Bassos Paraguayos was premiered on 27 August 2005 at the Saint Claud Music Festival (France) by David Heyes, Pauline Vos, Ben Groenevelt and James Adolpho. It has since been performed in Poland, America and Great Britain.

The composer writes: "Bassos Paraguayos is simply a reflection of the wonderful sounds and an array of exciting rhythms of the traditional music of Paraguay and neighbouring countries, as made popular by the group 'Los Paraguayos', with their colourful ponchos, hats, guitars, pipes and harp.

The piece starts at a fairly gentle pace and goes through a number of interesting rhythmic developments."

In one extended movement, Bassos Paraguayos has great rhythmic energy and momentum, echoing the sounds and feel of much South American music, and offering an exciting piece for the good intermediate quartet. There is interest for each player, musical and technical challenges in equal measure, all adding up to a piece which has proved to be popular with players and audiences alike. Enjoy!

Tony Osborne is an important educationalist and prolific composer who has made a significant and unique contribution to the double bass repertoire over the past 35 years. His solo music for young bassists is included by many international examination boards, and his many ensembles pieces are performed at workshops and concerts throughout the world. Tony Osborne notes the influences of Gershwin, Copland and Bernstein, alongside some of the Russian masters, on his music, which he combines with a jazzy, rhythmic and energetic style that has been popular with players and audiences worldwide.

Born in 1947 into a musical family, Tony Osborne studied at the Royal Academy of Music (London) with John Walton (double bass) and Richard Stoker (composition), and divides a busy career between composing, teaching and performing. A very prolific composer and arranger, Tony's original compositions include works in almost every genre, notably Chaconne Syncopations and Wainwright's Ways for brass quintet, Celebration Fanfare for brass ensemble, the musical A Fine Time for Wine, a beautiful and dramatic Requiem and many works for string orchestra.

In 2001 Tony Osborne was elected an ARAM (Associate of the Royal Academy of Music) for his pioneering and important work for double bass, and has been a featured composer at Bass-Fest for the past decade. He was a very successful BIBF Composer-in-residence in 2002-3 and wrote a number of impressive and innovative works for the project. He has been a judge for the British Composer Awards over the past few years and has been a judge for the BIBF Composition Competition since 1999. Recital Music is planning a major festival of Tony Osborne's music in 2012, to celebrate the composer's 65th birthday, and has formulated a 10-year project to publish all his works for double bass.
www.tony-osborne.com