I play in the Singapore Youth Orchestra (SYO) & the ACS(I) Chamber Orchestra (CO). The main difference is in their size - 80+ members vs 38 members - and the instrumental make-up - SYO's a full orchestra while CO is purely strings.

Playing the bass isn't a glamorous job, unlike the violins or the violoncelli. Not that many big tunes, if any, notes are usually on the beat, short and simple (exceptions: Beethoven, etc.). Not usually heard by the audience - a friend once remarked, "...saw you play, but couldn't hear you... why'd you play the bass?"

Teamwork. We give the beat, others take the melody. Some say the "holy trinity" of orchestral music consists of the concertmaster, principal 'cellist and principal oboist. My stand partner says it's the conductor, bass section and percussions. For quite obvious reasons.

Favourites
A short list of favourites...

Composers:
Beethoven, Schubert, Grieg, Sibelius, Mahler, Wagner, Brahms, RV Williams
Works:
Finlandia (Sibelius), Ma Vlast (Smetana), Rhapsody in Blue (Gershwin), 4th mvt. of Symphony no. 5 (Mahler), Symphony no. 8 "Unfinished" (Schubert), Serenade for Strings in C major Op48 (Tchaikovsky), La Mer (Debussy), Concerto for Double Bass and Strings in B minor (Bottesini), Symphonie Fantastique (Berloiz), Messiah (Handel), Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis (RV Williams), Ride of the Valkyries from Die Walkure (Wagner)