Thank you for the balanced, thorough yet fairly concise overview. The comments on cracks, condition and aging of cellos was most helpful. Many blessings.
i appreciate your videos and advice! thank you! oh and i REALLY love that keyboard instrument in the background. you should make a video about it and the artisans that built it
You made some useful observations about French, Italian, and English cellos. What are your observations concerning German cellos, Czech cellos, Romanian cellos, and modern cellos? Also, when one goes into a shop, how much negotiating room is typical?
old German cellos are similar to English as the old English makers were influenced by German cellos. I do not know old Czech or Romanian cellos but they make a lot of cheap not very good modern instrument. Other modern cellos you have to take as they come. Cellos from a shop are as priced. There might be a bit of negotiation from an individual.
Dear Sir I have been famished as to how to get a perfectly flush bridge foot to belly on my 4/4 size violin. I have tryed a dowel to tension the width of the bridge feet, I have tryed putting the strings on and tensioning the strings , I am still not able to get complete black foot print when using carbon paper to mark bottom of bridge feet. Can you help me get a. Perfect adhere to the belly or is that a myth? Thanks for any help your friend Chris in us. Thanks!😅
Mr Vel, thank you for your informative videos. I started learning to play a cello around 1995 and at that time bought a 1991 Karl Hofner cello made in Bubenreuth. It started out as a student cello but as time goes by and being the only cello I own, I have played it since then, on and off, until recently I retired and have more time to play. I find the cello sometimes okay with my playing ability and sounds okay (of course I am no expert on that subject) and sometimes I thought I could do better with the sound. And I keep thinking I may excel from a better and more expensive cello, is this correct thinking or should I get an upgrade on a more professional cello to raise my playing standard? Thank you for your response.
I found a 4/4 Maple/Spruce Cello on Amazon for $84 with free one day shipping. Arrived today. Looks acceptable to me! (it is my first,...) but I think I will have fun learning on it! I hope to one day afford (and deserve) a nice one! I hope my Violin skills will transfer,..
9:25 re: TH-cam "sketchy" agreed, but w/ reservation. Yes many have only basic value but there are of course some quality producers too. I, like you, have as years progressed, learned. And your years of real, developed knowledge are so very valuable I say bravo and thanks ever so for sharing, in my Savior, SS®
An excellent video! Regarding old English cellos, there is, however, one point that I should like to add. English luthiers of the 18th and 19th centuries tended to build smaller, shorter cellos than did their Continental counterparts. This, in itself, is not a problem. But woe betide the cellist who buys a smaller instrument which has been fitted out with a neck of normal modern length, rather than with one that is a proportionately shorter than the modern standard. The musician who plays on such an instrument will have constant intonation problems, with a marked tendency to play sharp. If the neck is original, there will generally be no such difficulties, as the neck's dimensions will be proportionate to those of the cello as a whole. But if you have a modern standard-length neck on a smallish English instrument, you will have generally traversed (especially in the fourth position) a greater portion of the overall string length than you ought to have done; and the result will constant pitch problems. Caveat emptor!
the measurement from edge to nicks should be ideally 40 cms.Can be down to 39cms on a small cello. any less and it is not a full size.could be 7/8. the neck should be 28cms and if a small cello no less than 27.5 cms. good shaping of the heel of the neck should make 4th position good in any case See my video on getting the best out of your cello
Can you comment on how the varnish, whether hand rubbed or sprayed on(as in less costly instruments) affects sound quality as well as aging of the wood over time? Perhaps a video on this would be helpful to many.
I have no great experience of this. most old Italian cellos have oil varnish. ground preparation varnish seems to be important. a sprayed varnish indicates a cheaply made cello. spirit varnish seems to make the cello harder and brighter. there has been a lot of research on varnish but no one really knows.
Hi thanks for the videos I have enjoyed their intelligence. First off I’m a beginner but have a degree in clarinet. I get frustrated as I get a lot of pain playing my cello. Practice gets me nowhere at the moment due to pain - I’m short and small build - I feel I should obtain a 3/4 or 7/8 guadagnieri or ruggieri - what do you think? I really struggle to reach the A string on my 4/4 cello which retails for around £450 with Evan pirazzi strings (I phrase it this way to indicate what type of cello it is without making a judgement on the brand). I need to replace it but am unsure whether to go for a modern workshop cello of superior type or a lower range Mittenwald or Miracourt type. I can’t spend more than around £6000. Your advice would be so appreciated. Thank you.
hello. if you get pain something is wrong. aching means you are using unacustomed muscles. it is difficult to give advice without seeing you. a cello less than 7/8 will not sound very good. where are you? it might be useful to take advice from a cello teacher. try a scale of Dmajor.
if on the top and very well repaired it will affect the price a bit. I don't know of bass bar cracks on the back but if in that area and substantial it will affect the price
What a refreshing video! I've had enough millennials! Thank you for the detailed explanation. Information is really packed in. I'll watch it a couple times.
I saw for a new player just stick the bigger names like Jay Haide or Eastman Strings. Well-built. They use I assume decent quality spruce. Are hand-made. And sound fairly decent. Not all that different from $30,000 USD cello's IMHO. Honestly...I'm not sold on cello's made by "luthiers" (which really just means...smaller workshop...than a Jay Haide or Eastman Strings). No one has made a video proving to us a $30,000+ cello is that much better than a $3000 cello from Jay Haide (there are a few workshops in China that can make good cello's and violins). Perhaps you can make a video telling us why you think it IS worth spending $30,000 USD on a cello made in Cremona, Italy (e.g. by luthier Edgar Russ). Or Burnd Dimbath...etc. Ken Sullivan in California. What separates them from an Eastman Strings $3000 cello?
As someone who plays an Eastman Cello and is looking to upgrade, I can say that instruments at the 30,000 dollar price range make a huge difference. The response of the instrument and the colors you are able to achieve in addition to the resonance and projection are a massive upgrade. Most of those mass produced instruments in that price range aren’t made entirely by hand, but often setup and varnished by hand, the wood is not of the same quality of more expensive instruments and neither is the setup. It’s a crazy price to think about, but it does make a big difference in sound, playability, etc. The one thing to Notre about instrument picking, is that it’s all pretty damn subjective. I’ve tested out cellos that are in the 45-50k range (that I of course I can’t afford), and didn’t enjoy all of them. It can take time to find the instrument that works for you.
Obviously, 30,000 and above is a ridiculous price to consider if you’re not planning on being a professional musician, but it’s an investment in your career if you are. To be honest, with as much time as it takes one person to make a cello completely by hand, 30,000 isn’t all that crazy of a price. I’m not saying it’s easily affordable by any means, just that it’s within reason with the amount of labor that is put into it.
Take aways: 1. If you don't have a lot of money to buy a hand-built instrument then don't start playing the cello. 2. If you mention made in China you will be looked down upon 3. Why didn't the videographer just give us the pertinent measurements with diagrams in support. It would have saved lots of time.
I'd say middle class people and above can play cello if renting(ideally rent to own). ~$45 USD per month for a couple years can get you a decent $2000-$3000 beginner cello while learning
Thank you for your detailed and high quality advice!
Thank you for the balanced, thorough yet fairly concise overview. The comments on cracks, condition and aging of cellos was most helpful. Many blessings.
Thank you Mr. Vel. Extremely informative and direkt. I look forward to learning more from your videos.
i appreciate your videos and advice! thank you! oh and i REALLY love that keyboard instrument in the background. you should make a video about it and the artisans that built it
Excellent recommendation video!
You made some useful observations about French, Italian, and English cellos. What are your observations concerning German cellos, Czech cellos, Romanian cellos, and modern cellos? Also, when one goes into a shop, how much negotiating room is typical?
old German cellos are similar to English as the old English makers were influenced by German cellos. I do not know old Czech or Romanian cellos but they make a lot of cheap not very good modern instrument. Other modern cellos you have to take as they come. Cellos from a shop are as priced. There might be a bit of negotiation from an individual.
Thanks so much!
Great video
thanks!
thanks
You are never in line for a bargain with a cello.
Dear Sir I have been famished as to how to get a perfectly flush bridge foot to belly on my 4/4 size violin. I have tryed a dowel to tension the width of the bridge feet, I have tryed putting the strings on and tensioning the strings , I am still not able to get complete black foot print when using carbon paper to mark bottom of bridge feet. Can you help me get a. Perfect adhere to the belly or is that a myth? Thanks for any help your friend Chris in us. Thanks!😅
Mr Vel, thank you for your informative videos. I started learning to play a cello around 1995 and at that time bought a 1991 Karl Hofner cello made in Bubenreuth. It started out as a student cello but as time goes by and being the only cello I own, I have played it since then, on and off, until recently I retired and have more time to play. I find the cello sometimes okay with my playing ability and sounds okay (of course I am no expert on that subject) and sometimes I thought I could do better with the sound. And I keep thinking I may excel from a better and more expensive cello, is this correct thinking or should I get an upgrade on a more professional cello to raise my playing standard? Thank you for your response.
I found a 4/4 Maple/Spruce Cello on Amazon for $84 with free one day shipping. Arrived today. Looks acceptable to me! (it is my first,...) but I think I will have fun learning on it! I hope to one day afford (and deserve) a nice one! I hope my Violin skills will transfer,..
good luck! take it to a luthier to get it set up. i have had a few disasters from online buys
9:25 re: TH-cam "sketchy" agreed, but w/ reservation. Yes many have only basic value but there are of course some quality producers too. I, like you, have as years progressed, learned. And your years of real, developed knowledge are so very valuable I say bravo and thanks ever so for sharing, in my Savior, SS®
An excellent video! Regarding old English cellos, there is, however, one point that I should like to add. English luthiers of the 18th and 19th centuries tended to build smaller, shorter cellos than did their Continental counterparts. This, in itself, is not a problem. But woe betide the cellist who buys a smaller instrument which has been fitted out with a neck of normal modern length, rather than with one that is a proportionately shorter than the modern standard. The musician who plays on such an instrument will have constant intonation problems, with a marked tendency to play sharp. If the neck is original, there will generally be no such difficulties, as the neck's dimensions will be proportionate to those of the cello as a whole. But if you have a modern standard-length neck on a smallish English instrument, you will have generally traversed (especially in the fourth position) a greater portion of the overall string length than you ought to have done; and the result will constant pitch problems. Caveat emptor!
the measurement from edge to nicks should be ideally 40 cms.Can be down to 39cms on a small cello. any less and it is not a full size.could be 7/8. the neck should be 28cms and if a small cello no less than 27.5 cms. good shaping of the heel of the neck should make 4th position good in any case See my video on getting the best out of your cello
Can you comment on how the varnish, whether hand rubbed or sprayed on(as in less costly instruments) affects sound quality as well as aging of the wood over time? Perhaps a video on this would be helpful to many.
I have no great experience of this. most old Italian cellos have oil varnish. ground preparation varnish seems to be important. a sprayed varnish indicates a cheaply made cello. spirit varnish seems to make the cello harder and brighter. there has been a lot of research on varnish but no one really knows.
@@petervel6997 Thank you Peter. Much appreciated. I want to avoid any synthetics in a cello. Many blessings for all things good.
Hi thanks for the videos I have enjoyed their intelligence. First off I’m a beginner but have a degree in clarinet. I get frustrated as I get a lot of pain playing my cello. Practice gets me nowhere at the moment due to pain - I’m short and small build - I feel I should obtain a 3/4 or 7/8 guadagnieri or ruggieri - what do you think? I really struggle to reach the A string on my 4/4 cello which retails for around £450 with Evan pirazzi strings (I phrase it this way to indicate what type of cello it is without making a judgement on the brand). I need to replace it but am unsure whether to go for a modern workshop cello of superior type or a lower range Mittenwald or Miracourt type. I can’t spend more than around £6000. Your advice would be so appreciated. Thank you.
hello. if you get pain something is wrong. aching means you are using unacustomed muscles. it is difficult to give advice without seeing you. a cello less than 7/8 will not sound very good. where are you? it might be useful to take advice from a cello teacher. try a scale of Dmajor.
Great video - very helpful ... but can I think of Jussi Bjorling - he's not Italian?
if you can sound like bjorling thats great!
Ok, much thanks!!! ... but not quite there yet - still working on it ... just a few years more.
My cello has a bass bar crack on the bass bar. not the top. it is being repaired. Will this affect the value of my cello?
if on the top and very well repaired it will affect the price a bit. I don't know of bass bar cracks on the back but if in that area and substantial it will affect the price
What a refreshing video! I've had enough millennials! Thank you for the detailed explanation. Information is really packed in. I'll watch it a couple times.
Aren't you the guy from the bookstore in Neverending Story?
no
@@petervel5423 Are you positive!?
Thought of amati sacconi 2012 what do you think ? Ty my first as far as buying
dont know what amati sacconi means
@@petervel5423 name of a cello iam trying to pic out a good cello to good but doesn't cost a huge amount
@@dianascott6046 take note of what I say in this video. very cheap cellos are not to be recommended
@@petervel5423 thankyou
@@petervel5423 Peter have you ever played violin before?
I saw for a new player just stick the bigger names like Jay Haide or Eastman Strings. Well-built. They use I assume decent quality spruce. Are hand-made. And sound fairly decent. Not all that different from $30,000 USD cello's IMHO.
Honestly...I'm not sold on cello's made by "luthiers" (which really just means...smaller workshop...than a Jay Haide or Eastman Strings). No one has made a video proving to us a $30,000+ cello is that much better than a $3000 cello from Jay Haide (there are a few workshops in China that can make good cello's and violins).
Perhaps you can make a video telling us why you think it IS worth spending $30,000 USD on a cello made in Cremona, Italy (e.g. by luthier Edgar Russ). Or Burnd Dimbath...etc. Ken Sullivan in California. What separates them from an Eastman Strings $3000 cello?
As someone who plays an Eastman Cello and is looking to upgrade, I can say that instruments at the 30,000 dollar price range make a huge difference. The response of the instrument and the colors you are able to achieve in addition to the resonance and projection are a massive upgrade. Most of those mass produced instruments in that price range aren’t made entirely by hand, but often setup and varnished by hand, the wood is not of the same quality of more expensive instruments and neither is the setup. It’s a crazy price to think about, but it does make a big difference in sound, playability, etc. The one thing to Notre about instrument picking, is that it’s all pretty damn subjective. I’ve tested out cellos that are in the 45-50k range (that I of course I can’t afford), and didn’t enjoy all of them. It can take time to find the instrument that works for you.
Obviously, 30,000 and above is a ridiculous price to consider if you’re not planning on being a professional musician, but it’s an investment in your career if you are. To be honest, with as much time as it takes one person to make a cello completely by hand, 30,000 isn’t all that crazy of a price. I’m not saying it’s easily affordable by any means, just that it’s within reason with the amount of labor that is put into it.
Take aways:
1. If you don't have a lot of money to buy a hand-built instrument then don't start playing the cello.
2. If you mention made in China you will be looked down upon
3. Why didn't the videographer just give us the pertinent measurements with diagrams in support. It would have saved lots of time.
I'd say middle class people and above can play cello if renting(ideally rent to own). ~$45 USD per month for a couple years can get you a decent $2000-$3000 beginner cello while learning