Alden F. Cohen, a San Francisco native, is a professional free-lance double bassist in the San Francisco Bay Area. Mr. Cohen received his bachelor?s degree from the Peabody Conservatory of Music and his master?s degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.
Since 2004, Mr. Cohen has been on the San Francisco Symphony Double Bass substitute list and often performs with the symphony. Recently, he placed as a finalist for the Marin Symphony Principal Bass audition and co-won the Berkeley Symphony Assistant Principal Bass audition. In 2008, Mr. Cohen won the Santa Cruz County Symphony principal bass audition. He is also a contracted section bass member of the Napa Valley Symphony and Modesto Symphony. He has performed as Principal Bass for the Berkeley Symphony, Fresno Symphony, Napa Valley Symphony, Pacific Chamber Symphony, and San Francisco Lyric Opera.
As a soloist, Mr. Cohen performed with Stephen Tramontozzi, San Francisco Symphony Bassist, at the San Francisco Bass Bash in 2005. He has also performed with other free-lance double bassists for donor parties and other special events.
When not performing, Mr. Cohen teaches, both privately and publicly. Since 2007, he has been a faculty member at the University of California-Berkeley, where he teaches young teenagers music theory and bass lessons through the Young Musicians Program (YMP). One of his current students, Marcus Wong, won the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra bass audition at the age of 12.
He is also an experienced musical arranger, publicist and music theory instructor. He has written a book called, Virtuoso Bass Skills for Double Bass Rookies, that is a compilation of original and borrowed bass techniques and famous melodies specially arranged for the double bass. (Hide extended text) ... (Read all)
