Cello

The violoncello, almost always abbreviated to cello (the c is pronounced /tʃ/ as the ch in "cheese"), is a stringed instrument and a member of the violin family. A cello player is called a cellist. more...

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The cello is popular in many capacities: as a solo instrument, in chamber music, and also as a foundation of the modern orchestral sound.

Description

The name cello is an abbreviation of the Italian violoncello, which means "little violone". The violone is an obsolete instrument, a large viol, similar to a modern double bass.

The cello is most closely associated with European classical music. It is part of the standard orchestra and is the bass voice of the string quartet, as well as being part of many other chamber groups. A large number of concertos and sonatas have been written for it. It is less common in popular music, but is sometimes featured in pop and rock recordings.

Among the most famous Baroque works for the cello are J. S. Bach's Unaccompanied Suites for Cello, commonly known as the Bach Cello Suites). An example of a Classical era piece is Haydn's Cello Concerto #1 in C major. Standard Romantic era repertoire includes Dvořák's Cello Concerto in B minor, Elgar's Cello Concerto in E minor, and two sonatas by Brahms. Modern compositions from the early 20th century include unaccompanied cello sonatas by Paul Hindemith (opus 25) and Zoltán Kodály (opus 8). Recordings within the Avant Garde (cutting edge) genre have revitalized the instrument's perceived versatility. One example is Night of the Four Moons by George Crumb.

Construction

The cello is larger than the violin or the viola but smaller than the double bass. Like the other members of the violin family, the cello has four strings. Its strings are normally tuned to the pitches (from high to low) A, D, G, and C (A3, D3, G2, and C2 in scientific pitch notation). This is like the viola but one octave lower, and is one octave plus one fifth lower than the violin (see #Tuning and range). It is played in an upright position between the legs of a seated musician, resting on a metal spike called the endpin. The player draws the bow horizontally across the strings. The cello is a complex instrument consisting of many different parts. Although the majority of it is composed of wood, some parts can be made of steel or other metals and/or composite material. Today, the strings are most often metal but can be made of gut or nylon.

Body

The main frame of the cello is typically made from wood, although some modern cellos are constructed from carbon fibre. A traditional cello normally has a spruce top, with maple for the back, sides, and neck. Other woods, such as poplar or willow, are sometimes used for the back and sides. Less expensive cellos frequently have a top and back made of a laminate.

The top and back are traditionally hand-carved, though less expensive cellos are often machine-produced. The sides, or ribs, are made by heating the wood and bending it around forms. The cello body has a wide top bout, narrow middle formed by two C-bouts, and wide bottom bout, with the bridge and f-holes just below the middle.

Read more at Wikipedia.org