The Cello Guild – Cello Courses
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New classes – plus a chance to earn a free Cello Guild sticker! We recently launched our new Cello Guild site.
Please register before purchasing. If you experience any trouble, please don’t panic. Simply contact us and let us know the problem, and we will take care of it – and send you a free sticker for helping us!
- An Introduction to the Celtic Cello – by Clíodhna Ní Aodáin
- Making a Goritzki Bow Foam – by Nancy Green
- Cello Geography: Mapping the Fingerboard – by Jonathan Simmons
- Fret Not, Dear Cellist – Venturing Beyond First: 2nd and 4th Positions – by Erica Lessie
- Fret Not, Dear Cellist – Moving on Up: 5th and 6th Positions – by Erica Lessie
Online Concerts
23 December | 1:00 PM GMT
Radio 3 Lunchtime Concerts – Natalie Clein and Friends
John Toal introduces the last of four recitals featuring British cellist Natalie Clein and friends.
They were recorded as part of the 2022 Belfast International Arts Festival in St. Mark’s Church Dundela in East Belfast: the church in which CW Lewis was baptised and where his grandfather was Rector.
Natalie won the BBC Young Musician Of The Year competition in 1994 and is well known for her collaborative music-making. Today she’s joined by the Korean-Australian violinist Suyeon Kang and the Norwegian pianist Christian Ihle Hadland for performances of works by Rebecca Clarke and Beethoven.
Rebecca Clarke: Viola sonata
Natalie Clein (cello) | Christian Ihle Hadland (piano)Beethoven: Piano Trio in E Flat Major Op.1 No.1
Natalie Clein (cello) | Suyeon Kang (violin) | Christian Ihle Hadland (piano)
Online Programs and Event
16 December | 4 PM EST
Meet the Cellist!
Tunelark cello instructor, Dr. Sera Smolen has a passion for musical improvisation. Join us to learn why she believes “there’s no such thing as a mistake!”
Join us on: 12/16/2022
1pm PT / 4pm ET
Register here for this free event.
17 December 2 PM EST | 18 December 7 PM EST
Cello Practice Club – Vibrato Workshop (12/17) – Holiday Play-along (12/18)
Sign up to hear about free upcoming events for adult cello students!
Coming up this month:
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December 17, 2:00 PM EST Vibrato Workshop
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December 18, 7:00 PM EST Holiday Play-Along
Register for these free events here.
1 January 2023 (Deadline)
Gustav Mahler Prize 2023 – Cello Competition (Online)
The Gustav Mahler Institute Prague, in cooperation with the Gustav Mahler Philharmonic Jihlava, invite cellists of all nationalities up to the age of 30 to compete for the Gustav Mahler Award 2023. The competition will take place online via YouTube recordings. Many prizes have been prepared for a total of EUR 10,000. Each competitor will receive an expert jury evaluation. Please read the rules of the competition on our website. It’s easy.
Click here for more information.
11 January 2023 | 3 PM EST
Improvising in Every Key with Cellist Dr. Sera Smolen
Expand your improvisational chops with Tunelark cello instructor, Dr. Sera Smolen!
Join us at: 12pm PT / 3pm ET
Register for free at this link.
11 January 2023 | 5 PM EST
Growth and creativity in your online studio: Cello Instructor Diane Chaplin
Tunelark cello instructor, Diane Chaplin has created a balance with online teaching, in-person teaching, and her own performance life. Come learn how she has done it! 2pm PT / 5pm ET
Register for this free event here.
28 January, 4 March, 13 May, 16 September, and 2 December 2023 (Saturdays) | 6.00 PM – 8.15 PM GMT
Online Timeline Series – Cellist Catherine Black
We all want to be as rounded a musician as possible and that’s a pretty big ask. We all have our preferences, and the groups & orchestras we play in, take us down certain paths which enrich and educate us, but sometimes we find a hole in our knowledge!
The Online Time Line Series has really found a place in your lives. Join us to learn more about a remarkable piece of music, its composer, an era, its style that may otherwise have passed you by. Musical architecture, polyphony, phrasing, the place of music in society are all a part of this quest for a better understanding and roundedness.
We will play, discuss & explore from your – the player’s point of view – a particular piece of music from the wide library of Unsung Heroes Cello Ensemble scores. These now range from Josquin and John Taverner (1490–1545), through to Tchaikovsky & Elgar and far into the twentieth century.
Though there are some restrictions online, we can all play using the mute button, though not as a group. This is an exciting opportunity for players to have the chance to play as many parts as they wish as we play together.
You may want to bring a notebook too and I do send out further notes to help you continue the development after the class. I see this as a massive opportunity for us to do detailed work that really moves you on, because we have these apparent restrictions.
Just a thought: you may think a particular composer, (say Josquin for instance) isn’t for you. Don’t rule things out too easily as all these people, whose music I want to share with you, have so much light to shine for us. As cellists, there is so much music we miss because we have so much already written for us. This is an opportunity that I personally have loved developing.
Your score is sent to you on booking your place and there are 15 places per class so we keep the lesson small, detailed and personal.
Do look at all the parts if you can, so you get under the skin of the music.
Venue: Zoom (waiting room opens at 5.45 PM for tuning)
Fee: £25 per class
Click here to register and get more information.
4 February, 25 March, 22 April, 3 June, 23 September, 11 November | 6:00 PM–8:15 PM GMT
All About My Bow – Cellist Catherine Black
Our bow is our voice. We want it to breathe, speak, dance, sing and emote. This is an infinite subject but we do need to start somewhere! I feel we learn best with clear explanation, demonstration, focus and experimentation.
We will explore in varied ways, how our bow use can become increasingly natural to us – to become truly, an extension of your arm and hand. In going slowly and in detail, you will more truly find your own voice and feel able to express yourself more fully and authentically as a cellist & musician.
This series will build your understanding in stages. Some classes may be repeated too.
The instrument we play is large and physical and we need to know how to use energy well and understand movement because sound follows the movement.
I will send you materials for the class ahead of the day and then afterwards I will send documents that help you consolidate and develop our work. The groups will be small enough that we will be able to work individually too to check things are understood.
Venue: Zoom (waiting room opens at 5.45 PM for tuning)
Fee: £30 per class
Ongoing
Trad Cello – Tunes and Techniques with Natalie Haas
Let Natalie Haas teach you some tricks of the trade as well as some great melodies!
Natalie is one of the most sought after cellists playing traditional music today. She and Scottish fiddler Alasdair Fraser have toured as a duo for twenty years, wowing audiences at festivals and concerts worldwide with their unique sound.
In this series she will teach some bowing techniques when accompanying melody players before moving on to chords and arranging, finishing with some melodies that sit well on the cello.
Although this series is aimed at the cellist, many of the skills and techniques will sit as comfortably on any string instrument.
Click here to learn about membership options.
Win a Year of Free Lessons!
Enter a drawing for a year of free lessons via video exchange with cellist Mike Block. Click here to enter.
Previous Events Still Available
Please see Wigmore Hall’s Video Library of Past Livestreams
Your Turn
In the comments below, let us know about your favorite online events and concerts. Have an event or concert you’d like listed? Please get in touch.
