Double bass excerpt · Audition repertoire
Mozart, Symphony No. 35 in D major, K. 385 ("Haffner")
IV. Presto
The standard classical bass excerpt. Fast running passagework that has to stay light, clear, and exactly in time.
At a glance
- Instrument
- Double bass
- Composer
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- Work
- Symphony No. 35 in D major, K. 385 ("Haffner")
- Movement
- IV. Presto
- Era
- Classical (c. 1750–1820)
- Composed
- 1782
- Tempo
- Presto
- Clef
- Bass clef
- Level
- Audition, professional standard
- Audition list
- Yes, standard excerpt
How to practise it
The bow style, the trouble spots, and the stylistic decisions that come up most often on this excerpt.
Bowing
A light, short stroke, classical style on the bass means letting the note stop rather than sustaining it.
Where it goes wrong
The passage requires frequent shifting; unclean shifts read as smudged rhythm rather than as wrong notes.
Style
Keep the sound transparent. A heavy bass line turns the whole texture muddy, which is exactly what a panel is checking for.
Tags
Work on the technique underneath
Arco's bass curriculum builds the bow strokes, positions, and clef reading this excerpt assumes, with recorded bass playback throughout.