Practicing with marteles
Just a quick response to Terry’s question about practicing with martelés in the previous post. My apologies to those of you who get this on RSS or other subscription and got this yesterday with the very Kermit-like still frame before hitting “play”. Hard to believe that the flailing-armed poster frame YouTube generated is an improvement. Sigh. Read More
Weaving your sound
I’ve been sitting here trying to come up with the right opening for this post, and nothing is working. You know that thing that happens with the stuff and the other thing? Well I’ve Once upon a time there was a cellist named Emily who lived in a magicalFourscore and seven years ago our Fathers brought forthThat last one had a special ring to it, though. I was making an effort, through analogy, to show that I am still learning about... Read More
der Bogen
Well, no matter what crazy antics I’m up to , there’s always room for Cello. Technique. *rimshot* Since I’m not sure if this is going to make it into my book, I thought it might be cool to post some pics here. All of the pictures here exemplify at least 80% of what I ask for in a bow grip. You’ll notice one has their pinky behind the stick, a position I call “Pinky Probation”. I have them place it there because... Read More
Son of Bow Month
I got this fantastic email from our Far and Away friend in the Philippines, who wanted to talk some more bow. Twist my arm! (so long as it’s onto that right index finger, of course) “Ola, Ms.Wright My student, Lyndon, complains of pain in his little finger (the photos might be a bit misleading; when actuallyplaying, his little finger straightens out and migrates to the top of the bow, like a violinist) when playing. I’veseen... Read More
A good problem to have
Bow Month lives! Thanks to Terry and his wife for taking the time to chronicle yet another bow grip. One thing I notice is that the kind of student who lives in the world of cello blogs AND is likely to be interested in the habits, adjustments, and solutions we talk about here probably has pretty solid technique to begin with. I was talking with Francy, one of my advanced adult students, and came to the realization that often times simply noticing... Read More
photo unrelated to Bow Month
CelloGeek (but aren’t we all?) submitted this quandry: …”I struggle with 2 things with my bow hold (I’m sure there’s more but these seem to be the peskiest) 1 – my thumb starts nice and curved but gradually will get straight and I lose that nice flexible grip.2- the position of my other fingers starts off nice – middle finger in a very similar position to your picture, but then my fingers start moving towards... Read More
Does your bow grip work?
For most of us, the bow is troublesome. The mechanics of grip and arm movement seem to have endless possibilities to vex us, and tension is a serious obstacle. So I say January is going to be Bow Month here on SRCB. Send me pictures of your bow grip, and tell me whether it works or not. If it needs work, we’ll check it out. If you made a change for the better, tell me how, and I’ll post it and share it, or if you want to post it on your... Read More
Excalibow
The 2nd movement of Beethoven 5 has claimed many a victim at symphonic auditions. It seems to be custom made to sound great in a section, but like utter chaos when played alone. Same with Don Juan, as magnificently put by Blake Oliver in this blog entry. For years and years, I have chipped away at this thing. I have changed fingerings, hand shape, bow style. Practiced it dotted, reversed, slurred, single, odd groupings, metronome, freeform…you... Read More
progress
I have come to realize, and subsequently preach, that the only people who make progress are those who persist. That’s all. These are the bow grips of two of my students who are valiantly struggling with the subtleties of the bow grip, and I snapped these photos in a moment of “Wait, wait! That’s perfect!” I am so proud of these two that I had to post them. They are both adult beginners, and have trusted me with my policy... Read More
