Bowed Strings | Cello
CELLO.
The cello is substantially larger than the violin and viola. Also called violoncello, this instrument is placed in front of a sitting player, held between the legs, propped up by a metal endpin. In comparison with the violin and viola, the cello:
can perform all techniques possible on the other two.
is almost as agile as the violin.
can match all bowings possible on violin and viola.
is tuned exactly one octave lower than the viola.
is usually written in bass clef, though higher passages should be written in tenor clef or treble clef to avoid excessive ledger lines.
is brighter than viola in higher registers, perhaps matching the brilliance of violin.
is more dark and powerful in lower registers than viola.
can produce harmonics more easily and clearly than violin or viola.
In the last century, the level of cello playing has risen drastically. Good players are expected to have a level of proficiency on the instrument rivalling violinists. Many leading cellists have commissioned solo pieces and concertos, expanding the literature available for this instrument.
Although the cello often takes on the baritone or bass role of the string section, it can also function as the tenor, alto, or even soprano voice. In the lower register, it often doubles the bass or other bass instruments, such as bassoon and trombone. In the mid-range, cello can contribute inner notes of harmonic constructions. The cello has a particularly powerful upper register that can sing, when properly scored, with brilliance, grace, and power over a full string section, or even an orchestra. The cello is equally suited for aggressive, sweet, rhythmic, or heroic musical gestures.
First to fourth finger span only a third on cello, instead of the fourth that is possible with violin. This makes wide leaps difficult, and shortens the intervals possible for multiple stops and tremolos. In thumb position, however, a span of a fourth can be reached. This technique is commonly used when playing in higher registers, performing octave double stops in lower positions, or to enable touch-4 harmonics and tremolos of larger intervals on the same string.
Playing with the thumb is indicated by the graphic:
More strings-related chapters from Extreme Orchestration
The bowed string family of the modern symphony orchestra consists of only four instruments: violin, viola, cello, and bass. More music has been written to feature these instruments than any other family of the orchestra (woodwinds, brass, or percussion). A full string section forms the backbone of most orchestral literature.
On string instruments, it is possible to change the pitch of a string by stopping the string with the left hand. In other words, the left hand applies pressure to a string against the fingerboard, in essence shortening its length. Shorter strings produce higher pitches, so as notes are stopped higher on the fingerboard, the pitch rises.
The most common way to produce a sound on orchestral string instruments is by drawing a bow across one or more of its strings. This technique is called arco. Because playing with a bow is the default method of playing these instruments, it is not necessary to write the term arco on the score unless canceling out an alternative way of playing, such as plucking or striking the strings.
It is possible to achieve a greater variety of timbres with the bowed strings than with any other orchestral instrument. Through the use of harmonics, mutes, varied bow placement, plucking or striking the strings, and other extended techniques, a large selection of sound possibilities becomes available.
The violin generally takes the soprano role of the strings, though it is possible to score violin below viola, or even upper register cello.
The viola is most often scored as the alto voice of the string ensemble. In fact, the word for viola in German is alto. For chordal figures, this instrument often fills out the inner voices. Viola can effectively double the violin in unison, or down an octave, and it is often written in unison or up an octave from the cello.
Although the cello often takes on the baritone or bass role of the string section, it can also function as the tenor, alto, or even soprano voice. In the lower register, it often doubles the bass or other bass instruments, such as bassoon and trombone. In the mid-range, cello can contribute inner notes of harmonic constructions.
The contrabass is the largest and the lowest of the bowed strings. Also known as double bass, bass viol, string bass, or simply bass it is positioned in front of the player, resting on an endpin, as the performer stands or sits on a high stool. Most of the techniques for violin, viola, and cello are possible on bass as well, and this instruments blends well with the other strings.
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All composers deal with instrumentation and orchestration every time they write music. Even when composing for a solo player, it is imperative to know the potentials of the instrument at hand. Though some students of orchestration argue that they have no compositional ability, all orchestrators deal with composition.
Perhaps it seems odd for a book on orchestration to contain such a hefty chapter on music notation. Certainly learning the rules of notation will not teach the art of instrumentation or orchestration, as notation is a completely separate skill. Yet notation is the single item that orchestrators deliver to performers.
Woodwinds are not usually called upon to evoke the sensuous beauty of strings, the heroic grandeur of brass, or the visceral power and splashy color of percussion. Their role in the orchestra is possibly the most subtle and personal of all the instrumental choirs. Developing an appreciation for the special qualities they contribute and discovering techniques for making the most of the timbral resources they provide may be the most important lessons an orchestrator can learn.
Since the members of the woodwind section have such individually distinct timbres, the choices of chord voicings, doublings and octave placements in this section have a particularly notable impact.
The members of the flute family are the only wind instruments that do not use a reed or buzzing lips to initiate their sound. Air is directed from the lips free of a mouthpiece. The only resistance to the airflow is the player’s embouchure, allowing the tongue and mouth to be uniquely unencumbered.
The oboe’s double reed is the heart of its distinct character. Since no satisfactory way of mass-producing oboe reeds has been perfected, oboists spend a good part of their lives making and adjusting reeds. Intonation is largely a matter of fine-tuning the reed, and the quality of the reed can have a decisive impact on the color of the instrument.
Clarinets are the most prevalent of all woodwinds, despite the fact that they were the last to become standard members of the symphony orchestra, near the end of the Classical Period (saxophones are still waiting). There are many good reasons for this. Its broad range allows it to be a tenor, alto, or even coloratura soprano member of any ensemble.
The saxophone and clarinet families have many things in common. They are the only single reed families. Both have a relatively large number of instruments covering virtually the complete range of the orchestra, and these instruments are playable at the elementary level, while possessing the capacity for virtuosic technical agility and extraordinary dynamic breadth.
The bassoon family is limited to the bassoon and contrabassoon. Since these are double reed, conical bore instruments, basic acoustics might suggest that they should be included in the oboe family (or that oboes be included in the bassoon family since bassoons arguably arrived first). The sound quality of bassoons, however, differs significantly enough from the oboes to merit a family of their own.
Brass instruments are a far more homogeneous group than woodwinds. All brass instruments produce their sound when lips are vibrated into a mouthpiece. Beyond the mouthpiece, the most important element in the structure of all brass instruments is a flaring bell at the end of the tubing, which not only amplifies the sound but also helps the higher partials to speak clearly and evenly.
In the following excerpt, the brass section forms the core of the climax of Strauss’s Till Eulenspiegel. Here the brass is organized in a variety of configurations, ranging from contrapuntal balancing to homophonic power chords.
The horn (rarely referred to as the “French horn” these days) is the most extensively used brass instrument in orchestral writing, whether measured by the number of scores which call for it, the number horns usually included in the instrumentation of a score compared to other brass instruments, or by the relative total duration of time that solo or section horns play in a score.
The trumpet is arguably the loudest and most powerful member of the orchestra, if one excludes the organ and certain deafening percussion. A single trumpet in its middle to high register at the ƒ dynamic level can always be heard, no matter how dense and loud the texture surrounding it.
The trombone is so similar in its acoustic structure to the trumpet (predominantly cylindrical) that it may be considered a bass trumpet with a slide replacing the valves.
The tuba functions as the bass of the brass section. Comparable to the way string basses commonly double the cellos an octave lower (like adding an organ “16-foot” stop), the tuba is acoustically designed to provide depth and strength to the bass voice. Its sound is open and relatively diffuse, a “sub-woofer” to the brass and the orchestra as a whole.
Though percussion instruments can be pitched (such as marimba, xylophone, and timpani1) or non-pitched (such as snare drum, triangle, and cymbals) there is often a fine line between these two categories.
Percussion notation has the same goals as all notation: it should be clear, specific, and easy to follow. Many attempts have been made to standardize percussion notation, yet none have proven definitive. However, following the guidelines set below will allow you to deliver comprehensible, easy to read percussion parts.
Most drums have a single head, made from a stretched membrane, affixed to a shell. Some have a second head on the opposing side (i.e. bass drum), adding resonance by creating a sound chamber between the heads.
Though the mallet percussion instruments range widely in material (some are wood instruments, while others are metals) and timbre, they share many common characteristics. All of these instruments are pitched and capable of playing chromatically throughout their given range. They are all set up similarly to a piano in that the pitches that correspond to white keys are pushed forward, with the black keys appropriately placed behind them.
Any kind of item, even those not normally found in the percussion section, may be struck (though you may want to take out some extra insurance on particularly fragile items!). The timbre is determined primarily by its material, shape, density, and the type of mallet used.
Objects can be shaken, scraped, pulled, cranked, blown, etc. Some of these instruments imitate nature sounds (composers seem to have a particular obsession with the weather) or everyday life, while others are used simply to create rhythms, texture, or noise. With few exceptions, these instruments are non-pitched.
Keyboard instruments are designed to be polyphonic, giving one performer the ability to play as many notes simultaneously as the fingers of two hands (and in some cases two hands and feet) can manage. The piano and organ have the ability to create a complete musical fabric, often suggesting the range, textural richness, and dynamic impact of a large orchestra.
The piano is a percussion mechanism masquerading as a sustaining, lyric instrument. Considering the tremendous amount of music written for it, thoroughly convincing in all manner of styles and characters, this masquerade is conspicuously successful.
Despite its extreme expressiveness, harmonic potential, wide array of techniques, and the fact that it is the one of the oldest living instruments, the harp seems to strike fear in the hearts of many composers and orchestrators.
Idiomatic Scoring for the Harp: Music for harp is usually written on a grand staff, similar to piano music. Most of the time, the top staff should be in treble clef, and the bottom staff in bass clef.
The bowed string family of the modern symphony orchestra consists of only four instruments: violin, viola, cello, and bass. More music has been written to feature these instruments than any other family of the orchestra (woodwinds, brass, or percussion). A full string section forms the backbone of most orchestral literature.
On string instruments, it is possible to change the pitch of a string by stopping the string with the left hand. In other words, the left hand applies pressure to a string against the fingerboard, in essence shortening its length. Shorter strings produce higher pitches, so as notes are stopped higher on the fingerboard, the pitch rises.
The most common way to produce a sound on orchestral string instruments is by drawing a bow across one or more of its strings. This technique is called arco. Because playing with a bow is the default method of playing these instruments, it is not necessary to write the term arco on the score unless canceling out an alternative way of playing, such as plucking or striking the strings.
It is possible to achieve a greater variety of timbres with the bowed strings than with any other orchestral instrument. Through the use of harmonics, mutes, varied bow placement, plucking or striking the strings, and other extended techniques, a large selection of sound possibilities becomes available.
The violin generally takes the soprano role of the strings, though it is possible to score violin below viola, or even upper register cello.
More Cello Resources
From ACTOR Partners
“The aim of The Orchestra: A User's Manual is to provide information about the orchestra, orchestration, composition and instruments, for the benefit of anybody with an interest in the subject.”
“Much larger than its smaller cousins, the cello is played while sitting, with the body of the instrument placed between the legs of the player.”
Recommended Resources on the World Wide Web
“My intent in creating this project was to provide composers of today with a new resource; a technical yet pragmatic guide to writing with extended techniques on the cello. The cello has a wondrously broad spectrum of sonic possibility, yet must be approached in a different way than other string instruments, owing to its construction, playing orientation, and physical mass.”
“This article is designed as a starting point for cello technique. It includes broad principles that generally hold true. I am particularly interested in those principles that can release tension and help prevent overuse injuries in cellists. I believe these principles can be applied to other instruments and string pedagogy in general.”
“The cello has four strings. Listed in ascending order, they are: C, G, D, A. The C is the thickest and lowest-sounding string. The A is the highest-sounding string and the thinnest.”
“The cello (violoncello) is the tenor and bass instrument of the violin family (violin, viola, cello). In the 19th century the cello advanced along with the violin to become the most important bowed instrument for solo works. In the 20th century cellists began to specialize more, concentrating more on solo, chamber or orchestral playing.”
“Cello Map is a practical resource for those who are interested in performing and writing contemporary music for cello.”
“During the course of the twentieth century, cello technique developed in multiple ways – from the refinement of traditional methods to the introduction of an array of extended and ‘extreme’ techniques demanded by the contemporary and new music repertoire.”
“There remain quite a few different strategies in notating harmonics. Perhaps the clearest is the way in which Elliott Carter writes them. He always includes three notations no matter whether writing natural harmonics or artificial. First, in the proper rhythm, he writes the pitch of the open or the stopped string. Second, he indicates in tablature the spot on the fingerboard where the node is to be lightly touched.”
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