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The Cello

// May 24th, 2008 // entertainment

When I was about six years old, I attended a matinée performance of the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra. After the performance, they asked if any kids in the audience knew what a particular instrument was. I waved my arm in the air and when picked, correctly answered, “The cello.” I was then invited on stage, where I got to conduct the orchestra for a few minutes while the actual conductor whispered in my ear what to do. I still remember those basic conducting instructions.

The cello is featured in my favourite piece of music (of any genre) Elgar’s Cello Concerto. Here’s a video of Jacqueline du Pré performing the 1st movement of that concerto:

Jacqueline was one of the first female cellists to play with her legs apart. The cello Jacqueline is playing is the 1712 Davydov Stradivarius which is now used by cellist Yo-Yo Ma, who performed the same piece on the same instrument 45 years later.