.S. Army Band.
In 1944, Mr. Mensch returned to New York as a freelance musician. He subsequently performed with the NBC Symphony under Arturo Toscanini
and played in numerous television and radio shows. He has recorded with Gregor Piatagorsky, Isaac Stern, Nathan Milstein, the Bach Aria Group, the Casals Festival Orchestra, the Columbia Symphony, and on every commercial recording made in NY. He also recorded with Frank Sinatra
, Barbra Streisand
, Paul McCartney
, and numerous others. Mr. Mensch can also be heard on many soundtracks from the 1940s until the 1970s. For example, the theme from the 1975 film Jaws
is played by Homer Mensch.
At the request of the New York Philharmonic's then-conductor, Leonard Bernstein
, Mr. Mensch returned to the Philharmonic in 1966. He remained until 1975, playing under Bernstein and Pierre Boulez. After leaving the Philharmonic, he served as principal bass of orchestras such as the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra, the New York Chamber Symphony, the New York Choral Society, Little Orchestra Society, and the New York Pops.
Mr. Mensch joined the Juilliard faculty in 1970 and became the chair of the double bass department in 2002. He joined the Manhattan School of Music faculty in 1980 and received MSM's Presidential Medal for Distinguished Service in May 2005.
Double bass
The double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
who was a former member of the Pittsburgh Symphony, the New York Philharmonic
New York Philharmonic
The New York Philharmonic is a symphony orchestra based in New York City in the United States. It is one of the American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five"...
, the New York Pops, and the NBC Symphony. Mensch held faculty positions at Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, at the Manhattan School of Music
Manhattan School of Music
The Manhattan School of Music is a major music conservatory located on the Upper West Side of New York City. The school offers degrees on the bachelors, masters, and doctoral levels in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition...
(in both the college and pre-college divisions), the Juilliard School
Juilliard School
The Juilliard School, located at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City, United States, is a performing arts conservatory which was established in 1905...
(also in both divisions), the Mannes College of Music
Mannes College of Music
Mannes College The New School for Music is The New School university's music conservatory. While the university's main campus is located in Greenwich Village, New York City, Mannes maintains its main academic building on the Upper West Side of Manhattan....
, Rutgers University
Rutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...
, Dalcroze School, Queens College, and Catholic University. He taught upwards of 45 students a week from beginners, to conservatory students, to professionals both in the classical and jazz fields.
Career as a Double Bassist
Mr. Mensch studied bass with former New York PhilharmonicNew York Philharmonic
The New York Philharmonic is a symphony orchestra based in New York City in the United States. It is one of the American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five"...
principal bassist, Anselme Fortier, at the Manhattan School of Music. As a teenager, he played with the Dick Messner Big Band at the Hotel McAlpin in order to pay for his bass lessons. He was also an excellent tennis player in his youth, and originally wanted to pursue a career in tennis. However, he was also a promising bassist and eventually chose music over tennis. "This was at the start of the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
", he told the Juilliard Journal, "so pursuing a career in music was pretty risky. I was lucky that my parents didn't try to make me go into a field that was a safer bet."
Mr. Mensch joined the Pittsburgh Symphony in 1932 after winning the audition on the stage of Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
in front of Otto Klemperer
Otto Klemperer
Otto Klemperer was a German conductor and composer. He is widely regarded as one of the leading conductors of the 20th century.-Biography:Otto Klemperer was born in Breslau, Silesia Province, then in Germany...
. He was assistant principal bass under Klemperer and Fritz Reiner
Fritz Reiner
Frederick Martin “Fritz” Reiner was a prominent conductor of opera and symphonic music in the twentieth century.-Biography:...
until 1938. He then joined the New York Philharmonic under John Barbirolli. In 1943, Mr. Mensch left the Philharmonic to serve in the U.S. Army in Texas during which time he played bass in the U.S. Army Band.
In 1944, Mr. Mensch returned to New York as a freelance musician. He subsequently performed with the NBC Symphony under Arturo Toscanini
Arturo Toscanini
Arturo Toscanini was an Italian conductor. One of the most acclaimed musicians of the late 19th and 20th century, he was renowned for his intensity, his perfectionism, his ear for orchestral detail and sonority, and his photographic memory...
and played in numerous television and radio shows. He has recorded with Gregor Piatagorsky, Isaac Stern, Nathan Milstein, the Bach Aria Group, the Casals Festival Orchestra, the Columbia Symphony, and on every commercial recording made in NY. He also recorded with Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
, Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
, Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
, and numerous others. Mr. Mensch can also be heard on many soundtracks from the 1940s until the 1970s. For example, the theme from the 1975 film Jaws
Jaws (film)
Jaws is a 1975 American horror-thriller film directed by Steven Spielberg and based on Peter Benchley's novel of the same name. In the story, the police chief of Amity Island, a fictional summer resort town, tries to protect beachgoers from a giant man-eating great white shark by closing the beach,...
is played by Homer Mensch.
At the request of the New York Philharmonic's then-conductor, Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, author, music lecturer and pianist. He was among the first conductors born and educated in the United States of America to receive worldwide acclaim...
, Mr. Mensch returned to the Philharmonic in 1966. He remained until 1975, playing under Bernstein and Pierre Boulez. After leaving the Philharmonic, he served as principal bass of orchestras such as the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra, the New York Chamber Symphony, the New York Choral Society, Little Orchestra Society, and the New York Pops.
Mr. Mensch joined the Juilliard faculty in 1970 and became the chair of the double bass department in 2002. He joined the Manhattan School of Music faculty in 1980 and received MSM's Presidential Medal for Distinguished Service in May 2005.
Partial list of notable students
- Nathaniel AyersNathaniel AyersNathaniel Anthony Ayers, Jr. is an American musician. He is the subject of numerous newspaper columns, a book, and a 2009 film adaptation based on the columns. A foundation bearing his name was started in 2008 with an aim to support artistically gifted people with mental illness.-School and...
, Homeless cellist whom the book, and ensuing movie, 'The Soloist' is about was his double bass student while at Juilliard. Homer Mensch was his mentor - Gregg August, jazz bassist, composer, assistant principal of the Brooklyn PhilharmonicBrooklyn PhilharmonicThe Brooklyn Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra, commonly known as the Brooklyn Philharmonic, is an American orchestra based in the borough of Brooklyn, in New York City...
- Daniel Armstrong, member of the Chicago Symphony OrchestraChicago Symphony OrchestraThe Chicago Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the five American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1891, the Symphony makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival...
- Jean-Yves Benichou, former assistant principle of the Orchestre philharmonique de StrasbourgOrchestre philharmonique de StrasbourgThe Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg is a French orchestra based in Strasbourg. It is one of the two permanent orchestras of the Opéra national du Rhin. The orchestra's current principal venue is the Palais de la musique et des congrès « Pierre Pflimlin » .The orchestra was founded in 1855...
(since 1985), formerly Solo bassist with the Toulouse Chamber Orchestra 1976-84, - Joseph Bongiorno, assistant principal bass of the New York City OperaNew York City OperaThe New York City Opera is an American opera company located in New York City.The company, called "the people's opera" by New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, was founded in 1943 with the aim of making opera financially accessible to a wide audience, producing an innovative choice of repertory, and...
Orchestra - Michael Burr, former principal bassist San Francisco SymphonySan Francisco SymphonyThe San Francisco Symphony is an orchestra based in San Francisco, California. Since 1980, the orchestra has performed at the Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall. The San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra and the San Francisco Symphony Chorus are part of the organization...
- Rachel Calin, solobassist with Sejong Soloists, Perlman Music ProgramPerlman Music ProgramThe Perlman Music Program was founded by Itzhak Perlman and his wife, Toby, in 1995. The program is headquartered in Shelter Island, New York. It offers exceptionally talented young string players, aged 12 to 18, a six-week summer residential courses in solo performance, chamber music, string...
Faculty - Zachary Cohen, principal double bassist of the Milwaukee Symphony OrchestraMilwaukee Symphony OrchestraThe Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra is an orchestra based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Its primary performing venue is the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts...
- Peter Compo, former member of the CBS Symphony
- Jacqui Danilow, member of the Metropolitan OperaMetropolitan OperaThe Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
Orchestra - Marji Danilow, member of the Metropolitan OperaMetropolitan OperaThe Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
Orchestra - John De Witt, Mannes College of MusicMannes College of MusicMannes College The New School for Music is The New School university's music conservatory. While the university's main campus is located in Greenwich Village, New York City, Mannes maintains its main academic building on the Upper West Side of Manhattan....
professor of double bass - Paul Erhard, University of Colorado at Boulder professor of double bass
- William EverettWilliam EverettWilliam Everett was born in Watertown, Massachusetts, United States. He was the son of Charlotte Gray Brooks and orator, Massachusetts governor and U.S...
, former member of the San Francisco SymphonySan Francisco SymphonyThe San Francisco Symphony is an orchestra based in San Francisco, California. Since 1980, the orchestra has performed at the Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall. The San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra and the San Francisco Symphony Chorus are part of the organization... - Lynn Fleming, Montgomery College, professor of double bass
- Matthew Frishman, member of the Minnesota Orchestra
- Neil Garber, assistant principal bass, Santa Barbara Symphony
- Gary Gatzke, Interlochen Director of Alumni Engagement, Principal Bassist of the Traverse Symphony Orchestra
- Timothy Goplerud, composer
- Glenn Lewis Gordon, Oslo Philharmonic, Norway
- Mark HeliasMark HeliasMark Helias is an American jazz double bass player and composer born in New Brunswick, New Jersey.He did not begin playing the double bass until the age of 20, graduating from Yale University's School of Music with a Masters degree in 1976. He has also studied at Rutgers University...
, composer - Christopher Hanulik, Los Angeles PhilharmonicLos Angeles PhilharmonicThe Los Angeles Philharmonic is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California, United States. It has a regular season of concerts from October through June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and a summer season at the Hollywood Bowl from July through September...
and UCLA professor of double bass - Robert Kassinger, member of the Chicago Symphony OrchestraChicago Symphony OrchestraThe Chicago Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the five American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1891, the Symphony makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival...
- Sean Kelly, jazz bassist
- Roger Kline, member of the Chicago Symphony OrchestraChicago Symphony OrchestraThe Chicago Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the five American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1891, the Symphony makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival...
- Steve KirbySteve Kirby (musician)Steve Kirby is an American jazz bassist.Kirby was born in Maumee Valley, Ohio, and his family moved to St. Louis when he was two. He picked up guitar and electric bass while stationed at Fort Bragg, and following this he attended Webster University, receiving his BA in 1985...
, jazz master - Gregory Koeller, Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra
- Albert LaszloAlbert LaszloAlbert Laszlo was formerly the principal bass of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra and currently faculty of The Juilliard School College and Pre-College Divisions as well as the College-Conservatory of Music .-Biography:...
, Juilliard SchoolJuilliard SchoolThe Juilliard School, located at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City, United States, is a performing arts conservatory which was established in 1905...
and University of Cincinnati – College-Conservatory of Music professor of double bass - Christian McBrideChristian McBrideChristian McBride is an American jazz bassist. His father, Lee Smith, and his great uncle, Howard Cooper, are well known Philadelphia bassists who served as McBride's early mentors...
, jazz master - Kurt Muroki, Artist Member - Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
- Linda McKnightLinda McKnightLinda McKnight is a double bassist particularly known for her teaching and solo performances. She currently is part of the music faculties at Manhattan School of Music, Columbia University, New York University, Columbia Teachers College, and Montclair State University.Ms...
, Manhattan School of MusicManhattan School of MusicThe Manhattan School of Music is a major music conservatory located on the Upper West Side of New York City. The school offers degrees on the bachelors, masters, and doctoral levels in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition...
professor of double bass - Richard Myron, bass professor at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Music de Paris
- Ron Naspo, former member of the American Symphony OrchestraAmerican Symphony OrchestraThe American Symphony Orchestra is a New York-based American orchestra founded in 1962 by Leopold Stokowski, then aged 80. Following Maestro Stokowski's departure, Kazuyoshi Akiyama was appointed Music Director of the American Symphony Orchestra from 1973-1978. Music Directors during the early...
- Kathryn Nettleman, member of the Minnesota OrchestraMinnesota OrchestraThe Minnesota Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Minneapolis, Minnesota.Emil Oberhoffer founded the orchestra as the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra in 1903, and it gave its first performance on November 5 of that year. In 1968 the orchestra changed to its name to the Minnesota Orchestra...
- Michael Benjamin NigrinMichael Benjamin NigrinMichael Benjamin Nigrin is a musician and music composer at large who has scored the music for numerous independent and experimental films and is a double bassist with the grammy award winning Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, a not-for-profit, symphonic orchestra based in Buffalo, New...
, member of the Buffalo Philharmonic - Donald PalmaDonald PalmaDonald Palma is a prominent classical double bassist, conductor, bass instructor, and educator of ensemble performance. He is a native of New York City, and is a graduate of the Juilliard School. Mr...
, Yale UniversityYale UniversityYale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
professor of double bass - David Phillips, composer
- Susan Powell, faculty at the Hartt School of Music
- Melanie Punter, bass professor at Florida State UniversityFlorida State UniversityThe Florida State University is a space-grant and sea-grant public university located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a comprehensive doctoral research university with medical programs and significant research activity as determined by the Carnegie Foundation...
- William Ritchen, member of the San Francisco SymphonySan Francisco SymphonyThe San Francisco Symphony is an orchestra based in San Francisco, California. Since 1980, the orchestra has performed at the Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall. The San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra and the San Francisco Symphony Chorus are part of the organization...
- Paul Robinson, principal bassist Pro Musica Chamber Orchestra
- Joseph M Russo member & personnel manager of Orchestra New England / composer
- Judith Sugarman, double bass faculty at Mannes College the New School for Music,preparatory division, assistant principal bass of the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra principal bass of the Little Orchestra Society
- Laura Snyder, member of the Milwaukee Symphony
- Kristoffer Saebo, freelance bassist and fellow of The Academy—A Program of Carnegie Hall, The Juilliard School, and The Weill Music Institute.
- Michael Taddei, former principal bassist Opéra National de LyonOpéra National de LyonOpéra National de Lyon is an opera company in Lyon, France which performs in the Nouvel Opéra, a modernized version in 1993 of the original 1831 opera house.The inaugural performance of François-Adrien Boïeldieu's La Dame blanche was given on 1 July 1831...
(France) - Frank TusaFrank TusaFrank Tusa is an American jazz double-bassist, composer,educator.Tusa played guitar before switching to bass at age ten. He worked in a Broadway pit orchestra and then played while serving in the Army. Tusa worked with Paul Bley , Horacee Arnold , and in the Open Sky trio with Dave Liebman and...
, jazz master - Lex Valk, member of the Houston Symphony OrchestraHouston Symphony OrchestraThe Houston Symphony is an American orchestra based in Houston, Texas. Since 1966, it has performed at the Jesse H. Jones Hall for the Performing Arts in downtown Houston....
- Matthew Way, principal bass, National Center for the Performing Arts Orchestra (Beijing, China)
- Erik Harris, principal bass, St. Louis Symphony, former member of the Chicago Symphony
See also
- List of contemporary classical double bass players
- Juilliard SchoolJuilliard SchoolThe Juilliard School, located at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City, United States, is a performing arts conservatory which was established in 1905...
- Manhattan School of MusicManhattan School of MusicThe Manhattan School of Music is a major music conservatory located on the Upper West Side of New York City. The school offers degrees on the bachelors, masters, and doctoral levels in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition...
External links
- Juilliard Journal 2005 Obituary
- New York Times Obituary
- PlayBill Article on Homer Mensch
- New York Day by Day: Stringed Subway Rider (March 17, 1984)
- Official Website
- TIME Magazine: Still on the Beat (March 15, 2004)
- Juilliard Journal: Remembering a True Mensch
- Juilliard Journal: Interview with Homer Mensch