# Learning (Electric) cello



## Hallic (Jun 13, 2011)

Heya,

i been quite fond of the timbre of the cello, and about a year ago the thought crossed my mind to pick up a cello somewhere and learn some bassics on it.

so yeah... In 2 weeks im going to order a e-cello from thomamn. One of the reason im buying an electric is the price in respect to the amount of country-credits im willing to spend. and i figure well 300 for an E-cello isnt that badd.(also considering e-cello's can be made cheaper than e-guitars) 300 for a acoustic might just give me a nice roomdecoration/firewood.

The're this great (old) man on youtube that has a very basic course to get started with the cello, so im watching those once i get the beast.

any tips/ sharded experiences from here? i know it's won't easy at first with the fretless and the motion of bowing but i confident that i have the discipline to continue till i can do some decent play along "long bowing"


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## Explorer (Jun 13, 2011)

When I first decided to learn violin, I spent the money on a group class. I then went on to take private lessons for a while.

It's worthwhile to learn good bowing technique from the beginning, assuming you want to actually get decent, because everything else will depend on it. It doesn't matter how articulate you are or how well constructed your lyrics are if you can't sing your way out of a paper bag.

Unless you have super hypnotism powers like Bob Dylan.

Good luck!


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## ILuvPillows (Jul 22, 2011)

Don't be too hung up on the idea of intonation. It may seem extremely difficult in theory to place your fingers in the right positions, but from my experience (cello player for 1 1/2 years and counting) it's one aspect of the instrument which comes together pretty quickly (the first few positions anyway).
You have to give your ears some credit and realise that you've been listening to the basic major and minor scales for the entire sum of your life, so you're pretty aware of what sounds right. Your muscle memory will do the rest in time.

PS. One tip for good bow movement is to look at how you play in a mirror. This will show whether you are using your wrist (and not your full arm)to bow and also allow you to see where your bow is being placed in regards to the strings (which will set you up for exploiting dynamics later on in your cello learning). Another advantage of watching yourself in the mirror is that you can make sure that you keep your bow horizontal, something that is easy to miss from a standard first person view.

Happy learning!


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## ArkaneDemon (Jul 22, 2011)

I played cello for two years. If you're just getting started, you could get a cello teacher/player put little sticker dots on the fretboard that tell you where correct intonation lies. Learn to read sheet music in bass clef, and try to find sheet music on the internet for easy songs. If you have access to a friend who plays cello, get him to give you some sheet music. Practice with the bow in the mirror, and watch videos of professional players and try to copy their bow posture.

Ultimately, a group class is a great start, and private lessons as well, but if that's out of your reach financially, sacrifice three goats to Cello Sata...

I mean just scour the internet. You'll find plenty of resources that you can utilize, as long as you try to go more advanced than you can accomplish.


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## Ryan-ZenGtr- (Jul 22, 2011)

I love the CELLO! DO IT MAN!




*instantly my shoulders have relaxed and life seems..... just... better.... Thank you Johann!*


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