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Dec 31
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Arranging music for Cello Quartet

By commissioning string music for an occasion, custom sheet music for strings, sheet music sales No Comments

I have just started arranging music for cello quartet. This is new for me.Previously I have only written music for two instruments: string duet or cello and piano.

How is quartet writing different?

As far as I can see so far it is essential that there is a clear tune in the quartet throughout. Unlike duos, where there are two soloistic parts alternately accompanying and playing the tune, in a quartet most of the parts are accompaniment at any time. It’s important that the melodic line in the accompaniment, as well as in the tune, makes sense. And, as you see in Puccini scores – you can sometimes double the line of the tune with another part and it’s effective. Having two or one people playing on their own in places varies the texture. Special effects – like tremolos, col legno, slides, pizz – are just as effective as in duets.And rhythm – as in all chamber music – is crucial. You can see many of these aspects of good quartet writing in the cello quartet arrangement below:

Repertoire so far

So far I am in the middle of arranging three short quartets for an ensemble that is starting at the beginning of February. If you are interested in having a bespoke cello or violin quartet, or indeed a standard quartet, arranged or composed for you, contact us here
arranging music for cello quartet                                                                                   The Prague Cello Quartet

Some inspiring cello quartets

Below are some inspiring (though varied) examples of cello quartets.

I love the improvisation at the beginning of this…  and the sunglasses…

Dec 20
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Fab string playing and arrangements

By cello duets, sheet music sales No Comments

We hope our customers feel we demonstrate fab string playing and arrangements, but we know we aren’t the only ones out there. There are other creative string arrangements around. It isn’t always easy to discover these because google usually presents the largest companies first. So here are some examples of less well publicised  small groups who are selling excellent string arrangements:

Brooklyn Classical

Brooklyn Classical is a real find. They sell a range of classical arrangements, including cello duets with piano. They also have videos of their work. I love the imagination they use in their  trio arrangement of Bach’s Prelude from Cello Suite 1 (below).  Even purists would be impressed!  Their website is here: Sheet Music

Nathan Chan

Nathan is a well known  virtuoso cellist who sells his own cello duet and violin and cello duet arrangements of snazzy pop tunes. The video above shows some kids playing one of these rather well. You can also see videos of Nathan playing the arrangements with his friends on You Tube. Nathan’s website is here: Sheet Music 

James Barralet

James Barralet is another impressive cellist who also writes string arrangements.  The cello octet below is an inspiring arrangement of Pirates of the Caribbean. It’s taken from a 30 minute cello octet Film Medley – but I’m sure you can adapt the music to make it much shorter if you want. This 58 seconds has definitely won me over.

James Barralet’s repertoire of string arrangements is wide, as you can hear from the performance of Monteverdi’s Pur Ti Miro for cello quartet  below. You can buy James’s sheet music here:Sheet Music

Finally, SJ Music is one of the smaller websites which sells interesting string arrangements including cello duets, cello quartets and cello octets. And of course at Fedora Strings we have a wide range of violin and cello duets, cello duets and cello and piano arrangements, which you can browse here

Dec 09
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Christmas Party Music

By gifts for string music lovers, intermediate and advanced cello duet sheet music, intermediate and advanced violin and cello duets, sheet music sales No Comments

What sort of Christmas party music would you choose to play for violin and cello duet? If you’re not sure we have a selection of sheet music in our online shop which would be fun for any occasion.

christmas party musicWhat is the programme?

Tambourin, Coppelia Waltz, Dance to Your Daddy, Pick Yourself Up, Exsultate Jubilate, Charpentier’s Te Deum,  and   Lilliburlero  are all lively and relaxed. These pieces are in major keys and project energy and joy. Christmas Variations   is also ideal. And if you add some straightforward carols to this you have a lovely programme.

Free arrangements!

This is a good time to browse through our sheet music because if you buy four arrangements from our online shop you get a fifth arrangement free.

And we can arrange carols for you…

Yes, although we don’t sell carol arrangements we can arrange them for you at quite short notice. For more information click here  or email us direct at info@fedorastrings.com

christmas party music

Nov 24
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Christmas Duets

By cello duet sheet music, commissioning string music for an occasion, gifts for classical music lovers, sheet music sales No Comments

Christmas duets may not be our specialist area, but we do sell a newly composed piece called Christmas Variations which is available for cello and piano, for cello duet and as a violin and cello duet.

What is the music like?

The music is based on the carol Ding Dong Merrily on High and has three variations. It lasts around three minutes and the standard of music is around Grade 6.
Christmas duets

And remember we can arrange music for you

Remember – if you would like a Christmas carol arrangement of your own, for your own ensemble or as a gift for a friend, we can compose one for you at a reasonable price Click here to find out more or email us direct at info@fedorastrings.com

Oct 14
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Cello Duets Reviewed

By intermediate and advanced cello duet sheet music, sheet music sales No Comments

Cello Duets Reviewed

Some of the cello duet arrangements that we sell on our website have just been reviewed by the September 2019 edition of Music Teacher Magazine. The duets that have been reviewed are: Four Famous Opera Arias arranged for Two Cellos. They can be bought individually on our site, or all four can be purchased together at SJ Music – who publish the duets.
cello duets reveiwed

What is the review like?

The review is excellent. It covers all the duets – Toreador Song, Habanera, Your Tiny Hand is Frozen and Non Piu Andrai . Some of this  detail has been quoted on our website. The review’s summary is:

“arranged with creative flair and an excellent knowledge of the instrument…a very worthwhile addition to the cello duet repertoire”

But apart from the review…

These are amazing arias and a great chance for cellists to play wonderful operatic tunes instead of accompanying them in an orchestra. Browse our cello duet repertoire HERE!

Toreador Song Cello Duet

Aug 29
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Latest Cello and Piano Sheet Music

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The latest cello and piano sheet music we have for sale in our online shop is an arrangement of Lilliburlero . The cello part is around Grade 5 in standard – so considerably easier than our original violin and cello duet version.
But it still retains the liveliness and vitality of the original and works very effectively as a cello and piano duo.

About Lilliburlero

Lilliburlero became a popular folk tune in 1688 and some of the words have a political meaning. It was also used in The Beggars’ Opera which was written by John Gay in 1728. But there is absolutely no political meaning  to our arrangement –  it is simply a fun, happy tune!
Lilliburlero Cello Duet

Aug 07
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New Cello and Piano Sheet Music

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We now have four new cello and piano sheet music pieces for sale at our online shop. These are: Scarborough Fair, Morning Prelude, Christmas Variations and Highland Meeting. The standard of the music is between Grades 6 and 7 and each piece is three to four minutes long.

Our latest piece

Highland Meeting was composed last month and is inspired by folk music. There’s ongoing dialogue between cello and piano throughout and the title is deliberately evocative.

New Cello and Piano Sheet Music

Music with narrative

I love playing short pieces with imaginative titles. If you play the piano you may have come across  Bergmuller’s Easy and Progressive Piano Studies . Each short study is a little jewel, with a title that brings the music to life. Listen to the fun performance of La Chasse below and you’ll see what I mean:

More information

Moving back to cello and piano, please feel free to email us at info@fedorastrings.com if you’d like more details about any of the music that we sell.

 

Jul 31
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Building a repertoire of violin and cello duets for weddings

By sheet music sales, violin and cello duet sheet music No Comments

Building a repertoire of violin and cello duets for weddings

If you are forming a professional violin and cello duo which will play at weddings you may be struggling to find repertoire. Violin and cello duets are an unusual combination.

So… welcome to Fedora Strings!  Our website specialises in  violin and cello duet sheet music which is imaginative and effective.  Our two  wedding collection albums are likely to contain almost all the music you’ll need to start with. And the pdf format they are sold in can be printed not just once, but as many times as you want. This makes  them excellent value for money.

Not just for weddings!

While Wagner’s Bridal Chorus might be considered an unusual choice to play in a recital, most of our other music is not just for weddings but can be played anywhere! Almost all our arrangements and compositions are true chamber music. They have very equal parts and share the tunes between the instruments.  And at the moment we are offering five arrangements ( or compositions) for the price of four!

exsultate jubilate alleluia by mozart

 

 

Jul 19
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What is Summer Music?

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What is summer music? Most people would probably think it’s music that’s calm, rural and relaxing. Delius’s Summer Evening ( below) is exactly that:

But for Vivaldi summer evoked different feelings. His ‘Summer’ in The Four Seasons is an early example of programmatic music. Vivaldi wrote his own sonnets in the score to explain what the music is describing. The first movement’s sonnet reads: ” Langour in the heat” . This is followed by:  ” …beneath the blazing sun’s relentless heat men and flocks are sweltering  and the cuckoo’s voice can be heard.”  

For Gershwin the season was even more complex. His aria Summertime  opens his opera Porgy and Bess which is set in a black tenement in South Carolina in the 1930s. The  themes of the opera are romance struggling against poverty, drug taking and violence. Our violin and cello duet version is below:

…and you can buy our violin and cello duet sheet music arrangement here

Jul 18
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Cello and Piano Sheet Music

By commissioning string music for an occassion, sheet music sales, Uncategorized No Comments

This autumn we will be adding some cello and piano sheet music to our online shop. Some of the sheet music is a piano and cello reworking  of already existing pieces. These are Scarborough Fair, Christmas Variations and Morning Prelude. There will also be three new cello and piano sheet music compositions.

New Commissions

For more information email us at info@fedorastrings.com  And remember, you can commission us to arrange or compose a piece for you for any combination of strings.
cello and piano sheet music