Already know you’re interested? Go to the bottom of the post and let me know!

It’s been so much fun to see interest in the cello and playing pop/contemporary styles since Netflix’s Wednesday crashed into our hearts and minds in 2022. Actress Jenna Ortega took lessons in preparation for the role, and while her technique is not a finished product (see above photo), if she was one of my own students, I’d feel optimistic about her future on the instrument. It’s truly impressive that she got so far so fast and managed to do convincing fakery of some extremely difficult pieces. As someone who used to coach actors on Hollywood sets to do just that, I tip my hat to her, and her tremendous instructor, Jason Pegis.

So, in tribute to the spirit of both Wednesday and Jenna, I’m offering a two month spooky season intro to cello intensive, designed to get you as far as fast as possible…without injuries, confusion, or outdated snobby attitudes. And maybe a little Addams Family dark humor, too.

Something different about this course? It’s open to everyone, age 12 and up. I normally focus my teaching on adult students, but since a new generation is as excited about Paint it Black as I am, we’re throwing the doors wide open for this bad boy.

Two months is NOT enough time to be able play Paint it Black like this! But it is enough time to be able to play a simplified version. If you’re reading this and are a more advanced cellist who wants to try it, there are SO MANY tutorials on YouTube, and of course, you can contact me here for a lesson or three to get it into performance shape.

What will this crash course cover?

• essentials of left and right hand technique
• moody scales
• different bow techniques commonly used in pop
• Danny Elfman’s Wednesday theme song
• Goo Goo Muck by The Cramps (the dance song)
• Paint it Black, simple version
• intro to learning to play with emotion
• intro to improvisation
• strategies for being brave and fierce, even as a beginner

NOTE: if you want to take this course but do not know how to read music, don’t worry! I’ll be doing a free two-day music reading intro beforehand that will set you up. All you need to succeed in the main course is the basic concept, because the most important thing is going to be how you physically play the instrument. If you decide to stick with the cello, you’ll have time for the skill to develop and music reading will feel easy breezy.

hot take: some say reading music is like reading a foreign language. Yeah, sure, a language with 12 words. You got this.

I need to make sure we have 6 or more people for this course to run. If there is huge interest, I’ll add another cohort. I usually schedule classes like these on Sunday afternoons or early evenings, eastern time. Enrollment starts Sept 1, all classes on Zoom.

Do you need to rent an instrument? Music & Arts is nearly everywhere in the US, but I say use them as a last resort. Supporting local violin shops is good for the soul, good for the economy, and frequently you get better instruments for the same fee or less. If you live in the boonies (I live in the boonies!), there are lots of larger shops that ship rentals across the country, but the issue there is that you WILL need help tuning the instrument. Your local community college music department will have someone who can help you. And hey, if you end up wanting to keep going up with in-person lessons, you already have a connection there.