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Joanna Borrett

Jun 13
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Music Narrative

By famous violin and cello duets, fedora strings, fedora strings performance, sheet music sales No Comments

Music narrative is an essential part of great interpretation. By narrative I don’t mean something you could necessarily put into words, rather the performer having a clear idea of what the music is about and what it has to say.

Examples of Music Narrative

The example above  – though crackly – is a superb example of performers who are completely at one with the mood of the music ( Massenet’s Elegie )  and convey its character wholeheartedly and beautifully.

Stanislavsky

Here are some relevant quotes from the great Russian actor Stanislavsky:
” Create your own method. Make up something that works for you. Keep breaking traditions, I beg you.”
“You’ll never see any two great actors approach a role in the same way.”
“Play well or play badly, but play truly.”

The overall point is that if you come up with imaginative ideas that are true to you they will breathe life into the music  – just as an actor hopes to breathe life into a character he portrays.

Opera has its own narrative

One of the easiest ways to respond to narrative is when playing opera arrangements, where there is a defined story. Our arrangements of Toreador Song and Habanera   –  from Bizet’s opera Carmen – are good examples of this.

 

May 23
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La Cumparsita Sheet Music

By fedora strings performance, sheet music sales No Comments

Our filmed recording of La Cumparsita sheet music has just received 1000 ‘likes’ on You Tube. This great tango is immensely popular and our arrangement has now been viewed by more than 137,000 people.
Kirby Hall

We filmed the video in 2011 at Kirby Hall – a beautiful stately home owned by English Heritage.

About our arrangement of La Cumparsita

The setting for the film was a partly covered courtyard, which had caught the eye of one of our  Lux Technical film crew who thought it would be especially suitable for the character of the music. Today our sheet music arrangement of La Cumparsita is the most popular piece we sell, and it’s also one of the least complicated to play. Our aim was to project the darkness and sensuality of the tango mood. I hope we have achieved some of this.
La Cumparsita sheet music

May 23
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Music Recordings

By fedora strings performance, sheet music sales No Comments

We have just completed some new music recordings of the pieces we sell online.

The recording session took place at Wadenhoe Church. The acoustics here are ideal for chamber music because the church is not too big. It’s also fairly isolated from roads and potential traffic noise.
Wadenhoe Church

Our new music recordings

The pieces we recorded included Scarborough Fair,  Dark Eyes, Variations on a Christmas Carol and one of Roger’s tangos. We’ll be adding the recordings to our website next month but meanwhile you can find out more about the music by clicking on the highlighted titles above.

music recordings

May 02
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Music Success

By gifts for string music lovers, sheet music sales No Comments

Roger has achieved music success by having his 15 Insect Songs accepted for publication by Spartan Press. The songs are based on a children’s story Roger wrote several years ago called The Quest for the Golden Orchid. The story features a bee called Hermia – and a variety of other insect characters- and their adventures in escaping dangers caused by pesticides.
music success

About the songs

The music is fun and imaginative in illustrating the different characteristics of the various insects. The number of solo voices or choruses vary per song and there is a violin and piano accompaniment.

” These songs are ideal for use in schools, ” said Roger. ” Each song works on its own with or without the book – or all the songs and the book can be combined to create a children’s musical.”
 music success

Find out more

 If you’d like to be kept in touch with up to date information about publication of the book and the songs please email Roger direct at roger.stimson@googlemail.com
And to find out how we can custom write and dedicate a piece of music for you, click below
Gifts and Dedications 

 

Apr 23
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Cello Books

By string teaching No Comments

Can cello books – or music books in general – change your playing? My own feeling is yes. This doesn’t mean I think that any cello  book  can compensate for one to one teaching. It’s rather that my own teacher recommended certain books which resonated with me and have been a major influence on my life.

Performing influences

I was lucky enough to experience some excellent string teaching.My cello teacher was the inspiring Christopher Bunting, and he recommended I read Stanislavsky’s Systems and Methods of Creative Acting – much of which relates directly to music. As well as helping me develop a secure technique, Christopher constantly focused on the difference between being an instrumentalist and being an artist and the importance of interpretation.  Roger and I generally agree on this approach when we work together in Fedora Strings – and  La Cumparsita is an example of the results.
cello books                                                                          Christopher Bunting
I haven’t always been able to be true to these ideas in the past – for various reasons – but I have always known that they are right and they have given me something to steer by. Another major influence for me was the well known violinist Manny Hurwitz, whose down to earth, characterful playing and approach to performance I still remember – and even today it helps my confidence.

What would they think?

If I could sum up the most important thing that I took away from all this, it is that to be an artist you need to find your own voice. And you need to project your ideas with all your heart in performance. Last week an American cellist and scholar who is researching Christopher Bunting’s cello books came to my house for a chat. I found myself wondering what Christopher would think of my playing now. I know for certain he would not interpret things in anything like the same way I do. But I hope he would be glad that at least  I am following my own instincts and ideas and projecting them as confidently as I can – something he always, always emphasised and that I regard as his greatest legacy to me.

Remembering the past

Good teachers are almost like family. How much you wish you could see them again and talk to them. And how much you hope that they can see you and know what a positive effect they had on your life. Ultimately good teaching – like good parenting – gives someone the freedom to be fully themselves. It’s beyond price.

To get some idea of Christopher’s superb playing listen below… 

This is his cello duet based on the Bourees from Bach’s 3rd cello suite:  Bunting Cello Duet

You can buy his  Portfolio Cello Exercises or Elegy by browsing here : Bunting cello music

And here  you can buy cds of Manny Hurwitz’s Aeolian String Quartet

 

  • Do you have happy memories of your teachers or music books you can recommend? If so please let me know by clicking on the comments link at the top of the page 
Apr 03
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Composing String Music

By gifts for string music lovers No Comments

Composing music is something we spend an increasing amount of time doing. Our focus is usually string duets in their various forms.
composing string music

How do you start composing string music?

For me, the easiest way to start composing string music is to have a focused idea of a feeling you want to create, a mood you want to evoke, or a visual image. I then decide on the form of the music  – which gives a clear structure – and the key and  time signature. I have found that structure itself can be inspiring. Ternary form  and Variation form – for example – are ideal for creating short pieces of music in different moods. In  Variation form or in a Chaconne there is also given series of notes.

Trying it out

Trying out tunes on your own instrument and experimenting with harmonies on the piano is, for me, the next step. And have a good understanding of the instruments you are composing for, what sort of patterns lie under the hand most effectively, and what special effects can be achieved is also a huge help.

Some super new composed string music


The video above is an example of a beautiful string orchestral piece written by Andrew Lowe Watson – a composer and pianist I was at music school with.  It uses all the best traditions of string orchestral music and shows a deep understanding of string sound. I think it should be much better known.

We can write music for you!
custom gift sheet music for you

To find out more about how we can create you a string arrangement or compose you an original piece of music visit our  Gifts and Dedications page https://www.fedorastrings.com/gifts-dedications/

We are recording more arrangements and compositions this month and they will be added to our website in May. Meanwhile the following are good examples of our work:  Lunchtime Blues  https://www.fedorastrings.com/product/lunchtime-blues-5/, Scarborough Fair https://www.fedorastrings.com/product/scarborough-fair/, Variations on a Christmas Carol https://www.fedorastrings.com/product/variations-christmas-carol-violin-cello-duet/and Over the Hills https://www.fedorastrings.com/product/hills-far-away/

Mar 22
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Warming up on the cello

By CD Sales, fedora strings performance One Comment

Warming up on the cello used to be quite a boring process for me. I would usually try a few scales and shifts or perhaps technical exercises. While there is nothing wrong with any of that, I now begin warming up by inventing a tune or playing by ear and then improvising – including improvising in thumb position. I have found this to be 100% more beneficial. For me it reinforces  the pleasure of feeling at one with your instrument, of realising that you too can compose – and that interpretation is most effective if you make the music you are playing sound like it is your own.
warming up on the cello

General creativity

If you want to practise a particular type of bowing when warming up on the cello , why not invent your own series of chords to try it with? If you want to practise a particular shift – say a major 6th –  why not also invent a short piece based on that particular interval? In the past I’ve found that if you give a first performance there is a relaxing sense of freedom. None of the critics or audience know how it is meant to go,  so you have a completely free hand as long as you look confident! Why not apply that same confidence to unaccompanied Bach?

Escaping confines within the classical

Have you ever been struck but how much more relaxed folk and pop musicians usually look in performance? Some of this is because the music is easier and more repetitive. But is it also because a lot of the music has been composed or arranged by the performers themselves? How wonderful it would be to be able to carry that sense of pleasure in performing into the classical world.

Our own improvisation

Roger and I have found that improvising and composing music definitely helps our arrangements and keeps creativity alive. You can hear some examples of our arrangements on our Moonlight and Music cd which you can buy by clicking the link below:
https://www.fedorastrings.com/product-category/cd-sales/

Feb 24
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Does style matter in unaccompanied Bach?

By fedora strings performance No Comments

Does style matter in unaccompanied Bach?  This may seem an almost sacrilegious question, but I think strong feeling is far more important than style.

Apart from the fact that no one knows exactly what baroque style was, there is no such thing as perfect interpretation. Like Shakespeare – Bach is good enough to cope with any number of imaginative ideas.The key thing is to have creative ideas and project them strongly.

unaccompanied Bach

What makes a performance hold the attention?

There are so many wonderful performances on unaccompanied Bach around, and each one is different. Those using early instruments could be said to be more authentic – but what value is style if you don’t feel the music that way? Who says Bach would not have loved rubato and passion, and didn’t play like this himself? Listen to Casals’ performance of Bach and the idea of authenticity goes out of the window. Ultimately you can only play as you are and be guided by what is true to you.

The 5th Cello Suite

I will be recording Bach’s 5th suite for unaccompanied cello in a few weeks so all this is very much on my mind. You can purchase the my cd of the 1st and 3rd suites here
https://www.fedorastrings.com/product-category/cd-sales/

Here are some superb , but very different – recordings.

Feb 11
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Choosing Cello Strings

By fedora strings performance No Comments

Choosing cello strings is a tricky and expensive business. It’s so expensive, in fact, that it’s rare to able to afford to experiment much. All the more reason, then, to have unbiased feedback about strings from the start.

Steel Strings

I can only speak from my own experience. For many years I used Jargar A and D strings. I was then advised to change Jargar for Larsen and the improvement was huge.For me, Larsen strings are more sensitive and responsive and more immediate in sound. Larsen soft soloist suits my cello well and I can truly recommend them.

choosing cello strings

Covered Gut

I have always used Pirastro covered gut on my lower two strings. I love the feel of the strings under my fingers and I think the sound is warmer and more subtle than even the best steel. I am currently using Pirastro Eudoxa, which matches the Larsen strings well. However, my cello was made in 1855, so is not modern.

Do modern cellos need modern strings?

I have been told that modern cellos can only use modern strings. I have no idea if this is true, but it is certainly the current way of thinking and steel is easier to play on.

How temperamental is covered gut?

Covered gut strings are more responsive to temperature and slip out of tune more frequently. But the lower strings, being thicker, don’t slip that often and rarely break.choosing cello strings

What sound do you want?

Not only does the choice of string depend on the cello you are playing on, it also depends on the type of sound you want. And it is all in proportion. So an expensive string may improve the tone, but will not hugely change the  sound of the cello overall.

Help!

If you want to experiment with different strings and are a music college student or professional player you can arrange a free trial of strings at Stringers music shop in London and Edinburgh. More details are available here:
http://www.stringersmusic.com/services/larsen-string-trials.html

And to test out your new strings why not try playing our cello duets, which you can buy here:
https://www.fedorastrings.com/product-category/cello-duets-all-styles/

 

 

 

 

 

Jan 28
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What Cello Rosin is Best?

By fedora strings performance No Comments

Although I am a professional cellist I have often not been sure what cello rosin is best and have sometimes suspected the whole subject is spurious. Mostly I have used a variety of high quality rosins – including Laubach gold, Laubach non-gold and sometimes borrowed violin rosin –  and have never noticed much difference.

Rosin problems

 

Recently though,  the rosin I was using ( Laubach) didn’t seem to stay on my bow easily or have much traction. I had read that Andrea cello rosin was excellent and for best results should be used  just after the bow has been rehaired, so different brands are not mixed.
cello rosinI was due a rehair anyway so I tried the solo dark variety and the results have been good. So far I am using far less rosin than I was before, the articulation is immediate and clear and there is a definite improvement in traction. Although this cello rosin is expensive – it cost £35 for a full  cake – it should last a long time.
You can buy it here http://www.thestringzone.co.uk/andrea-solo-rosin

 

Other views

The brilliant cellist David Finckel has strong views on this subject and devotes a five minute video to it in one of his 100 cello talks – which you can view below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTNrhYHwlPo&list=PLAE1ED06AB33DF65D&index=11

The results for him are convincing, but this doesn’t mean it would be right for everyone. Luckily, buying rosin is less expensive than buying new strings and so it’s easy to experiment. If you are looking for a mid-price option my bow rehairer strongly recommends Art Craft no 7 dark rosin by Kaplan which costs around £7 a cake:  http://www.thestringzone.co.uk/kaplan-artcraft-rosin
cello rosin 2

And why not try your new rosin out by playing our cello duets? The link is below:
https://www.fedorastrings.com/product-category/cello-duets-all-styles/