I currently play horn, cello and piano and am about grade grade 7 on horn, grade 7 on cello and grade 6 on piano. I am 12 years old.
Due to the length of the pieces, number of scales etc and hours in the day I only find to practice horn on a regular basis (2 hourd per day), piano (1 hour) and theory, grade 6.
I want to give up the cello but parents and cello teacher don't approve. They are not musical folk and don't understand the time, devotion and skill, which all comes through practice, to master a musical instrument.
Because I said i may sell my £11,000 cello and buy a couple of horn and save the rest, my parents beleive that the fact i hate my cello teacher and want to sell my cello and buy some horns is the REAL reasom why I want to give up

Can anyone help me?
I dont know what do t0!!!!!!!

However do you manage all that practice at age 12? I assume you have a normal school timetable and homework to do as well - and do you do anything else besides school and music?

I would suggest that you choose the instrument that you enjoy playing most (and if that's the cello can't you ask to change your cello teacher?) and ask your parents if you can concentrate on that one instrument for now. You never lose the skills that you have learnt on any instrument, though they do get a bit rusty and need polishing up when you go back to them later. Bear in mind that the piano can be a rather lonely instrument at your age (I know, I'm a pianist who dropped piano playing at 18, following getting grade 8, partly for that reason - my parents were not too pleased at the time as they had spent a lot of money on my lessons, but I'm now back with piano and doing teaching), whereas the cello and horn are orchestral instruments and could give you a good social outlet as well as a musical one if you join an orchestra. Playing with other people is really rewarding.

I do hope you solve your problem - you're clearly very musically gifted and your parents won't want you to become stressed out by what should be a pleasure.

I had this same problem, as I played a number of instruments - but when you reach a high level (Grade 6+) you simply don't have enough time to be able to practice them all thoroughly. Something will end up suffering. To be at this standard at such a young age is wonderful, you must have worked really hard. Try and explain to your parents the demands you have on your time (and it'll get worse in a few years when exams come around!). Dropping one instrument will leave you more time to progress with the others. Who knows, you may even start playing the cello again later in life!
You say the real reason you want to give up is because you dislike your teacher - please don't let this be the only reason for you giving up having got so far. Talk to your parents about why you dislike this teacher and if you decide to carry on playing the cello, see about getting a new teacher. All the best

If it is the only reason you dont like the teacher you better change and continue learning. Or if you are tired of it then there is no chance. Better give it up and go for Horns and invest the balance as you wish

I also play 3 instruments. Horn, clarinet and piano. Ur right, it is very hard to balance your practicing time between the three and it will get worse as u move on to doing gsce's which im doing at the moment.
About a year ago i joined a brass band and found that i didnt need to practice my horn as much coz band practice was 2 nights a week. So instead of selling your cello why not keep it and join an orchestra and only play when u need to. As for your parents, im suprised they havent suggested finding a new cello teacher. Tell them the truth they'll appreciate it.

I play 3 instruments but now only have lessons in 2. I'm taking my grade 7 in clarinet this time around and am grade 5 on the saxophone. Because clarinet is my real passion I've decided against taking any further grades on the sax, instead deciding to concentrate on that as a less strenuous instrument and am now studying jazz improvisation on it. I'm in a Jazz band on sax and play for the county on clarinet as well as school bands and productions.

If your not keen on the cello then why not sell it like u say and either buy a cheaper one and some horns (if this is possible) so that if u decide to take up the cello again u can easily! Ur at such a high standard on cello that if u just stopped having lessons and just palyed for fun (like a orchestral group) the u'd still be practising enough and would still improve.

relax a little don't drive urself into the ground with all this practisin, its not healthy ;-)! take some time to put the instruments down and put the homework away and go out and enjoy urself! Ur remarkably talented for your age. Stop and enjoy bein 12 while it lasts before exams get ya!

Good Luck
Justdroppedtheclarinet

Keep up waht you like. But what are you on about? grade 6 - 7 pieces arent that long! hehe??

Only do what you like - my lecturer in Keyboard Studies told me that music is about the performance, and the pleasure that not only people get from listening to you, but the performer (you) get from a successful performance, knowing that all that hard work has finally paid off.

If you didn't like the Cello, then I could see the point of giving it up. But the fact that you want to give it up because you don't like the teacher is a bit absurd. It sounds as if all of you (Your Parents, your Cello teacher, and yourself) need to sit down together and have a long chat through about what the next stage may be...maybe you can come to some sort of agreement, like having Cello lessons once every other week. That way that would give you time out to practice your Cello a bit.

Your parents will always support you whether you keep up the Cello or not...because they are your parents!! They just want to make sure you don't make a decision you'll regret in later life. It's not difficult to see that they are already VERY proud of you, and one decision will not stop them from being proud of you. My parents aren't musical either, and when I went to look at Universities to take my Music Degree, I wanted to go somewhere different to my parent's choice...but they still supported me on my decision to move out and go elsewhere...because I'm happy with what I'm doing!

Your parents will probably be a little bit disappointed because of the big investment they've made (£11,000 on a cello is one MASSIVE investment!!) but once hey know you're happy then they'll still support you!

If all negotiation with your teacher and parents fail, then please DON'T SELL THE CELLO! You may not think it now, but Cellos are beautiful instruments, and worth a lot of money. If in a couple of years time you feel like taking the Cello up again you'll have to fork out £11,000 again ---> and you won't be very happy doing that!

I hope thats given you some food for thought and that you come to an amicable solution!