Hey jonathan, pls how do i barre multiple strings with one finger in order to play the notes. I tried doing this by laying my first finger across the target strings but unable to fully press them down against the fingerboard. Any help on this?
Good question, Francis. When we barré, we have to play with strong, flat finger. The hand may lose it's shape momentarily, because we play deeper in the flesh of the doigt barré. The thumb plays an important role in forming the other side of the "capo". You see this @3:37 : the tip of the first finger hangs off the right side of the cello. Pro Tip: engage pressure only on the string you are playing, helps fight fatigue.
@@CelloCoach I am considering in looking to buying the cello in the future but the direction to which the strings are tuned seems symmetrically disturbing to the aesthetical nature of the others, would It not make more sense for it to be tuned in perfect 5th from left to right as to make bowing make more sense.
I recently stopped lessons with my teacher because they were so expensive, and I was not improving week to week. I just found your page (subscribed) and I could not be more impressed. You are so thorough, and everything you say is exactly correct, which I appreciate. You do not "dumb it down." I also sent a donation because you really deserve a lot of support for your excellent channel. It was quick and easy with PayPal. Thank you for your channel. I have decided to learn this prelude, with you.
For those of you looking for the sheet music, it can be found under the link name “muse score” in the description! Took me a while to find and I wanted to help you guys! Great video as always!
At 65 I started cello lessons. I’ve taken three private lessons so far. This song is my ultimate goal! I’m giving myself a year! And I’m lucky to study at the famous Settlement Music Academy in Philly. The quality of instructors is phenomenal!!
I always used to think on how hard this piece was but ever since i watched this video i learned that it was a super easy piece thanks to you cello coach!!!
THANK YOU SO MUCH! This is one of my favorite pieces ever, and I needed to learn to play it on the cello. I don't take lessons and I'm actually a violinist, but my cousin sent me a cello they had outgrown, and I was thrilled at the chance to play this! This has been incredibly helpful, especially considering that I am still learning bass clef and am not very skilled. Please keep it up!
I've just started with this piece. The way you teach it is a revelation. Can RU-vid videos get worn out, because I'm going to be playing this one over and over and over again!! Thank you!
After seeing 2 of your excellent/informative/helpful videos, I felt so guilty starting the third that I felt compelled to pay for my lessons. Thank you for making the world a better place, Jonathan!
Ok, this channel.. this video.. Absolutely amazing. THank you so much. You have answered so many questions in this short demonstration! Please keep the videos coming!
Happy to be part of the grander solutions in life, Zach. It's a small contribution so reading comments like yours warms my heart, especially during darker times.
Wow. Thank you for this! Your an awesome teacher. I also got " The Bach Cello Suite No.1 study book by Cassia Harvey." i was surprised that it's 160 pages and seems to go into a lot of detail with practice drills and what ever. I'm a beginner and it seems quite straight forward how it's broken down.
I just love your cello playing and your voice it calms my anxiety and panic attacks I also suffer from ptsd this channel is super relaxing you should do your own meditation channel with your cello and you talking it could help a lot of people like me
Thanks for this. I have been playing for about 3 months now but I have practice quite a bit and I'm going to be doing this for my middle School talent show
@@CelloCoach i dropped my sheet with all the scribbles.. using your sheep + your method of practicing it. I've already subscribed to your channel and looking forward to learn more from you! Thank you again : )
Ohooo This is quite helpful to me. I just started to play cello on this year. And I try to play prelude on several times (out of lessen ). But I could not know how to practice for this prelude. Thank you!!!! I will retry to practice it
This is very useful! I'm a saxophone player. But some cello pieces are very interesting and they can't be played on saxophone. That's why sometimes I have to practice on cello. Sight reading is always a problem to me since cello is very different from my instrument, and I just can't find the right fingering. Your tutorial really taught me a lot about this piece. Thank! Hope some day you can make a tutorial about Shostakovich Cello Concerto, many parts just won't make sense.
Thank you so much for posting this, I was trying to play a lot of this song in mostly first position and you have really helped my cello playing. You have also made this song so much easier to play.
Thank you so much for this high level of explanation. It's almost easy to play the cello when we look at your videos ! :) Could you please do the same for Nocturne by Tchaikovsky ? It's one of the most beautiful cello piece, I think.
You are welcome, Maud. Yes, are your referring to the Nocturne Op. 19 Nº4 for cello, transposed to D mineur? If so, then consider that one in the queue!
Really great video but I’d like to ad something - if you want to make the sound exquisite and fine you can hold the bow further in front. I can not put this technique in words but look at Luka Sulics rendition of Bach Suite No.1 he uses it. With this technique you will be able to control the bow and the sound way easier. You can also control how the sound projects by adjusting the pressure you put on the bow with your fingertips.
I am 11 and just learned cello like I know how to play and I realy whanted to learn how to play this particular song and I can now finnaly play it thank you
I hope i can learn this wonderful song with help my teacher though Pavane is a piece of cake compare to this one :o(sorry if my english wrong this time xd) i really want to this I love this song since i heard this first time...
I have played violin in the past and can read music, but I’m having a hard time reading music for a cello. The fingering seems to be off by one note. I’m teaching myself the cello so I was wondering if you had any guidelines for learning fingering for sheet music on the cello.
Ok, Mindy, so your 4th finger on cello plays the 3rd finger on the violin in first position. EX: on the D string, cello players use 1 3 4 to play E F# G, while violinists use 1 2 3 to play the same notes. Swap out the 3rd on violin for the 4th on cello and you will be fine.
I've noticed that Rostropovich's 1991 recording of this piece he plays very quickly, and very abstractly, just hitting the notes without varying his sustenance of notes. Yet I listed to Casals' 1936 recording, and he seems to be slowing down the giving more weight to the bass notes, and varying how much he sustains certain notes, varying texture. Rostropovich's treatment allows you to discern the structure of the piece far more easily, which is much of its beauty. And he allows the emotion to just come across from the natural texture of the cello, of the instrument itself, without any embellishment. Casals' treatment obscures the structure, and by contrast the emotion he conveys can seem overwrought. Do you know which way Bach intended it to be played?
The way the player wishes it to be played, in my experience. Baroque music is about personal interpretation, hence the absence of dynamics. I have learned to not try and play as others would or presume I can apprehend exactly how a player of Bach's time would perform the Suites. Instead, I'd rather option the student to learn their own voice through the music. I totally agree with your opinion on Slava's approach is hurried whilst Casals is weighted. Neither are my favorite performance, for my preference rests with Ma. We are all thankful for Pablo rekindling the passion for the Suites, which inspired a generation, yet for my life, Yo-yo will always be the Ambassador of Bach Cello Suites. When Ma plays the Suite 1, IV-VI I am in heaven, but the 2nd Suite cannot be played better than Maisky.
I’m a 7th grade girl trying to play this! My family want me to play this and to me it’s gonna be hard because this is my second year playing the cello but I don’t wanna let my family down and I’ll try to learn it so thank u so much 💖 any advice for a beginner? -Nichole
Yup! I've learned so much about music via RU-vid, amongst other things. What's different about my version is it is tried and tested, with bowings based on the URText and IRL student experience. We put our collective heads together to find the more efficient bowings while keeping as close to the URText as possible. Some stuffy cellists can't hang and that's ok. These bowings and fingerings work. This approach works and continues to work, now in a different language on a different continent.
I give up on learning notes on cello, I know them on piano and tabs on guitar but this was a mess. First I have to google what letter each string has, which I forget after 10s, then I have to sit and count and do the alphabet song so it takes like 1 min to find each note. I'll just play by ear like I do on guitar 😝
Note to all viewers of this video: due to the lack of original transcripts and tradition this piece as with all the other unaccompanied cello suites’ movements does not have a definitive bowing. It is left to the cellist’s determination.
I've been working on this piece for a few months and reference your video every time. I've looked at the description so many times over and never see the link to your partition. I feel the notes you leave on it would be extremely helpful and I'd appreciate if you could help me get that.
Thank you for this video! I think I remember you have a video where you described your method of using colors on your music. If that is right, do you remember what the title of the video might be so I can search for it? I haven't had success finding it.
Ive been playing guitar for 9 years now, I can pick up virtually any stringed instrument and play and I have the ear for music, I teach everything to myself, and Ive ALWAYS wanted to learn cello, unfortunately when I was being taught how to read music during highschool I paid little attention😁 this is all very overwhelming but I think im going to purchase a cheap cello(Cecilio CCO-500 is what I've been looking at) and start right away. I doubt Ill get lessons soon but ill try my best to play the instrument how it should be played. Any advice?
Yes! Watch these 3 videos : How to Read Music Pt1 - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-wtjz44G66TQ.html • How to Read Music Pt2 - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-juj7ul5EiCU.html • How to Read Music Pt3 - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-_X1MiB7_Q6g.html
Wow. Thank you, Jonathan, for making this! I've been searching for something like this for a while. I'm not quite sure how to do the tricky shift at 4:54. Do you think you can explain this to me?
The purple bracket is Half Position. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-NmWZrfrQWTg.html There is no shift at 4:54. After the F#, shift a half interval (one tape) towards the bridge (shift up) to the 1st Position. Watch the lesson in the aforementioned link and you will understand Half Position better :-)
Dear Jonathan I am a flute player so I am very used to playing in the G clef. I bought my first cello about a week ago and managed to get to a few beginner songs on the G and A string. I just cannot find information anywhere that really clarifies when in a piece of music what position the hand mut be in to play the notes. I an doing my simple d and g major scales but they are a major focus point of my practice to get my fingers strong and quick and fluid. But even with scales i am not clear on where the hand should go. I bought the suzuki cello series for training myself but I was wondering if you could help with a video and or recommending a music book i could use. (I do not have a cello tutor - cant find one). Your channel has become a backbone for my journey with the cello pleasd keep it up.
Ben-Hur Horses a private teacher helped me on the fingerings and positions for this piece, but normally a good score will have what finger to use for each note and you can do your hand positions accordingly.
Hello Ben-Hur, and thank you for your detailed question. The first hand position you should learn is the 1st position. Memorise what note the index, middle, ring sand little finger plays on every string, and what notes the stave are associated with these fingers That is only 16 notes. Next, develop the habit of using your Scale Book with fingerings to help you input your own fingerings into your scores. My Scale Book does just that, and if you haven't already contacted me for one, you should via jh@jonathanhumphries.com Because you are coming from the G-clef, you need to reprogram your brain for F-clef. My suggestion is the All for Strings Theory Books: Vol 1 - amzn.to/2B918u7 Vol 2 - amzn.to/2MbRwFo
Olá Jonathan, tudo bem? Admiro muito seu trabalho, seus vídeos são ótimos. Teria como disponibilizar legendas no idioma Português? Um grande abraço de um admirador do seu trabalho.
Hi Jonathon, where can we find the sheet music for this? I am looking for this piece specifically with the numbered fingering. Also, do you teach through the Suzuki Method online? Thank you!
