A life in the day of....

A day in the life of a musician is, by its very nature, a one-off, never quite the same as the day before or the day after. And that's the joy of it all - each day brings something new, or at least, slightly different. This is an article about life in France, that I wrote earlier this year for the ESTA (European String Teachers' Association) magazine ARCO. ESTA has revamped its journal and its website - take a look all you string teachers out there, at www.estastrings.org.uk

NB click on the article to enlarge the print - it's much easier to read.

a bit of skirt...

Yes, that's all very well, but what about the ladies? What does Professor Schroeder have to say about women playing the cello in his Catechism of Violoncello Playing. Actually, nothing at all. But, our trusty editor of the English version, Mr J Matthews of Guernsey, who frankly, writes footnotes as long as your arm...is a more lateral thinker. Following on from our gentleman model with his high-heeled patent leather shoes and patently uncomfortable sunken right knee (as shown in yesterday's post), here is what Mr Matthews has to say about the position of women in polite society:

'The Violoncello being now frequently studied by ladies, a few additional remarks upon the manner of holding it may here be given. In Germany, it is usual for ladies to place the instrument in the ordinary way between the knees. If this is deemed ungraceful, another plan may be successfully adopted; viz., by turning both legs to the left, sinking the right almost to a kneeling posture (it may, if found more convenient, rest upon a stool which is concealed by the dress, at the back of the instrument, and then bringing the instrument as close against the body as possible. If a medium sized instrument, adapted to the length of the player's arms and fingers, , and easy to play, be chosen, the Violoncello may be quite as successfully studied by ladies as the violin.'

Warning - do not try this at home - it's agony!

Today's post is written in fond memory of Dilys Pawsey, who bought this Catechism second-hand for 3 shillings and sixpence, and later passed it on to me, knowing it would be invaluable. And so it is.

Amatis at £150-£500? I'll take two, please

One of my most treasured possessions is the Catechism of Violoncello Playing by Professor Carl Schroeder. First published in German in 1889, this enchanting book was reprinted in English in 1893, edited by one J Matthews. It's like a little pocket guide book, the sort you can just whip out of your jacket pocket, (dog-eared from constant consultations) in an instant find out how to do a 'martelé' stroke with the bow, say, or artificial harmonics, how to hold the bow correctly, or simply how to sit, and hey presto! with this invaluable advice, you are now able to execute the most advanced manoeuvres on your violoncello.

It really is quite extraordinary how Prof. Schroeder encapsulates the entire gamut of cello technique within this compact vade-mecum. Not only that, he tells us how to clean the bow hair with soap and water (very useful if I get bits of sticky bun entangled in the hairs), and how to get fluff out of the insides (maybe useful?): 'The dust that collects inside the Violoncello is removed by warming grains of corn and throwing them inside. The instrument is then shaken about, and on letting the grains out again through the F holes, the dust comes away with it.' Do I dare extricate my cello's navel fluff in this fashion?!

Also, what sort of case to buy (not so useful now: they didn't have lightweight carbon fibre boxes in those days...) - 'A good Violoncello is worthy of a good case to preserve it against damp and dust' - what about careless airport baggage-handlers, I say?

I love the bit about prices of Violoncellos; 'The best old Violoncelli such as those of Stradivarius and Guarnerius are in our day very dear,- £300 to £1,500 and over. Amati Violoncelli are much cheaper and cost about £150 to £500. other Italian instruments cost, when they are in good preservation, from about £45 upwards'. Well now, I'll take two Amatis please, and a case for them - 'Cases cost from £1 to £5. The latter price includes a leather covering'.

The handsome chap above illustrates the positioning of the left hand fingers and how to hold the bow at the point, and at the heel. He is, according to the English editor's notes, adopting the French mode of left hand playing, with slanting fingers. In a long footnote, in fact it occupies most of the page, our editor says of the left hand positioning: 'Considerably greater variety exists in the manner of holding and playing the Violoncello than is the case with the violin, and the following observations upon this point by the well-known English violoncellist, Mr Edward Howell, will be read with interest:- "The English (really Duport's) style consists of holding the fingers stretched out over the finger-board in the first position, with every finger over its proper note in the scale of C. Under the French system, the fingers are not stretched out at all, but are held sloping back as in playing the violin. The advantage of the former of these styles over the other is obvious. The English method of holding the hand keeps the fingers and hand always in readiness; the fingers have only to be dropped on the note required and with a large amount of certainty. Moreover, a firmer pressure is obtained upon the strings as the flat of the finger is used. Added to this is the certainty and ease with which the hand can be shifted, and an enormous amount of pressure to be used when using the thumb. (Anyone, apart from me, getting worried yet?). The French style of fingering is illustrated by playing with the tip of the finger, each finger being shifted with each note of the scale. The result of this arrangement, which necessitates the bringing forward of the finger for each note, is a loss of power of grip, and a perpetual glissando effect. The labour of the performer is increased to a large degree, with results scarcely satisfactory, or even, pleasing." If the English method be adopted, the left arm must be held out straighter than as shown in the engraving'.

I'm not sure which I should adopt for greater aural and/or physical pain, French or English?

More on this delightful missal in my next post - on the thorny problem of lady cellists. For now, just to point out our charming chappie's elegant right foot. It says underneath the pictures: ' The right knee is sunk rather deeper than the left, that it may not interfere with the bowing, and in consequence of this, the right foot is placed back a little further, and without putting down the entire sole as in the case of the left'. He clearly didn't go a bundle on the Alexander Technique.

Click on the engravings above to get a bigger picture.

Hidden Composers - Mel Bonis and Louise Héritte-Viardot

Mel Bonis

Just one more day to listen to my programme Hidden Composers on BBC Radio 3 - online at

www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00nkwz7#synopsis

BBC Radio 3 at 12.15-1, Saturday 31st October

Tune in to BBC Radio 3 at 12.15-1 on Saturday 31st October for The Hidden Composers. I will be presenting music by two wonderful French women composers, Mel Bonis and Louise Héritte-Viardot, who enjoyed considerable success in their lifetime, but have, until very recently, been largely forgotten. The programme centres round their chamber music, in particular their glorious piano quartets.

Read on about the programme -

France, like many other countries up to the mid-20th century, viewed composers as almost without exception male. And yet many women in France combined musical composition with their domestic lives, producing work which for the most part remained unpublished and is now lost. Lowri Blake, on BBC Radio 3 on Saturday October 31st at 12:15pm, unearths the music of two of these ‘Hidden Composers’ and the efforts of those committed to bringing their work to light.Louise Heritte-Viardot and Mel Bonis were two highly creative composers, not prepared simply to write drawing-room music. Louise wrote chamber music, orchestral works and two operas, while Mel Bonis composed ambitious chamber works including piano quartets, varied instrumental sonatas and a mass of piano pieces and songs. Both fought the prejudices of the day, and both suffered the middle class pressure to be married off and live domestic lives. Louise (1841-1918) was the daughter of the hugely successful singer Pauline Viardot, to whose salon came all the top musicians of the day. But after she was married off, Louise had to combine her composing with the need to earn money. Having ditched her husband she travelled wherever teaching or performing work was to be had, and most of her music was lost en route. Three piano quartets however point to a musical sensitivity which was at least the equal of her more successful male counterparts.Mel Bonis (1858-1937) kept hold of her husband, a wealthy businessman, and ran a busy household, bringing up her four children. She was also passionately involved with her lover, and the forbidden romance inspired some of her most powerful music. Although her talent was partially acknowledged in her lifetime, her music had vanished until her great grand-daughter began to track it down and encourage performances. Lowri Blake talks to the great grand-daughter, Christine Geliot, as well as to the champion of French women composers Florence Launay. Richard Langham-Smith, a specialist in French music of this period, assesses the work that is now beginning to be available on CD, in particular the piano quartets of Louise Heritte-Viardot, the piano quartets of Mel Bonis, as well as songs, piano music and a flute sonata which he claims should take their deserved place in the repertoire.

See my post for 21st April 2008 for photos and to find out how the programme came about.

Tune in on Saturday 31st, the music's lovely! And don't worry if you miss the programme then, as it's online all week following the broadcast at www.bbc.co.uk/radio3

More info on the BBC website http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00nkwz7

Dartington Cello Masterclass 2009

Thank you to all the wonderful cellists in my masterclass this summer at Week 2 of Dartington Summer School, for your camaraderie, hard work, joy, lovely music-making, and a great deal of laughter!

Thank you Humphrey, John, Achim, Fleur, Yoh, Supika, Clare, Begonya, Roger, Chris, Harry, and honorary members Ting and others who came every day to listen, and of course, our indefatigable (well, almost - Jonathan not only played for us for several hours a day, but rehearsed and performed brilliantly in the Christmas Oratorio too - so not surprising really that he was caught looking a touch weary at one point on camera, oops) and amazing pianist Jonathan Watts, for making the class such a success. What a great week!

Another airing for Debussy's Summer of 1912

Good news: our programme Debussy's Summer of 1912 is being aired again on July 18th, 12.15-1pm on BBC Radio 3. Do tune in then, and you can also listen online for the week following the broadcast via the BBC website

www.bbc.co.uk/radio3

Read my blog post of 24th June 2008 for more details about the programme.

More news soon about the broadcast date for The Secret Lives of Mel Bonis and Louise Héritte-Viardot