TockTockTock

Quote:

Originally Posted by Burning Down Exciting! I'm learning some basic cello at school right now and you really have to put your mind to it. But the result of practicing proper playing technique is a beautiful, deep, rich, resonating sound from a lovely instrument. Can you read sheet music? There are probably some decent beginner's tutorials available that will start you on your journey, but a lot of those are not catered to aural learning.

Yes, I can read sheet music. However, since I'm playing the cello, I'm trying to get more adjusted to the bass clef (I'm more accustomed to the treble). I don't think that that will be a major problem, though.

And yes... it has an absolutely gorgeous sound. It's my favorite instrument of all time, actually.

Burning Down

No, it won't be a big deal at all to learn and memorize bass clef. Right now I have to learn alto and tenor clef, and that's a little more challenging!

I like to use mnemonics as a tool to help my students learn to read music. I'll share one with you. For bass clef I always use these:

Lines (bottom to top):

G - Garbage (bottom line)
B - Bags
D - Don't
F - Fall
A - Apart (top line)

Spaces (bottom to top):

A - All (bottom space)
C - Cows
E - Eat
G - Grass (top space)

TockTockTock

Quote:

Originally Posted by Burning Down No, it won't be a big deal at all to learn and memorize bass clef. Right now I have to learn alto and tenor clef, and that's a little more challenging! I like to use mnemonics as a tool to help my students learn to read music. I'll share one with you. For bass clef I always use these: Lines (bottom to top): G - Garbage (bottom line) B - Bags D - Don't F - Fall A - Apart (top line) Spaces (bottom to top): A - All (bottom space) C - Cows E - Eat G - Grass (top space)

Yea, I had heard the one for the spaces, but not the one for the lines. The one I came across was Green Birds Don't Fly Away, but yours makes much more sense. Thanks for sharing!

Burning Down

You're welcome! There's another one that goes Good Boys Deserve Fudge Always, but I've never used it myself. Maybe because I'm not a boy

victoria sponge

I love the Cello.

__________________
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

IsotopeBill

Dunno if people are still interested in others listing really nice cello works but if so then there's a Cello Nocturne by Chopin that sends my head into a lovely flutter. Don't know which one though!!! Starts feeling quite sad, will have to look it up when I get home.

VEGANGELICA

Recently I have been exploring cello works by lesser known composers.

Yesterday I found several cello pieces that I like by a Romanian composer, Liana Alexandra (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liana_Alexandra). Liana Alexandra composed the cello piece posted below in which she plays piano to accompany her husband, the cellist:

Liana Alexandra - "Fantasy on JERUSHALAYIM SHEL ZAHAV" for Cello and Piano
Serban Nichifor (Cellist) and Liano Alexandra (Composer and Pianist)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WzOcniGJv-o

Unfortunately, I learned that Liana Alexandra died in 2011 at a fairly young age (63). This made me sad because I had been listening through a variety of her scores at a sheet music website and didn't realize until the end that she had died. Her last scores were uploaded in 2011, which makes sense now.

On the positive side, I'm glad Liana Alexandra got to spend so much of her life creating music and performing it with loved ones (both of which I also enjoy).

__________________

shinyaaoki

Cello with beatboxing

stingo

As has already been discussed, when people think of cello works, nearly always the first stop is Bach's Suite's for Unaccompanied Cello. While Casals brought modern attention to the work, I think the person most associated with the piece is Yo-Yo Ma. In fact, he (Ma) made Inspired by Bach, where he collaborated with artists from various disciplines, essentially making videos for each of the suites. I think it's OOP now, but it's well worth watching if you can find it. My favorite version of the suites is played by Ralph Kirschbaum and I think that recording can be found in its entirety on youtube.

Another performer/work pairing which has become all but synonymous is Jacqueline du Pre's interpretation of Elgar's Cello Concerto. Her opening is searing, channeling anger, melancholy and resignation and sorrow, making it (in my opinion) one of the most unforgettable moments in music. du Pre ended up losing her ability to play, and eventually her life at age 42 to multiple sclerosis. I think the best version of the piece is the recording she made with Sir John Barbirolli and is readily available.

Beethoven's Cello Sonatas (all 5 of them) are really good - no surprise considering the source. I have the set by Anne Gastinel (cello) and Francois-Frederic Guy (piano). I love how young French artists can make music written by a cantankerous German sound so good. As a side note, their version of the Brahms Cello Sonatas is quite good too.

John Tavener's The Protecting Veil (Stephen Isserlis, cello) comes to mind as a modern work that deserves a wider audience. It uses cellos to set up a sort of echo chamber, within which the soloist does his thing. The work is religious in nature as well, coming from Tavener's Russian Orthodox faith.

There's also the new breed of composer/performers like Julia Kent and Zoe Keating.

While Ma and Rostropovich are indeed great cellists, there's more out there than just their work - the fun is in the discovery of someone new (for me at least).