I chatted a couple of times with Maestro Dave Holland, bassist extraordinary and every time he was humble and relaxed and not intimidating, he who played with - literally - everybody who counted.
I was amused when he told me, asking about his one of a kind cut-off double bass, he (as a touring artist) was so worried about flying his precious instrument in huge flight-case he hired a luthier to reduce the overall size of his cherry-wood instrument without loosing the feeling of a 4/4 double-bass.
… then, suddenly, grinning, with a quick movement, he separated the pegs scroll 😱
He told me: “you cannot imagine how a difference makes just a few centimeters shorter for airlines companies when flying this bulky coffin 😄”.
… and he laughed like a kid 😄!
That’s it… yesterday evening I enjoyed one more time Mr. Holland in trio with Zakir Hussain at tablas and percussions and Chris Potter at baritone and soprano saxes.
A nice concert.