String crossing on the Cello - Your Left Hand

Your left hand is just as important as your bow when it comes to smooth string crossings. Follow along with the exercises to train your hand how to cross strings efficiently. There's also a pdf you can download from here: cellochaplin.w... #cello #celloteacher

[@WinnieMelbourne]

That’s a great technique to practise. Thank you.

[@CelloRefinery]

I think the majority of rough crossings tend to be left hand, not bow! So it's well worth the time to figure this out.

[@lisamuse574]

nice video! i’ve been teaching strings for decades and it’s always fun when i explain to a beginner why the left hand is so important for string crossings 🙂

[@CelloRefinery]

I try to teach students from square one to hang onto notes when they cross strings. I do find that some can do it and some really struggle. Thanks for watching!

[@NDNdivergent]

for the longest time,(years) when ( as an example) I played descending D C# B A then G F# E with one long bow, u.b. or d.b. or even staccato, no matter how precise my bow was at string crossing I made a squeak when the bow left the A string open A to the D string G, 4th finger. This was because the pad of my finger would touch the open ringing A string. even when tunnelling. I figured out that if I used my large fingers to depress the A and D string when doing that sequence I never hit the String again with my pad. I can still do it now with very accurate tunnelling, but if i want to vibrate at say the 3rd finger on the D string(first position) when i land there my fingers are already perfectly in position to get a nice wide and gentle vibrato. I guess this would not be considered good technique, but it does not hinder my speed or beauty of playing, and it was the only viable way to be able to not "kack" a note in the string crossings. now I believe I saw Rostropovich do this as well. Do you know if this is bad technique? or do some masters sue this if they have big pads and fingers? the string spacing is not wide enough to allow big finger pads to get between the strings at times. thoughts??

[@CelloRefinery]

That's a very interesting question, and speaks to the variety of individual hands. Definitely cello technique is not one-size-fits-all! If you find solutions that work for you, even if they aren't conventional, go for it. When we get to more advanced stages, pretty much everything becomes an exception and there are fewer "rules."

[@janettebailey7771]

Great video 👍, I find it hard to vibrate well when holding my fingers down for string crossings, any suggestions please Diane.

[@CelloRefinery]

Oh, that's a good question. Generally if you've got 2 fingers down you need to let go of thumb. I'll think of a video that addresses that, Jan.

[@janettebailey7771]

@@CelloRefinery thank you Diane.