Bassoon Brothers News

Evan Kuhlmann has won the recent Oregon Symphony audition for the contrabassoon/utility bassoon position. Evan is originally from the Seattle area and joins Brother Mark as another Sea-Tac transplant to the great city of Portland and home of the Bassoon Brothers. Evan is not only a bassoonist, but a composer as well. He studied with Francine Peterson and Seth Krimsky in Seattle and as a student of Frank Morelli's at Juilliard. It was his first ever orchestra audition. Bravo, Evan!
Evan Kuhlmann: If you see this guy, run. High and fast.

Brother Leon Chodos, the Bassoon Brothers virtuoso contrabassoonist, leaves us early in 2007. Leon's landed in a higher plane, both in pay, prestige and altitude as the new Associate Principal/Contrabassonist with the Utah Symphony. The newest dumb guy of the Bassoon Brothers has followed in the foot steps of the big dumb guy by moving up from his lowly position in the Oregon Symphony bassoon section and leaves the big bottom of the Bros behind. What's next Leon, maybe Chicago? Who knows, Leon seems to have it all figured out. Thinner reeds?

Leon's strength in low down playing can be heard on the Bassoon Brothers Escaped CD to be released sometime in the next year. He even gets a few solo shots.

Greg Ewer, violinist with the Oregon Symphony, has recorded two tracks with the Bros for the next recording. Greg will be featured as soloist with the Symphony or Feb. 5, 2006. Greg's history includes playing with his own bluegrass band in Texas and has performed with the Bassoon Brothers at Chamber Music on Tap. On the recording the hot fiddler plays lead on Orange Blossom Special, with Mark trying to keep up with the flying fingers on bassoon. Greg really know how to get the train rolling on this one. Greg also wails away on Miserlou a well known surfer tune everyone recognizes from the movie Pulp Fiction. Mark leads the tune with his amplified (it's not a guitar) wah-wah bassoon.

Portland’s celebrity drummer/percussionist and two time Grammy nominee Stephen Moretti will record the rhythm tracks for the Bassoon Brothers newest Crystal Records CD ( working title is Escaped). Steve has an amazing resume that includes performing with Captain and Tennille, Rosemary Clooney, Matt Catingub, and many jazz soloists including Michael Brecker and Pete Christlieb, son of famous bassoonist Don Christlieb who is one of Brother Mark’s mentors. Steve’s appeared on the NBC Today Show, A&E Biography with Rosemary Clooney, Rosie O’Donnell’s Christmas TV special and much, much more. With all his versatility and chops, we are still going to put Steve to the test with his first outing backing up a bevy of belching bedposts doing, funk, big band, surfer music and God knows what else. Good luck Steve. And by the way, The Brothers work with Steve’s wonderful wife Oregon Symphony Concertmaster Amy Schwartz Moretti. Check out Stephen Moretti’s website . Amazing.

Mark Eubanks of the Bassoon Brothers has purchased two Neumann U-87 microphones modified by world renowned microphone expert Klaus Heyne to be used as the main stereo pair in recording the Oregon Symphony Broadcasts. Mark is the producer for all Oregon Symphony broadcasts on Oregon's KOPB and Portland's KBPS (all classical, all the time) stations. Klaus Heyne resides in Oregon and has long been known for his customized modifications of the Neumanns for his clients and more recently his work with Brauer microphones. Klaus Heyne's company, German Masterworks, is located in Corbett, Oregon. Mark also owns two Heyne modified Neumann U-89s which he has featured on all Oregon Symphony broadcast as his favorite spot microphones. Oregon Symphony broadcasts will be streamed worldwide beginning in January 2006 and may be heard occasionally on NPR's Performance Today.

Fellow Oregonian Fred Child of NPRs Performance Today gives the bassoon and family some respect with an interview from the Walter Midi studio in Portland. The final tracks for our new CD will be recorded earlier in the day. Listen for us in the future on Performance Today.

Yes, we've done it again. We couldn't resist recording more of our stolen goods. This one features all the members of the "OON" family and has some tracks recorded with Brother Juan before he left for Atlanta. The new guy, Leon, get to show off his stuff too. Release date is uncertain as we are now editing the tunes. Thinkin' we might add a few more rockin' tracks.

Our newest Bassoon Brother will arrive to join the Oregon Symphony and the Bros. in August. Leon Chodos won the December 2002 audition for the Symphony's Contrabassoon/Utility Bassoon position. Leon comes to us from Denver where he was playing a one year position. Previously he had performed with the San Jose Symphony prior to its bankruptcy. Leon competed against many fine candidates who came from as far away as Norway, England and Australia.

Hells Angels, a bassoon quartet with orchestra accompaniment, has been released by Delos International featuring the Bassoon Brothers and the Oregon Symphony. The title of this new CD is American Contrasts. Hells Angels was composed by Michael Daugherty which chronicles the take over of a concert hall by a band of biker bassoonists who blow and blast their way through the piece with belching bedposts, or "dragpipes" as Daugherty suggests. Everyone has a great time until the police show up.

Mark met Michael Daugherty in New York last May when he was asked to perform with Milan Turkovic and Frank Morelli at the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. Daugherty said he bought the Wanted CD of the Bassoon Brothers to get ideas for Hells Angels! The session will be recorded by DELOS Records. No release date or pairing of Hells Angels has been determined as yet.