At my lesson yesterday we continued the review of previous pieces. I’m about midway through volume two of the Suzuki books, and have reviewed the first 14 Lee études. In the technique column I’ve been working on playing whole - half - quarter - eighth - sixteenth note progressions, and I’m starting to get the hang of the sixteenth notes. The hang up there is consistently playing sixteenth notes when there is an extension or shift involved in the series of notes being played.

I’ve also been working on scales. Yesterday David added two new ones to my list: E: and F:. Previously I had C:, G:, D:, all three d: scales, and Eb:. E: is interesting as it starts with an extension in 3rd position on the C string, moves to and extension in 1st position on the G string, and then finishes the first octave in 1/2 postion on the D string. David wants me to get the first octave down before moving onto the second.

The first octave of F: is surprisingly easy, especially after Eb: and E:; no extensions and no shifting. Refreshing.

I spent about 30 minutes playing scales last night and working on my intonation, and then played through those pieces in books 1 and 2 that I have memorized. Tomorrow I’ll start on the next 4 études and the next few Suzuki review pieces.

The Piano Guys are at it again, with their interpretation of “the” cello “song.” (I put song in quotes as this is really a piece and not a song, but that’s hair splitting for another time.)

Via Emily Ann Peterson.

Stay for the credits / outtakes.

A few weeks ago, before my cello teacher fell and broke his collar bone (In six places! Healing fine after surgery.) he asked his students to come up with a list of goals for the summer. Here is what I sent him, and what I have been working on:

Skills / Technique

• All finger patterns using whole, half, quarter, eighth, and sixteenth notes
• Vibrato exercises
• Intonation, intonation, and intonation

Scales

• Two octave scales. Currently I know C:, G:, D:, and d: (natural, harmonic, melodic).
• Three octave scales? I’m guessing that I’ll get to thumb position soon and this will open up new scale possibilities.

Repertoire

• Complete Suzuki book 1 and 2 review. Continue on in Suzuki book 3.
• Complete Lee etude review, 1 - 17. Continue working through Lee etudes.
• New repertoire

I am happy to report that I have completed the review of Suzuki book one, and that I am making rapid progress through book 2. In Lee I’ve finished the review of the first 10 etudes and am tackling the next 4 (# 11, 12, 13, 14) for this week.

We’ve added a two-octave Eb Major scale to my scale work, which has some nice extension and shift work in it, particularly in the second octave.

My finger pattern work (I need to write about this separately to better explain) is coming along. For the first time in a lesson I was able to play (with metronome) whole, half, quarter, eighth, and sixteenth notes, and then work my way back down to whole. The simplest pattern is D - E - F - G - A using the D- and A-strings. There are five or six patterns, each with an alternate fingering.

At my lesson this week, while review the last couple pieces in book 1, David said that he had paid me a complement without my being aware of it. He said that his mind had wandered while I was playing Rigadoon. I was doing so well that he didn’t have to stay focused on it or what I was doing. That felt pretty good to hear and to learn.

One: The rock stop fastens to the left leg of your chair since the endpin will naturally want to skew toward the right as you play.

Two: Child cellists are like child skiers – fearless and seemingly without fail. Being in a group of 14 other students, the oldest of whom isn’t quite a third your age and the youngest of whom is a fifth your age (ahem), and having them sight read through music you can barely play is humbling.

Three: My cello teacher knows an endless supply of state jokes. For example, What is Kansas called? Baja Nebraska.

Four: Cello orchestras sound fantastic.

Five: I have so much to learn.

Six: Playing cello is a wonderfully good thing.

I’m already ready for Cello Camp 2012.

For the past week I have been reviewing “old” pieces. If one can be said to have old pieces after only eighteen months practice. Instead of pressing on with the pieces in book three of the Suzuki series, and in the middle of the Lee etudes book, David had me return to the beginning of Suzuki book one, and the first five pieces of the Lee book.

Relearning these pieces was fun. Several times I was struck by how much easier things were than even a few months ago. There were still some stumbles, oddly enough in the same measures as before, but on the whole my playing was much improved.

Today at my lesson we played through all the pieces I had reviewed. At one point, after  one of the Suzuki pieces, David made the comment that I was playing cello and not solving a puzzle that involved a cello. He was right. The pieces are well within my technical grasp, freeing me up to focus on playing them and not solving them. It was a huge ego boost. With his accompaniment the music sounded really good. He also said (for the first time ever) that I had a good “big sound.”

It was a thoroughly enjoyable experience.

In early June I am participating in a mini-camp for cello that David is hosting. Three half days with about 10 or 11 cellists plus David and his assistant. Today he gave me on of the pieces I’ll be playing in the cello orchestra that week so that I can start learning it - Passepied by JS Bach. We also selected my recital piece for that week, the Boccherini Minuet. I played that in February at his recital, but haven’t touched it since. I wasn’t overly thrilled with my performance at the last recital, so I’m grateful (famous last words) for a chance to perform it again.

All in all it was a good cello week.

At my lesson this week David decided that I should set aside my current pieces and return to Suzuki book one and the start of the Lee Etude book. He said that it was his fault that I hadn’t done more review of early material and that this was a good time to have a review.

So this week I’ve been playing Suzuki book one numbers 1 - 10, and the first five Lee etudes. The Suzuki pieces are nicely easy to play now. The melodies are simple and the pieces are far less complicated than my current stuff, so I can focus on intonation and dynamics at a level I’m not normally able to reach. Seeing that I can play piece after piece with relative ease has been fun, too.

The first five Lee pieces have been slightly more challenging, but have still been fun to redo. They are more technically demanding than the Suzuki work, but are still well within my grasp. The first couple of plays of each reminded me of what was difficult about them before and subsequent plays have gotten measurably better. It is obvious that my skill has increased.

In addition to these pieces I’ve been diligent about practice scales. Currently I’m working on three major scales (C, G, and D) and four minor scales (d-natural, -harmonic, and -melodic, and c-melodic). I’ve also been working on bowing rhythms; playing a pattern over and over with whole, half, quarter, eighth, and sixteenth notes. With all the notes in the patten in first-position I can more or less play all the note durations, when the notes involve extensions, however, things fall apart fairly quickly. It’s not my favorite activity and therefore one that I don’t spend enough time on.

This is just magnificent.

(from: digitalpill.tv): Helen Mountfort performs Soliloquy a solo ‘cello piece originally written and performed in Swift, a dance piece devised and performed with dancer Ros Warby and designer Margie Medlin. Soliloquy is inspired by and pays homage to the music of extraordinary Armenian composer and duduk player Djivan Gasparyan.

Wells Cunningham plays Paganini’s Caprice Nº 24. Whereby “plays” I mean “totally owns.”

My cello teacher is hosting a small cello camp the first week in June. He is fortunate enough to own an 11 acre property that has an 1880s one-room school house in good repair, which he uses as his teaching studio. The camp will be held there June 7 - 8 - 9.

The camp includes private practice, cello orchestra (playing ensemble music), YouTube Cellist and cello history, and presentation of the first three Bach Cello Suites (one each day), and a recital each day. On the final day there is a performance of the cello orchestra as well.

I was looking forward to the camp already, but today when I discovered it gave me an excuse to purchase my first copy of the Bach Suites, I was ecstatic. David wants us to own the Henle edition, which you can get from Shar Music for a discounted price.

I consider myself to be a cellist, and I am pleased to think of myself that way. But owning a copy of the Bach Suites, somehow that makes me feel even more like a true cellist.

Time to go cue up Mr. Casals on the iPod. Followed by Mr. Ma.