Cello advice

[JPJ]

Do we have any Cellists amongst our little community?

 

Looking for advice as a complete newbie. I’ve always hankered after the soulful sound of the cello, and always promised myself I would take up cello when I retired. Recent events have taught me that retirement isn’t a certainty so I’m tentatively considering bringing my entry into the world of cello forward.

 

Any and all advice gratefully received. 

[Gareth Hughes]

Cellist-ish here. I teach it, although I don’t play it by choice (the education system has strings split into Upper and Lower string tutors, so I teach about 85% cello to 15% double bass.)

 

Anyhow, advice to start with would be to get your scales/arpeggios together - if for no other reason than to gain familiarity with strings tuned in 5ths. For a long time I couldn’t improvise on a cello as my fingers would default to the shapes they’re comfortable with. Reading parts was a lot easier, probably because I was only focusing on playing the part and not creating it. Hope that makes sense.

[haruki]

I'm in a similar position  - just started dabbling in cello - I need to get a few lessons.

 

So far  I've found the transition to tuning in fifths less painful than I expected.   And those Bach suites that are so hard on the bass are easier on the cello (well left hand anyway). 

 

My tip is to  buy a mute for practice.  I find the cello quite loud and strident and when its played less than  perfectly (ahem)  it can be a challenge for loved ones ,  neighbours and the local cat population.   I find a practice  mute helps take the edge off......a bit...and its cheaper than sound proofing the room.  

[zbd1960]

Hi, I'm a cellist - main instrument. 

 

It is extremely easy to acquire bad habits which are hard to undo, so a teacher that you get on with is essential really. There's a lot to angle of the cello, how you sit, left hand technique, bowing etc. And... cello is NOT the same or even similar to violin/viola, so find a cello teacher not a generic string teacher.

 

The bad news is they're much more expensive than violins, the good news is there are very good instruments made in China at a reasonable price. Modern cello strings are much nicer/kinder on the fingers than the old cheese wires, whilst expensive compared to bass guitar strings, they last a long time.

 

Go to a specialist string store / luthier to get an instrument, not a generic music store that doesn't have string specialists. Set-up and action are important. They'll also have secondhand instruments. Some teachers do too. 

 

Expect to pay around 1/4 of your instrument cost on the bow, e.g. £1,000 cello, £250 bow.

 

Happy for you to message me if you want to chat more directly.    

[NickA]

I was a cellist long before I bought any basses.  My dad was a pro cellist so I got free lessons ( and free cellos ) from an early age.

 

It is NOTHING like playing the bass. It feels tiny and there are a million ways of fingering everything.  articulation and vibrato are really important.   And fifths tuning with 6 semitones to cover with all four fingers ( plus a thumb on occasion) in each pposition 

 

 I'd advise a teacher .. else you might miss learning all the finger extension ppossibilities one finger one "fret" won't hack it.

 

You might find a good old cello at eg thecelloroom.com.  but a Jay Heide or Eastman Chinese made one, set up by a UK dealer ( eg Tim Toft or my local bloke David at Bassbags.co.uk ) would be lower risk.

 

I think 25% of the cello price on a bow is perhaps a bit much once you get a decent cello; my cello ( used to be my mum's ) is about £10k worth, my best bow cost £1300 and I used a £200 one for years.  My dad's cello is worth £10ks but he never spent more than £2k on a bow ( but he is from Yorkshire).

[diskwave]

Cruising the threads and never thght anyone else would be talking cello. Started tenor recorder two yrs ago (mentioned in the recorder thread) and then took the cello plunge last Nov. But yes what a work out....so bloomin difficult and it wasn't long before Twinkle got real boring. I think the trouble with being older is the joints just do not work so well as a childs so its prob impossible to catch up. Fun tho.

[Owen]

You could tune the 'cello in 4ths using these https://www.daddario.com/products/orchestral/cello/helicore-fourths-cello/helicore-fourths-tuning-cello-44-scale-medium-tension-set/

 

I am fully aware that there are elements of the repertoire which would be tricky, but if you were picking up the 'cello for a side project and wanted that tone without the "Eh? why would you tune in 5ths" moments, they are there.

[zbd1960]

I didn't really start playing cello until I was over 50. Fortunately, I could already read music, so I had none of the issues around that. You can make decent progress with the right teacher. I'd also strongly recommend joining your local community orchestra/band/group. Playing with others like that can really help you to improve.

 

Once you've got past the basics of coordinating fingering with left hand and basic bowing with right hand, you'll make good progress. 

 

Personally I wouldn't tune in 4ths as that would make using any fingering marked in a part useless and for me would add layers of confusion.      

[NickA]

On 30/03/2023 at 20:47, zbd1960 said:

Personally I wouldn't tune in 4ths as that would make using any fingering marked in a part useless

Second that.  And you'd have to lose C, C#, D, D# on the bottom string, rendering much cello music unplayable ...

 

I'm intrigued by the existence of 4ths tuned string sets though and off to read up.

 

As a cellist originally, I tried tuning my first bass guitar in 5ths ... didn't last tho.

[zbd1960]

8 hours ago, NickA said:

Second that.  And you'd have to lose C, C#, D, D# on the bottom string, rendering much cello music unplayable ...

 

I'm intrigued by the existence of 4ths tuned string sets though and off to read up.

 

As a cellist originally, I tried tuning my first bass guitar in 5ths ... didn't last tho.

Yeah the spacing at the low end is too wide to make that viable