expression Archives

Conversation with Gary Hoffman (September, 1999)

Interview by Tim Janof American cellist Gary Hoffman was born in Vancouver, Canada, in 1956. At 15 he made his London recital debut in Wigmore Hall; his New York recital debut occurred in 1979. At the age of 22 he became the youngest faculty appointee in the history of Indiana University School of Music, where he remained for eight years. Mr. Hoffman, who is frequently invited to hold master classes, has coached cellists at numerous institutions and festivals, including Aspen, the Gregor Piatigorsky Seminar at the University of Southern California, the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, the Casals Festival in Prades, the Eastman School of Music, Schleswig-Holstein, Verbier, Ravinia, etc. He achieved international renown following his victory at the Rostropovich International Competition in Paris in 1986. He has appeared as soloist [...]

By Tim Janof|2024-07-24T19:44:44-04:00August 5th, 2019|Categories: Internet Cello Society Archive, Interviews|Tags: Bach, Internet Cello Society, expression, Concerto, ICS, Janos Starker, Gary Hoffman, performance, Lalo, Technique, Internet Cello Society Archive, Starker, Dvorak, Baroque, Tim Janoff|

Reminder: Memorial for Janos Starker at Indiana University this Sunday, September 22

All invited to the Janos Starker Memorial at Indiana University, Sunday, Sept. 22. A message from Janos Starker’s daughter, Gwen Preucil; I am writing to let you all know that there will be a memorial for my father at Indiana University on Sunday, September 22nd at 4 pm at the Musical Arts Center in Bloomington, Indiana. […]

By Blogmaster|2013-09-10T11:57:08-04:00September 10th, 2013|Categories: Performance|Tags: Remembering Janos Starker, artist, cellist, Hungarian Cellist, elegance, Gwen, performer, Indiana, expression, Janos, Janos Starker Memorial, legacy, Starker, legend, musician, virtuoso, Memorial, cello, soloist, Musical Arts Center, cellobello, Bloomington, Preucil, teacher, Indiana University, survivor, confidence|

Remembering Hungarian Cello Master János Starker — by Benjamin Ivry

Having survived a Nazi internment camp during World War II, Hungarian Jewish cellist János Starker (1924-2013) led a life focused on civic contributions and behaving with utter freedom. Starker, who died in Indiana on April 28 at age 88, witnessed some of the worst horrors of modern history, and was determined to devote himself to constructing the future. He and his parents, of Polish-Ukrainian Jewish origin, survived their imprisonment, but his two older brothers Tibor and Ede, both accomplished violinists, were murdered in Nazi labor camps. Starker’s notion of free behavior included a lifelong habit of consuming quantities of whiskey and cigarettes, neither of which impeded his ferociously concentrated playing. It also embraced free speech, even when the expression of his musical taste might wound students or established colleagues. In [...]

By Blogmaster|2023-03-21T10:59:02-04:00August 1st, 2013|Categories: Artistic Vision, Janos Starker, Performance|Tags: Janos, musical taste, Starker, Nazi internment camp, virtuoso, seeking perfection, expression, Accomplishment, World War II, Teaching, soloist, cello, confidence, Remembering Janos Starker, performances, Benjamin, Holocaust survivor, cellist, Hungarian Cellist, elegance, Ivry|

THINKING IN A NEW WAY—Overcoming Habits (Part 5 of 6): Fleet Fingers — by Selma Gokcen

"The body is like an instrument; it depends who is playing it." —F.M. Alexander In the Alexander work I do, I consider there are five stages in learning to let go of the left hand fingers in cello playing so they can be free to race around the fingerboard, as well as play expressively. The hand must be soft and empty of all intention in approaching the string. If it has preconceived form and shape, then it cannot function except within the confines of this preconception. In connection with this work, I often ask my students the meaning in Zen Buddhism of "the empty hand that holds the spade." We can think of the fingers as the end of a long chain of joints starting with the upper arm ball [...]

By Selma Gokcen|2023-11-06T13:44:57-05:00March 4th, 2013|Categories: Alexander Technique for Cellists, Beyond the Traditional, Playing Healthy, Self Discovery|Tags: Awareness, body, clarity, bow technique, function, sound production, Healthy, cello playing muscles, connection, bend, articulation, fingers are flexible, Alexander Technique, habit, expression, Gokcen, paraspinal muscles, tension, sensation of opposition, cello, Selma, sensation of the back|

The Tools of Embodied Music® – the Feldenkrais Method for Musicians (Part 1)

Before discussing what the Feldenkrais Method is and how it can help you make better music without injuring yourself, let me start by asking a few questions. Have you ever observed how very young children respond to music – with rhythmic movement, with sounds, with all sorts of other movements? Do you remember how you felt as a child, when you wanted to make music? Do you ever feel something akin to ecstasy when you hear a piece of a performance you really love? Is the sense of ecstasy only a thought or is it a feeling also in your body? Where in yourself do you feel it? Do you feel the rhythm? Can you feel that sometimes music makes you feel light and sometimes heavy, sometimes it is [...]

By Aliza Stewart|2019-03-04T03:03:24-05:00May 18th, 2012|Categories: Performance, Playing Healthy, Self Discovery|Tags: music, master classes, injury, musical imagination, Aliza, phrasing, Dr. Feldenkrais, movement lessons, frustration, spontaneity, Listening, Stewart, expression, organization, Rhythm, movement, cello, cellobello, workshops|

Stage-dreaming — by Mickey Katz

A few days ago I was on the Symphony Hall stage, playing Brahms’s A German Requiem in concert. While playing the second movement, I started thinking about what I was going to make for dinner the following night. The last time I cooked it, I thought, it came out a little dry. Maybe this time I should… But wait a second, I was playing one of my favorite pieces in one of the world’s best halls, with a great orchestra and a great conductor, how could I not be completely absorbed in what I was doing? Was I the only one on stage whose mind was wandering, and if not—did anyone in the audience notice? I was aware that I was a part of a great concert, and the audience [...]

By Mickey Katz|2022-04-24T13:11:05-04:00April 26th, 2012|Categories: Artistic Vision, In the Practice Room, Orchestra, Performance, Self Discovery|Tags: musicianship, Symphony, Practice, distractions, Preparation, Boston, concentration, Mickey, Symphony Hall, Brahms, performers, expression, performance, inspiration, practicing, cello, Technique, cellobello, Katz|

Raising the Arms (Part 1) — by Selma Gokcen

You are a marvel. You are unique. In all the years that have passed there has never been another child like you. Your legs, your arms, your clever fingers, the way you move. You may become a Shakespeare, a Michelangelo, a Beethoven. You have the capacity for anything. Yes, you are a marvel. - Pablo Casals Pablo Casals, ever aware of the miracle of life and of how gesture can be informed with thought and feeling, could elicit from his cello or from his orchestra sounds that could penetrate the heart. To watch him moving his arms as he played or conducted was to witness the reaching forth from his inner being to the outer world. Arms are conductors of the energy within. They bear the fruits of our thought [...]

By Selma Gokcen|2017-10-09T01:30:46-04:00April 23rd, 2012|Categories: Alexander Technique for Cellists, Performance, Playing Healthy, Self Discovery|Tags: cello, Spine, cellobello, body, music, quietness, musicians, Alexander Technique, Casals, Gokcen, expression, movement, power, anxiety, Selma|

Ready, Set, Stop! A Different Kind of Preparation — by Selma Gokcen

It is what you have been doing in preparation that counts when it comes to making movements. -F.M. Alexander In all my years of musical training I was shown many important aspects of cello technique, which included movements associated with the bow and left hand—what I call the ‘ready-set-go’ school. Your teacher explains, you listen and watch, and then you do... and then you do some more of this work in the practice room until the movements are learned. I only became aware of the profound importance of another, entirely different form of preparation when I began training as an Alexander Technique teacher. The beauty and simplicity of it took my breath away. Many years later now, as I work with students, some of them express the same incredulity. How [...]

By Selma Gokcen|2017-10-09T01:19:47-04:00March 13th, 2012|Categories: Alexander Technique for Cellists, In the Practice Room, Playing Healthy, Self Discovery|Tags: Spine, expression, self-observation, Preparation, simplicity, spinal column, Primary Control, Habits, pressure, Alexander Technique, Gokcen, Selma|

Myth Busters — by Brant Taylor

Instrumentalists often prepare for an orchestra audition by seeking feedback on their preparation from a teacher or colleague. Perhaps because my career includes both orchestral playing and teaching, I am frequently asked to coach players who are preparing solo work(s) and orchestral excerpts for a given audition. Some players I hear are very new to the audition game, while others are already seasoned professionals looking to step up to another ensemble or for a promotion in their current group. After years of talking with these musicians about auditions in general and about the specifics of their preparation, I've noticed several assumptions that players sometimes make about auditions. While some of these assumptions are true, and made with good reason, many others are best described as myths. Some of these are half-truths, and [...]

By Brant Taylor|2017-11-09T02:42:34-05:00November 16th, 2011|Categories: Auditions, Orchestra, Performance, Repertoire|Tags: repertoire, mistakes, cello, Conductors, Brant, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, potential, CSO, assumptions, orchestra, Instruments, Preparation, musicianship, Taylor, recordings, fingerings, Audition, tempo, coaching, expression|

The Eyes Have It (Part 2): More on Attention — by Selma Gokcen

"The obstacle is the goal." - Zen Proverb The training of attention through my line of work—the Alexander Technique—happens in a particular way, through the application of certain principles. We take the obstacles, in this case a pupil’s habits, and work with them moment by moment, observing and undoing the tensions in the neck area and throughout the back and spinal column. In this way the pupil’s habits become rich material for understanding how their attention can be directed. The head is heavy and bears a particular relationship to the spine, as it is either poised (gently balanced) on top of or pulled into the spinal column. Cellists are vulnerable to tightening the neck and pulling the head either forward and down towards the fingers or back and down, shortening the [...]

By Selma Gokcen|2017-10-09T02:04:50-04:00November 3rd, 2011|Categories: In the Practice Room, Playing Healthy, Self Discovery|Tags: Teaching, balance, cello, Alexander Technique, cellobello, Gokcen, music, movement, control, Selma, Alexander, sound production, head-neck-back relationship, energy, spinal column, Technique, expression, Habits|

Searching For One’s Cello Voice — by Bonnie Hampton

It is a remarkable thing that just as our vibratos show our individual expression, so ultimately does our “cello voice” as we develop our sound with the bow on the cello. What are the elements which make up this search? It is a given that we can’t make a beautiful sound unless our bow arms are free and we are finding our energies all the way from the back, with none to the various joints or muscles adding physical tension or tightness. We need to have in our imagination, the qualities of sound we respond to. Perhaps we have heard a wonderful cellist who has inspired us, or perhaps there is a tone quality in our inner ear which we strive for. We are so fortunate, the cello is capable [...]

By Bonnie Hampton|2018-03-09T04:16:06-05:00May 23rd, 2011|Categories: Artistic Vision, Self Discovery|Tags: tension, concert halls, vibrato, Bonnie, cello, Hampton, cellobello, individual voice, clarity, individuality, support, Sound, muscles, expression, imagination, overtones, Teaching, musicians, patience, bow speed, performance, tone, Habits|

“Which Hand Do You Hear?” — by Bonnie Hampton

When Paul Katz invited me to participate in the “CelloBello” Blog, I was intrigued and immediately saw his idea of a free exchange of cellists sharing their experiences, exploring ideas together and just being in contact as a larger community. As cellists,we have a rich heritage and spirit and we certainly love that instrument a great deal.  Otherwise, why would we carry it all over the world! There is so much to explore, but one thing which I find an endless investigation is the whole use of the bow. Of course, all the issues of the left hand are immediate. We play the notes. Expressively, our uses of vibratos are part of our individual “voice,” but while one might call the work of the left hand, our craft, how we [...]

By Bonnie Hampton|2019-08-05T15:06:25-04:00May 4th, 2011|Categories: Artistic Vision, In the Practice Room, Self Discovery|Tags: vibrato, communication, individuality, cello, personality, Listening, cellobello, possibilities, musicianship, music, passion, searching, Experience, Bonnie, virtuosity, clarity, Coordination, discussion, exploration, Sound, Hampton, expression, improvement, hands, Teaching, character, individual voice|

The Music of Movement — by Selma Gokcen

It is a great pleasure to tickle your screens from across The Pond, as they call the Atlantic Ocean here in Great Britain. I am honoured to be invited to add a few views to what is already a splendid site for cellists and a fruitful educational resource. The London Cello Society is an important part of my work, and as a nurturer of the cello world in the United Kingdom, I always celebrate a new addition to the Cello Cloud from which we can benefit. Our members are just getting to know CelloBello and they will no doubt enjoy and learn from it. It is said that the best things to write about are those you love. Therefore it makes sense in this first blog to introduce my passion [...]

By Selma Gokcen|2020-09-17T02:36:15-04:00April 25th, 2011|Categories: Alexander Technique for Cellists, Playing Healthy, Self Discovery|Tags: reactions, Habits, relationships, Instruments, Selma, exploration, sensory awareness, Alexander Technique, thinking, enjoyment, fundamentals, expression, Gokcen, Awareness, movement, intonation, re-education, Technique|

Three Cellos are Better Than One — by Lluís Claret

Greetings from Spain to all CelloBello people! This is a big honor and I am full of excitement to be joining your community! I would like to begin my first blog with some personal thoughts about: three cellists living together at home! Yes, my family is made up of 3 cellists: my wife Anna, a former student and assistant; our son Daniel, also a former student; and myself. (Our daughter Aina "just" plays piano...!) Some of my colleagues may find it hard to believe we could have a successful, "peaceful" family life when there are 3 different cello personalities sharing practice space and time under the same roof. But I can tell you, it works. So, what makes it possible? Gÿorgy Sebök, the great pianist, pedagogue, and one of my main musical [...]

By Lluis Claret|2017-10-04T03:15:35-04:00April 18th, 2011|Categories: Artistic Vision, Interpersonal Relationships, Self Discovery|Tags: performance, success, Lluis, making music, performer, ideas, personal ideas, Interpretation, connection, respect, expression, searching, soul, artistry, colleagues, cello, chamber music, cellobello, Claret, beauty, ego, family|

Practicing What You Preach: Some Thoughts on Balancing Performing and Teaching — by Natasha Brofsky

During my preparation for playing a faculty recital at NEC’s Jordan Hall at the end of March, I found myself thinking a lot about the challenges of maintaining a teaching and performing career. I always find it the most challenging to play for the “home crowd,” especially students and colleagues, because I hope that I will in some way be able to “practice what I preach.” As a cello teacher my listening is focused on how a phrase could be played in a different, more compelling way, and how technique can serve the music. I find that turning my critical teaching ear on myself can inspire me but also paralyze me, because while I am playing I am hearing all the possibilities for doing it better: all the ways I have taught [...]

By Natasha Brofsky|2018-11-19T02:48:09-05:00April 11th, 2011|Categories: Artistic Vision, Performance, Teaching|Tags: cello, focus, colleagues, cellobello, practice habits, solutions, NEC, practicing, New England Conservatory, students, Habits, Preparation, Brofsky, perspective, expression, emotion, balance, inspiration, Natasha, possibilities, bow speed, performance, Listening, vibrato, challenges, quality|

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