What makes the cello special

The profound integration of mind and body which is required to play well is not only absorbing and stimulating at the time of playing, but also positively influences the rest of life. One Jungian analyst says that she feels psychologically and spiritually uplifted after playing her cello. If you loosen your shoulders and release tension whilst playing the cello then, suddenly, your tone improves. Do the same whilst walking down the road and the world becomes an altogether different place.

Break down a seemingly insurmountable musical problem into smaller components, work on those and soon there is no problem at all! The same technique works in everyday life. I have talked to various therapists about this, and it seems that people who have music as part of their lives seem to survive much better than those without musical involvement.

I enjoy feeling small joints and muscles that I am normally not aware of. The feeling of transferring the weight of body onto the instrument is fulfilling and pleasurable.

I feel the instrument as being part of me. During playing, the mind and concentration become so sharp and elevated to a different level that it is not easily compared to any other activity. Another place. It really has added another dimension to life. It is neither my inner world nor the outside reality. I am conscious of it when I engage in all sorts of activities: attending a concert or play, reading a book, painting a picture; but never more so than when I am playing the cello or piano — alone and especially with others.

Love of the cello. Cellists are particularly passionate about the physical qualities of their instruments. Many believe that people are drawn to the cello because its range is so similar to that of the human voice from bass to soprano, male to female. Financial Times interview, John Blood was inspired to become a composer when he started playing in the cello section of a youth symphony orchestra. There is a wonderful feeling of calm that surrounds me.

Self expression. Most cellists feel that the cello provides them with the sounds they need for self-expression which words just cannot provide. Late starters. There do appear to be particularly profound rewards to be gained from starting the cello in later life, especially during retirement.

Sue Hadley started learning the cello at the age of 58 after working as a nanny all her life. She had no experience of classical music or instrumental playing before this, but the cello has become one of her major sources of happiness and self confidence in retirement. I feel as high as a kite after playing. In a world of rising life-expectancy, music is likely to become a more important source of fulfilment and wellbeing than ever before.

Pat Legg has taught late starters for the last 15 years and is convinced that it is never too late to start. She observes that it takes considerable courage for a highly accomplished retired professional to learn a completely new skill but, as scientific studies and the reports of players indicate, it would be hard to find a more inspiring and rewarding activity for anyone wishing to enrich and stimulate their mind and life.

Warm thanks to Judith Mitchell for her generous reading list and kind support; to Dobrila Bercovic-Magdalenic for encouraging so many of her students to participate; to Gordana Jevic for her beautiful translation from Croatian to English; to Danish brain scientist Kjeld Fredens for his valuable references and to all the many cellists who inspired this article.

Bodley Head Schellenberg, E. In Peretz, R. The cognitive neuroscience of music, pp OUP Mellow, warm, sonorous, full, clear, brilliant, vibrant, singing, bright, lustrous, stately, lyrical, cantabile, thick, weighty, powerful, silky, lively, incisive, eloquent, transcendental, supernatural, sensuous, calm, round, pure, muffled, dark, open, sustaining, solemn, wafting, gentle, sweet, veiled.

The cello possesses a wide variety of differing tone colors and means of expression, ranging from the calm and solemn in the lower register to bursts of passion in the uppermost register. Its underlying character has often been compared with the male voice. The transition between registers is smooth, although it cannot be denied that the individual strings have their own character, as they do on the violin and viola too.

Rostropovich played publicly until he was 78 years old, and Casals played well into his nineties. No matter what age you start to play, you have many years of enjoyment ahead of you. There is no doubt that the cello is a very special instrument. A Connolly Music Publication.

What Makes the Cello So Special? Published by StringOvation Team on June 14, Remarkable tone When it comes to tone, cellos and violas are the most similar to the human voice.

The sensual shape and size Just as the tone of the cello is similar to the human voice, so, too, is the shape of the cello. The Grove Dictionary of Musical Instruments Available in print and on Oxford Reference this dictionary is the largest, most comprehensive reference publication on musical instruments of the world yet produced.

Read More. Traditionally, cellos used in orchestras had coarser black hair on a heavier bow , while cellos used for solo playing had white hair on a lighter bow. This blog post was written by the Oxford Reference marketing team.

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