Comments on: Hesitation before practice

By: George

George — Mon, 11 Dec 2006 22:09:28 +0000

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the hazards and realities of your schedule…I have always admired your “approachability” and down to earth nature…and ability to play the Heck out of the cello…(I was acutally thinking of other words to describe this). It takes a very secure person to share such personal information..I hadn’t been to your site for quite some time…Great blog you have here… I will use it to stay in contact and I hope that we can spend time together again if you are in my area.-Your friend from California-George
Take care…

By: Alban

Alban — Sun, 10 Dec 2006 06:57:09 +0000

Hi Naoya – yes, I think I remember you and the situation with Edwin Outwater. Glad you liked the Brahms 🙂
Oh, these double stops everywhere in all these Reger Suites, and they are even worse on my cello because it is oversize – some of the thirds I can hardly reach in the 3rd and 4th position. How to practice them? Lower note first, then add the upper one, and then play both together (like on one bow the as quarter notes d + d/f, and on the next bow as a half note both together again) – and you go through the entire passage like that. Sounds idiotic, but works for me, at least kind of… Yes, it is a very hard task, these Suites, because musically they are not the greatest at first. I think one has to do something, for example ignore the slow metronome markings. I pretend it doesn’t say anything and just try to make the music work. We have just got one cello, for god sake, not an orchestra – how are we supposed to make these slow tempi work? Almost impossible, I think, if you see the big picture. For a couple of bars, yes, but the whole Suite? Enjoy the REger, and give my very warmest regards to Prof. Boettcher, what a great man!

By: Naoya Kanai

Naoya Kanai — Sat, 09 Dec 2006 21:49:33 +0000

hi Alban,
my name is Naoya and I’m a cello student from the SF Bay Area (i doubt you remember but I met you at Davies Hall w/ Edwin Outwater during the week you were playing Shos. No1 with SFS…). I caught your Brahms double performance in Berlin last month and loved it…i’m spending the quarter studying here.

anyway, hope your solo recital goes well! i’m working on the 2nd Reger suite with Prof. Boettcher here, and having never learned (or heard) it it’s a big, difficult task for me. how do you practice double stop passages?

best,
naoya