suite VI

Fairly recently, I had an opportunity to play the prelude from Bach’s cello suite VI on the violoncello da spalla to a small crowd in a modest suburban church.  The pressure was almost non-existent; I’d played some cello duets there in the past and I was already familiar with this sanctuary.  Not many classically trained musicians and experienced listeners were there.  Many of them were just kids…! It was a very good chance to start playing Bach solos on the spalla for someone.  I was even going with five full synthetic strings to make some technical elements more forgiving, although my preference to gut strings hadn’t diminished a bit. But […]