Go on. You know you want one really...

I do I really do
Think I'll have to wait until the summer though but hey, it'll be worth the wait

It's only two months away.

FANTASTIC STUFF ChevvyChev!!!
can't wait for you to have your cello! more lower strings

It truly will - I promise, this will be the start of something special . . . .

Got it!

Woo Hooooo.

I have made a decision, payed my money and I now have a cello.

Of the two I tried I went for one that is about 39 years old, Romanian and gorgeous.

When I get a spare minute I'll post a picture.

I've been practising hard after my first lesson and have my first scale learnt (ish)

Bass clef takes a bit of getting used to, but it's all great fun.

My target is to play in my local orchestra asap, and yes I do intend enjoying the ride.

Looking forward to my next lesson on Monday.

Sounds Great Tomo
am really happy for you!
please please DO post a photo of it
I am lucky I did piano so bass clef is not a task for me, but yes, it would be if you are learning it from new, but it will be soon second nature am sure
let us know how your next lesson goes.
I have my second lesson on the double bass tomorrow, can't believe it's been 2 weeks already and I've been a good girl and practiced EVERY DAY
BUT the first thing I will tell my teacher when I step through her door tomorrow, will be:
HEEEEEELLLLLLPPPPP I am finding this to be SOOOOOO hard I am not sure I will EVER be a good bass player

My fingers are always SO sore, the gaps to reach the notes are too wide

I will let you know what she said

I really hope so


I can't wait till I get to have that feeling!! hoooorayyyyy!!

Ok, been to my 2nd Bass lesson

Feel heaps better as my teacher (who also builds/restores basses with her husband) said the set up on my Bass is so totally out only a gorilla could play well on it

The nut needs adjusting to bring the strings much lower, so does the bridge, the strings need bringing closer together too, they are way too wide apart she was saying.

So I tried to play on 'Josephine' a 1948 bass she has (she has 5 to 6 basses in her house ), and it was MUCH easier, she said once my Gandalf has been set up properly it will be heaps easier and that will decrease the stretch from 1st to 4 finger too!!

I will drop Gandalf off in the week at her shop and leave him there for a day or two and they'll sort him out for me

Other than that, she said Gandalf is a really good bass, I paid £1300 for him but she said he plays like a £4000 bass and once the strings have been 'played in' and he's been played in too he will sound really good

She added more scales and pieces, brought me up to grade 3 with my scales and has given me grade 2 pieces to play in the next fortnight.

Sounds like a great lesson!!
I'm very jealous!!

Fabulous news - it will be a wonderful journey I am sure. I still get a thrill from holding, playing and even just looking at my cello So looking forward to hearing about your experiences.




That is really good news Jo - I hoped she would have some reassuring words and practical advice. Great teachers truly do make the world of difference don't they? When are you getting Gandalf customised? I'll be really interested to hear how it impacts on your playing and experience.

Thank you Miss Sooky,
I am going to call her husband on tuesday but I hate to say that my week is pretty PACKED so not sure when I could drop him off as the shop closes at 5.30pm and I don't even get home from work until 5pm.
I might call them and ask them if I can take the liberty to drop him off at her house then he can take Gandalf to the shop with him in the morning...
will let you know

Where did you get Gandalf Jo.. or did I miss that bit.

He looks so handsome... and Pan wonders if perhaps they could have a game of golf together sometime?

Got him from Footes in London (near Piccadilly)
Gandalf would LOVE to have a game of golf with Pan

I have actually had a 'genius moment' today!
I am NOT going to drop Gandalf off at the luthier this week.
I was worried about not having him for a couple of days and not being able to practice (even though I have a good excuse, he needs setting up properly).
BUT, I am going to Italy on the 24th of May for a whole week! Needless to say I am NOT taking Gandalf as a hard case for him would cost in excess of £1000 so he would stay back home and I am not practicing for a whole week!
so...you got it, I will drop him off at the luthier a day or two before I go away and pick him up as soon as I get back

I love those moments!

WHERE IS SHE *points accusingly at Jo* You! You! Bad, bad midwife....
I had a go on a bass in the luthier shop this morning whilst he was changing my fiddle strings

I hope you're truly ashamed of yourself, missy!

It was dead good... (shhhh... don't tell anyone)

Does that mean you have a bass now?

Rosfrog is very close to 'tip over the edge to 'the dark side''

It wasn't me! I slipped. I fell, even. I WAS PUSHED!

It was self defence.

I was young and needed the money... ?

yeah yeah rosfrog.....'whatever'


ps all arranged for Gandalf, when I go to my next Bass lesson I'll leave him at my teacher's house, her husband will take him to his shop, 'sort him out' with a decent set up and when I have my lesson on my return from Italy I'll pick him up from her house. He's really looking forward to having his nut shaved his bridge cut short and, his soundpost shortened and his strings put close together

Pan's in 'hospital' just now having the same operation. Perhaps I should take him some grapes. I miss him My poor baby But Martha's rather pleased because she's getting all the attention. Does this mean I'm going to have toddler stringed instruments vying for my attention next week... I can just hear the strings pinging already..... (there's no accounting for the behaviour of jealous bows )

*chants in a horrid Oprah Winfrey-type fashion*

Go for it!
Go for it!
Go for it!











(As a student with a stressful deadline and missing her 'string-kids' ( ) I take NO responsiblity for my actions/encouragements)

Hello,

I feel I want to join this thread, but shouldn't really be allowed yet, as I'm only a cello wannabe!

It is not that I haven't got enough on my plate at the moment. I never have any spare time. I'm always busy with work or my young children, or practicing the violin now I'm getting back into that. But I obviously feel I haven't stressed myself enough because I still can't get rid of the desire to play the cello - or the realisation that life is short and you have to fit everything into it at once!

How have the cellists amongst you, that used to be violinists, got on? Is it easy to switch? Do you have problems going backwards and forwards between instruments? Are you glad you did it?

As an adult, who can play the violin (and piano, but I don't brag about that since I'm so awful - but probably about grade 5ish), would it take me long to get onto playing half decent pieces? Are you all pleased with your progress?

I'm very impressed with you all for taking on another instrument!
NellieVic.

Hi NellieVic, I know I am learning the Bass, BUT not too different (although yes, different) from a cello
also I have heard from my violin teacher and other experienced people about learning cello after violin.
As you are post grade 8 on violin I am fairly sure you would take on the cello fairly quickly.
Of course different people, different abilities and different challenges, you'd have the bass and tenor clefs to contend with, but you know the bass clef from piano so that should not be a problem. yes, posture and bow hold are different but I am sure you'd pick that up quickly.
The answer is that yes, you can do this quite easily.
As for time: that might be the only thing limitating your progress on the cello
Like you've said: you have a LOT on your plate and you hope to go for your violin diploma in the near future (I read your other threads)
I am also like you a VERY BUSY person, I am a midwife and work 6 and a half days a week, I am a single parent of a 13yr old boy and I have to take 'some part in his life'
My typical day is:
wake up 6am, cook breakfast for son (he would not eat anything else but cooked breakfast and to me I'd rather do that than him eating junk or not eating at all), leave for work at 06:45
work all day, arrive home 17:30, have coffee/snack or light dinner
start practicing violin at 18:30 to 19:30
30 minutes break then practice Bass from 20:00 to 20:30
on a monday/tuesday/wednesday I have violin lesson/orchestra/take son to cricket so I fit my practice around these 3 things and have NO TIME for relax/break AT ALL!!!
on Thu/Fri from 20:30 to 21:30 I relax by browing the internet and go to bed by 21:45, on the days mentioned earlier there is NO internet browsing (maybe just post here quckly LOL)

Weekends:
saturday I wake up at 8am, go weekly grocerie shopping and bass lesson once a fortnight, go home prepare my food for night shift and have lunch, go to bed at 12pm to 4pm, wake up, play violin from 4:30 pm to 5:30 pm, leave for work at 6pm and work the whole night

sunday: get back from work at 10am go to bed until 3pm but if my son has a cricket match I only get to sleep 2 hours

Play violin from 5 to 6pm, the do my weekly laundry until 7:30 then bass from 7:30 to 8pm or 8:30pm, go to bed at 9:30pm

so, sorry to write all this but I think it will give you and other a realistic view of how I 'juggle it all'
I have to say: I have a cleaner to clean my house as I would have NO time NOR energy left in me to do it! and I don't iron my clothes but have mastered such a great way of hanging them to dry the dry totally crease free

so.....some of you may think: Jo, do you HAVE A LIFE AT ALL???

that is my life: work/eat/cook/play violin and bass and sleep
OH! once a month on a friday evening I go to the cinema

If you can/want to do the above then you might be able to take on cello, but I'd suggest you don't set your aim too high with it, keep it as a 'second instrument' ie: see where the boat goes, be ready to practice only short amount of time and maybe not every day, give violin precedence, then GO FOR IT!!!!

You could even hire one to see how you get on with it for a few months, but I'd say do it as it won't leave your head, the bass DID NOT LEAVE MY HEAD I kept thinking about it for 3 years, had to do it at the end!!!

good luck

[quote name='jojo' date='May 13 2009, 11:16 AM' post='825890']

[/quote]

My typical day is:
wake up 6am, cook breakfast for son (he would not eat anything else but cooked breakfast and to me I'd rather do that than him eating junk or not eating at all), leave for work at 06:45
work all day, arrive home 17:30, have coffee/snack or light dinner
start practicing violin at 18:30 to 19:30
30 minutes break then practice Bass from 20:00 to 20:30
on a monday/tuesday/wednesday I have violin lesson/orchestra/take son to cricket so I fit my practice around these 3 things and have NO TIME for relax/break AT ALL!!!
on Thu/Fri from 20:30 to 21:30 I relax by browing the internet and go to bed by 21:45, on the days mentioned earlier there is NO internet browsing (maybe just post here quckly LOL)

Weekends:
saturday I wake up at 8am, go weekly grocerie shopping and bass lesson once a fortnight, go home prepare my food for night shift and have lunch, go to bed at 12pm to 4pm, wake up, play violin from 4:30 pm to 5:30 pm, leave for work at 6pm and work the whole night

sunday: get back from work at 10am go to bed until 3pm but if my son has a cricket match I only get to sleep 2 hours

Play violin from 5 to 6pm, the do my weekly laundry until 7:30 then bass from 7:30 to 8pm or 8:30pm, go to bed at 9:30pm

so, sorry to write all this but I think it will give you and other a realistic view of how I 'juggle it all'
I have to say: I have a cleaner to clean my house as I would have NO time NOR energy left in me to do it! and I don't iron my clothes but have mastered such a great way of hanging them to dry the dry totally crease free

so.....some of you may think: Jo, do you HAVE A LIFE AT ALL???

that is my life: work/eat/cook/play violin and bass and sleep
OH! once a month on a friday evening I go to the cinema

If you can/want to do the above then you might be able to take on cello, but I'd suggest you don't set your aim too high with it, keep it as a 'second instrument' ie: see where the boat goes, be ready to practice only short amount of time and maybe not every day, give violin precedence, then GO FOR IT!!!!

You could even hire one to see how you get on with it for a few months, but I'd say do it as it won't leave your head, the bass DID NOT LEAVE MY HEAD I kept thinking about it for 3 years, had to do it at the end!!!

good luck
[/quote]


Wow! What lives us Mums go through! I can totally relate to your post. I do very similar juggling throughout my week with 3 young children, working 3 days a week and studying to become an antenatal teacher (I'm also a midwife wannabe - that will have to wait until my children are older - so very envious of your fantastic career choice).

Thanks for giving me this insight. Will definitely be keeping the cello as a second instrument, and will look into renting/teachers. I've almost given up on the possibility of finding a violin teacher at the moment, so I could use that limited 'slot' in my week I was allocating to that.

Thanks once again, and good luck with your extremely busy - and productive, life.
NellieVic.

I'd just like to point out that Lottie - YOU'RE NOT HELPING!

And Jo, going and being all reasonable and giving a timetable... that's just mean. Now I'm working out if I can give up an hour of sleep each night (already only at 5 hours) to fit in the bass.

*Sings in a fine, twangy belt* So if you'd care to find me, look to the... well, luthier's workshop, bank manager's office explaining my current suicidal financial management and string obsessives anonymous...

It would look nice in my music room - there's already a cello, two violins and a viola there... oh and a piano. And an irish keyless flute. And some Northumbrian smallpipes. And a guitar. And some penny whistles. And a mandolin.... HEELLLLLLP !

I think you've already been smitten, Rosfrog...

An antenatal teacher? that's great, if I had a second life parallel to this I would take that up too
Make sure you teach all women how not to get bullied by some doctors and midwives into not doing what they want to do power back to the pregnant woman

so does this mean I have 'convinced' you to go ahead and rent a cello and get learning??? or that 'I've given you an excuse to go ahead and you can blame 'Jo' from the Strings Forum when your children complain of being deprived of their mother and your other half joins in the protest??'

Honestly though, you should get on fine, my bass teacher reckons I'll be at grade 5 standard in 6 months on the bass, my violin teacher used to play in a professional orchestra, one of the violin players decided to take up the cello and she got to grade 8 in a year!
We are all different but your grade 8+ in violin will help you a lot (together with your piano experience too)

Obviously I am biased, but get that cello! I hear what you say about time - like Jo, I am a mum, work as a doctor fulltime, have friends who mean the world to me so love to see and spare moments are apparently few and far between, but I usually manage a minimum of 20 minutes daily cello practice in the week and a few hours at the weekend. I don't watch tv at all and I tend to use any 'down time' to pick up the cello e.g. whilst waiting for supper to cook in the oven etc. For me it is my passion and makes my life complete really, so it is rarely a chore. Often frustrating but rarely a chore!

Sounds like we are very similar miss sooky, I also never watch any tv and pick up any 'down time' to practice violin and bass

I'm a cello wannabe too hehehe
And reading through this thread just makes me want one more and more and more Hurry up summmerrrrr!!!!!

it would look VERY nice in your music room, it's 'just' the missing piece

I love enabling deep seated wishes and musical yearnings - listen to JoJo, listen to JoJo, listen to JoJo, imagine your room with the bass, imagine it, imagine it . . .repeat to fade!

AAAAAARRRRRGHHHH!

I might just have a lesson on one tomorrow then (luthier is also a bass player) - just for a proper try out and to get it out of my system, mind - not to buy, you understand.

Ahem.

Of course, just to try, just to experience the joy for a passing moment, just out of curiousity, of course - enjoy and let's see how your system responds . . .!

rosfrog, the bass is 'calling you' bow to its power and succomb

I hear it too Jo . . .

OK,
I got Gandalf back yesterday!!!!

WOW, what a difference!!!

they have shortened the bridge, changed the angle/arch on it, shaved slightly the fingerboard, shaved the nut (heheheh ), these things brought strings much closer to fingerboard, brought strings slightly closer to each other, shortened quite a lot the soundpost (it was sooooooo long/tight you could see a bulge on Gandalf' belly from it!!), readjusted tailpiece so that ball-end of strings now sit nicely in place.
It was a 2 and a half hour job

and it was WELL WORTH IT!

I can now play without feeling like a DOUBLE DECKER bus has run over my hand with its wheels!!!, I don't sound so much erm 'rubbbish' anymore AND my teacher will get me a wolf note eliminator as the A string has a bad 'wolf' in it and unless you hit the string in the specific spot, it will growl at you

BUT oh WOW, WOW and re-WOW!! what a difference all the above did to 'my boy'

I am off to practice now

Hurrah! Do a youtube video! Go on, you know you want to...

as soon as I get over my 'camera shyness' problem I will

Nice one Jojo.

Money well spent

Have fun.

My double bass teacher talks A LOT!!!
But I like her so much and she doesn't talk nonsense, she talks interesting stuff, but that means we are always over our lesson time!
Today was supposed to be out of there at 7:30pm, previous lesson was running late which I didn't mind as this girl was playing grade 5 to 6 pieces on the bass and it was nice sitting there listening to it
Then my lesson started at 7:30, meant to last an hour, got away from her house at 9pm!!!
It was nice though and I didn't mind as I had nothing else to do this evening.
My teacher reckons she will get me ready to join an amateur orchestra on the bass by autum/winter this year, and playing grade 5 pieces by the end of the summer
We are now beginning to do grade 5 scales, but I can't believe it goes this quick on the double bass, is it really this quick???
Anyway, fingers are getting used to it, still have to stretch a little more from 1st to 4th finger in half position (that's the hardest!) am developing some nice callouses!!!

Oh, forgot to say, first rule imposed by my double bass teacher this evening:
- if when I arrive for lesson she's still finishing with the previous student, I have to let myself in, go to the kitchen, make myself a cup of tea, grab a biscuit and sit on couch in living room where she holds the lessons
I do like her a lot

Sounds good Jo - how are your fingers these days? Are you managing those monster strings?

Cello is going back to the shop next weekend. The rental term will be up then and I quite simply cannot afford to buy the instrument. Also as it's looking increasingly likely I'm going to be unemployed come September I therefore won't be able to pay for lessons anyway. So it seems my short foray into being a lower string player is over. Oh well, maybe later!