Bass Musician Magazine - SPECIAL August 2014 Female Bassist Issue | Page 198
YING
Interview by Rául Amador
Ying Lai Green
sinfonietta.nl
rotterdamsphilharmonisch.nl
Some of the band(s) I Play With:
Solo bassist with Amsterdam
Sinfonietta and Co Principal Bass
with Rotterdam Philharmonic
Orchestra
Gear I Use:
Testore School 18th century
Italian Bass, Krattenmacher Bass
made in 2003, Dupuy French bow
Endorsed By:
D’Addario
How/Where did you learn to play?
I first started bass at school, with short weekly
peripatetic lesson. Then later at Chetham’s
School of Music in Manchester, followed by
the Royal Academy of Music in London. After
that, I travelled to Germany to see bass playing
from a different perspective before settling in
the Netherlands. In truth though, I still learn
daily from the colleagues around me.
In an industry dominated by male
musicians, do you find that this hinders
or helps your opportunities?
Luckily for me, I have never been subject to
any form of prejudice. One of the advantages
of the auditioning system in the Netherlands
is that it is behind a curtain, so unless you are
audibly wearing high heels, the jury will not be
able to distinguish your gender. Opportunities
in my opinion are alike regardless of gender.
What is your opinion of the image
of female bassists in today’s music
industry?
I can only speak with confidence about the
environment in which I make music. Here
I see that the times of male domination in
the orchestra is no longer a reality. Actually
nowadays the women in the female changing
rooms have the danger of stepping on one