Dave Holland made a whole album with one double bass

Bach’s cello suites helped Dave Holland work out how to perform alone on double bass. Speaking to KQED in 2018, he described learning to present a whole piece: melody could also suggest its harmony, without every chord having to sound as simultaneous notes.

Emerald Tears puts one player in charge of eight pieces. ECM lists an August 1977 session at Talent Studio in Oslo, with Holland on double bass. The programme includes an Anthony Braxton composition and Solar alongside Holland’s own work.

In his PostGenre interview, Holland recalled staying behind after sessions with Kenny Wheeler and Gateway. His colleagues went home; he recorded the solo album. Braxton had encouraged him to try playing unaccompanied.

“Either you play or there’s silence,” Holland said. There is no colleague to carry on accompanying when he stops. The linked title track is a complete performance by one bassist, not a long solo with the band due back at the end.