The Complete Guide to Playing Cello

Chapter 1: What Is Playing Cello and Why People Love It

You're here because something about the cello caught your ear. Maybe it was the deep, sonorous voice in a film score. Maybe you saw a busker on a street corner and stopped to listen. Maybe you just heard that it's the instrument closest to the human voice in its range and richness. Whatever it was, there's a pull. This chapter is about what that pull actually leads to — the real, day-to-day experience of picking up a cello and learning to play it.

The Instrument Itself

Let's get physical right away, because the cello is a physical instrument in a way that's hard to grasp until you've seen one up close. It's the second-largest instrument in the string family, after the double bass. When you play, you sit in a chair. The cello stands between your knees, supported by a metal endpin that extends to the floor. The body is hollow and made of wood — typically spruce on the top and maple on the back and sides. It's about four feet tall from the tip of the endpin to the scroll at the top of the neck.

This is not a small thing. It's roughly the size of a five-year-old child standing between your legs. When you sit with it, you're wrapped around it, and it's wrapped around you. Your left hand reaches up to finger the strings along the neck. Your right hand draws a bow across