Thumb Position 4th Finger

Good to strengthen the use of 4th finger in thumb position whether you choose to use it or not! Strengthening this finger gives us more “tools in the toolbox” for difficult and obscure passages where we might need something extra special.

Popper Cello Étude No. 1

Bow Circles, Bow Fingertip Connection, Bow Wrist, Chromatic Harmony, Jumping Two Strings, Shifting, Staccato, String Crossing, Thumb Position, Thumb Position 4th Finger /

Teaching Notes for Popper Cello Étude No. 1 The first Popper Étude brings a significant number of challenges. Primarily a study for the bow staccato, the challenge is to always have clarity of sound and a very precise left hand and right hand coordination. Practicing this with the bow only on open strings first is […]

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Popper Cello Étude No. 4

Bow Distribution, Bow Legato, Bow Wrist, Challenging Key Signatures, Left Hand Balance, Shifting, String Crossing, Thumb Position, Thumb Position 4th Finger /

Teaching Notes for Popper Cello Étude No. 4 We were thrilled to have the incredible Tim Gill with us for exploration of Popper 4 – “a beast of a study”. We explore the unique challenges of this one, thumb position, key signature, bow legato with string crossings and lots more. Hope you will find this

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Popper Cello Étude No. 18

Bow Fingertip Connection, Chromatic Harmony, Détaché Bow Stroke, Left Hand Balance, Shifting, String Crossing, Thumb Position, Thumb Position 4th Finger /

Teaching Notes for Popper Cello Étude No. 18 We were delighted to work on Popper 18 with the fabulous Madeleine Kabat. We had so much fun with Madeleine, a self-proclaimed Popper nerd (she’s in good company). This is a tricky and long study focusing on thumb position technique, and lightness of stroke. It also includes

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Popper Cello Étude No. 22

Bow Distribution, Bow Legato, Chromatic Harmony, Left Hand Balance, Left Hand Rhythm, Shifting, Thumb Position, Thumb Position 4th Finger /

Teaching Notes for Popper Cello Étude No. 22 Popper 22 is a beautiful study. We have both really enjoyed learning this one. Check out the first five minutes of this video for HILARIOUS stories about the 17-year cicada plague in the US, which is reoccurring this year! Start at 05.05 to skip this…! Legato bowing

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Popper Cello Étude No. 24

Bow Distribution, Bow Legato, Bow Wrist, Chromatic Harmony, Double Stops, Harmonics, Left Hand Balance, Left Hand Rhythm, Shifting, String Crossing, Thumb Position, Thumb Position 4th Finger /

Teaching Notes for Popper Cello Étude No. 24 Christian Elliot (Irish Chamber Orchestra) came back for a second time with Popper 24, a beautiful and challenging study that explores a vast amount; thumb position, harmonics, developing the ear, string crossings, legato bowing and more.

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Popper Cello Étude No. 28

Bow Distribution, Bow Legato, Bow Rhythm, Left Hand Balance, Left Hand Rhythm, Shifting, String Crossing, Thumb Position, Thumb Position 4th Finger /

Teaching Notes for Popper Cello Étude No. 28 We had SO much fun exploring Popper 28 this week with the amazing Joely, who inspired us to look at this study in totally new ways. Katie was a student of Joely’s and considers her a wonderful mentor and huge influence in her life. Join us as

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