Gustav Láska: Konzertstück Op.54 for unaccompanied double bass

About the Composition Gustav Láska's Konzertstück Op.54 is a very rare work for unaccompanied double bass and is probably one of the few examples of the genre from the late 19th-century. It was published in Leipzig by C.F. Kahnt Nachfolger but there are no indications in the printed edition of when it was written or published and it has been out of print for over one hundred years.  Lasting almost 12 minutes, this is a 'tour de force' for the advanced double bassist, exploiting all the techniques that were available to the 19th-century bassist. Scale passages, arpeggios, double stops, lyrical melodies, pizzicato and glissandi all make their appearance and Láska uses the entire range of the double bass to create a piece of great contrasts and energy. The key of D major certainly helps with harmonics, open strings and double stops, but there are numerous technical challenges which cannot be faked and give an indication of how far standards had developed throughout the century. The printe