Renaud Garcia-Fons – Bass

Garcia Fons’s bas are the Jean Auray 5-string Master and Fly Auray models made by luthier Jean Auray. His bows are by Augagneur-Bergeron, Henry Guerra. Strings: C high Pirastro flat chromesteel / G D A Thomastik infeld Spirocore Solo / E Thomastik infeld Spirocore Weich. He favours Pop’s rosin and, amplification-wise, it’s a DPA 4099 / Pick Up Fishman Full Circle. He also uses a Boss SE70 multi effects unit. Now we know all that, we can all sound like him but the end of next week.

(information from the artist’s own website https://www.renaudgarciafons.com)

I recently recovered a much damaged double bass and, after a four years forced hiatus, have rediscovered my love for the instrument. I love listening to solo bass players and RG-F is one of the ones I have spent some time with. Most of his stuff is completely unplayable and very challenging to write down but, in amongst all of that, is the occasional piece that is more approachable. This is one such piece. It is called ‘Pavane Du Lavent’ (‘Pavane of The East’) and comes from the 2019 album he recorded with theorbo player Claire Antonin called ‘Farangi (Du Baroque à L’Orient)’. It’s not ‘easy’ by any stretch of the imagination but it is playable. It is an arco/pizz. thing but you could play the main theme pizz. if you wanted to (but it wouldn’t sound half as lush….)