FROM THE ARCHIVES I began writing my memoire "A different View" in 2010, the year I retired from UCSD. I worked on it five mornings a week for three years. During this time I would occasionally listen to recordings from my archives that were mentioned in the book. My pleasure in listening to some of these musical moments led to the idea of organizing a CD of particular favorites. The first piece is a delightful divertimento by Barney Childs (1926-2000) "Welcome To Contrabass Land." This piece was part of a commission from ASTA for a collection of etudes I curated. Barney Childs became a friend in 1960 and went on to create a handful of compositions for us to perform and record. "Septimino" by Arnold Franchetti (1911-1993) was written for Nancy and I with brass quintet. Franchetti was the son of Alberto Franchetti, a friend of Puccini and a composer and director of the conservatory in Lucca. Arnold studied with Richard Strauss. He came to the USA after WWII and settled in Connecticut. He taught at the Hartt School of Music and was a unique and unforgettable teacher and mentor. He kindly wrote this piece for Nancy and I. This live recording is from my debut recital in 1964. We met Donald Erb (1927-2008) at the Bennington Composers conference and became fast friends. Although Erb is best known for his great orchestral music, he had a great ear for color and balance with combos. His "7 Miscellaneous" (1964) is one of our favorite duos. We have played it often in many countries and recorded it as well. "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat" by Charles Mingus (1922-1979) is one of my favorite works by one of my musical heroes. It is, in fact, a requiem for Lester Young, another of my musical heroes. This was recorded at a time when I was obsessed with collective 4 track improvisation and notation. Mingus liked my performance. The fact that he liked my playing meant a great deal. In 1975, Tom Johnson (1939- ) wrote "Failing", a self-reverential talking/playing piece. This piece became a "life changer" for me, my signature piece for many years. Everywhere I went "Failing" came also. As my touring schedule slowed down, it became difficult to maintain "Failing" at a high level, so I retired it. Listening to this performance, I'm thinking maybe I should make it a priority once again . Hmmm . . . While playing a solo concert at the Warsaw Festival in 1973, I was suddenly presented with a conundrum. The audience wanted an encore! At a "new music" event??! What to play, what to play . . . Ives or Ellington came to mind, but then my mind went blank. All of a sudden I walked to the footlights and announced (in English) that I would like to play an old English ballad. The song, by Paul McCartney (1942- ), was "Yesterday. This version is another 4 track improvisation replete with world music influences, especially the pizzicato tremolo. Having read the text many times, it continues to resonate with this old bass player. Eugene Kurtz (1923-2006) was really an "American in Paris." After WWII he stayed and studied in Paris. We got to know each other after I had the honor to premiere a solo piece of his. One day Eugene called and said he had a piece in mind for actress and bassist. This became one of the great theatre pieces, "The Last Contrabass in Las Vegas." Wikipedia says that this piece is Kurtz's best known composition and that it was written for Bertram and Nancy Turetzky, who performed and recorded it as well.