# Greatest Cello Pieces



## userfume (Nov 21, 2012)

:lol: Hello I just wanted to share my list of favourite cello pieces.


----------



## Tero (Jun 2, 2012)

Some of my favorites. 
http://www.amazon.com/Vivaldi-6-Cel...4466140&sr=8-6&keywords=vivaldi+cello+sonatas
I linked that disc as it has samples.


----------



## crmoorhead (Apr 6, 2011)

Two of my favourites:


----------



## cwarchc (Apr 28, 2012)

I've got to admit.
I love the cello
Here's a couple of ones that I like.


----------



## aleazk (Sep 30, 2011)

Love this particular interpretation:


----------



## MaestroViolinist (May 22, 2012)

Mendelssohn Song Without Words 
Dvorak Cello Concerto 
Sain-Saens Allegro Appassionato


----------



## Arsakes (Feb 20, 2012)

Cello concertos of Dvorak, Schumann and Saint-Saens are superior to anything ever composed even "Bach"! And also Vivaldi's...

The greatest source of Cello works are Cello Sonatas. Best examples are of Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Rachmaninov... ah I don't know so many!

But if you try Piano trios, the Cello Part is clear and nice to recognise in those champer pieces.


----------



## Ukko (Jun 4, 2010)

Kodály composed a super-duper solo sonata, and a very good sonata for cello and piano.

*BTW* - a little while back,there was a widely supported suggestion that we would place simple *links* to videos we wanted to share; whatever happened to that initiative?

:scold:


----------



## Sonata (Aug 7, 2010)

Hilltroll you speak the truth. That solo cello sonata is simply smashing and probably so far the single exception to my ambivalence towards solo string pieces.


----------



## Ukko (Jun 4, 2010)

Sonata said:


> Hilltroll you speak the truth. That solo cello sonata [Kodály] is simply smashing and probably so far the single exception to my ambivalence towards solo string pieces.


Yeah it is. Re the ambivalence, have you tried Heinrich Schiff in the Bach suites?


----------



## clavichorder (May 2, 2011)

Dvorak Cello Concerto is my favorite of the genre. The Martinu Cello concerto no. 1 is a great piece, each movement is very focused and has more color and variety than the average piece by him, and it seems less defined by his compulsive Martinu rhythm, though on closer inspection it is full of his signature rhythm.

This is the first mvt of the Martinu, which sounds oddly american for him; also it may be because I'm sick, but the beginning percussion in this piece is very loud, so you've been warned:


----------



## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

To my taste:
Best concerto: Moeran.
Best sonata: Brahms 1 and 2 (ex aequo).
Best solo: JS Bach cello suites.

As always, "best" meaning, my preference.


----------



## Sonata (Aug 7, 2010)

Hilltroll72 said:


> Yeah it is. Re the ambivalence, have you tried Heinrich Schiff in the Bach suites?


I have not, I've only listened to three of the suites, and just one recording. I'll give him a shot, thanks


----------



## Ondine (Aug 24, 2012)

Bach Cello Suites, too.

In my opinion one of the best performers has been Pablo Casals:


----------



## Guest (Dec 4, 2012)

Elgar's Cello Concerto ranks at the top of cello concertos, along with Dvorak's. 

I, too, would list Bach's cello suites. I have a variety of recordings - Rostropovich, Fournier, Isserlis, Bylsma. I find I enjoy Fournier for a period instrument, and Rostropovich on a modern.

Here are all the cello works I enjoy (not including trios, quartets, quintets, etc.):
Chopin cello sonata
Alkan cello sonata
C.P.E. Bach cello concerto #3
Beethoven cello sonatas
Brahms cello sonatas
Tchaikovsky's Variations on a Rococo Theme
Shostakovich's cello concertos


----------



## Ukko (Jun 4, 2010)

_DrMike_ mentions the Alkan sonata; it _is_ a pleasure to hear. I have read that Alkan intended it to please concert goers, so he was determined to avoid, ah, unconventional goings on in it. He succeeded quite well; there are only a few places where he had one eye closed.


----------



## clavichorder (May 2, 2011)

I heard that cellists hate to play the Alkan sonata because it is so difficult for them.


----------



## Guest (Dec 5, 2012)

I recommend the recording that pairs the Alkan and Chopin cello sonatas, as performed by Alban Gerhardt and Steven Osborne on the Hyperion label.


----------



## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

No claims for "greatest", just some favorites.

Ligeti-Sonata For Solo Cello; Cello Concerto
Schnittke-Cello Concerto No. 1


----------



## Ukko (Jun 4, 2010)

clavichorder said:


> I heard that cellists hate to play the Alkan sonata because it is so difficult for them.


There are several recordings listed at amazon.com, so not all cellists are wusses. My recording, on a Finlandia LP, maybe hasn't been remastered for CD.


----------



## Guest (Dec 5, 2012)

I neglected also to mention Barber's Cello concerto. There are a few exceptions, but it seems that the cello concerto is something that was not explored until the Romantic and late Romantic periods. Perhaps due to the nature of the instrument, with modern instruments being better suited for the concerto as opposed to the earlier versions (e.g. string materials)? I don't know - I am just speculating.


----------



## jent (Dec 6, 2012)

This is pretty contemporary, but 2CELLOS is a talented duo of Croatian cellists! They're so great. They do covers of popular songs. "Highway to Hell" is pretty impressive.


----------



## Head_case (Feb 5, 2010)

Not sure if this is a greatest, but I prefer it to most of my Pierre Fournier cello concerto cycles:0










It's played impeccably by Rostropovich and conducted by Blaihov. I thought this was the first recording (my LP dates from 1963 but then I came across this claim below:










In any case, the Tischenko Cello Concerto is a strangely idiomatic piece of music. I can't decide if I like it because I'm curious about it each time I listen ... uncertain of which turn it will take or how it will develop ... or whether it is just hypnotising for its unusual blend with wind instruments. This is one of the best Rostropovich cello concerto vinyl LPs I have; the other one being the Myaskovsky cello concerto of course:










If you have it, I'm afraid the EMI CD transfer edition is very thin compared to the vinyl LP original. I bought my CD version and was sorely disappointed. There are much better listening experiences with the new proliferation of recordings by Mork, Maisky, Webber, Tarasova and Ferstchmann.


----------



## Novelette (Dec 12, 2012)

While I realize that it is not a work for the cello per se, the cello is an integral part of this relatively rare work.

Schumann: Andante & Variations for Two Pianos, Two Cellos, and Horn in B Flat, Op. 46

Although, as is typical with such works of Schumann, the piano [in this case, pianos] dominates, the cellos have a generously expressive contribution to the whole of the work.

I also really enjoy Lalo's Cello Concerto in D Minor, all of C.P.E. Bach's Cello Concerti, Fauré's Cello Sonata in G Minor, and Beethoven's Variations on "See the Conqu'ring Hero Comes" for Cello and Piano.


----------



## elgar's ghost (Aug 8, 2010)

I like Kodaly's sonata for solo cello, Britten's cello suites and a work rarely mentioned, Hindemith's 2nd cello concerto (a theme from which provided the material for Walton's more celebrated Hindemith Variations).


----------



## Huilunsoittaja (Apr 6, 2010)

Oh hey, I didn't know Dudamel had anything to do with Glazunov...


----------



## mitchflorida (Apr 24, 2012)

My favorite cello player is Jacqueline Du Pre playing Haydn's Cello Concerto in C Major.

My least favorite cello player is Yo Yo Ma, who is highly over-rated.


----------



## mitchflorida (Apr 24, 2012)

Daniel Barenboim. Itzack Perlman, Pihchas Zuckeman, Jackie Du Pre, Zubin Mehta


----------



## HeartofGold (Aug 23, 2013)

Bach's Cello Suite no.1 in G major is my favourite solo piece to play.
I also like Saint Saens "The Swan" and Tchaikovsky's Nocturne for Cello and Piano op 19 No 4."


----------



## peeyaj (Nov 17, 2010)

Arpeggione Sonata played with a cello!


----------



## spradlig (Jul 25, 2012)

I'd like to put in a plug for two of the exceptions: Haydn's two great concerti. Also I think Boccherini wrote a large number of good concerti but I am not that familiar with them.


----------



## spradlig (Jul 25, 2012)

*Two unjustly neglected celo concerti*

The #2's by Saint-Saens and Shostakovich. Among the highlights: the Saint-Saens contains one of the highest notes you will ever hear played by a cello. The Shostakovich has a great cadenza for cello and bass drum!


----------



## Selby (Nov 17, 2012)

For something a little newer I highly recommend Dobrinka Tabakova's (b. 1980, Bulgaria) album String Paths, which includes her gorgeous Concerto for Cello and Strings. You will not regret it.


----------



## edge (Nov 19, 2011)

Mitchell said:


> For something a little newer I highly recommend Dobrinka Tabakova's (b. 1980, Bulgaria) album String Paths, which includes her gorgeous Concerto for Cello and Strings. You will not regret it.
> 
> View attachment 23551
> View attachment 23552
> View attachment 23553


She was interviewed on the "New Classical Tracks" podcast. Very interesting. I've just listened to the previews on Rdio but it sounds very interesting. Would love to hear more of your review.

http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2013/07/29/new-classical-tracks-dobrinka-tabakovas-string-paths


----------



## Celloman (Sep 30, 2006)

And now from the little man who lives inside the very soul of every cello ever made:

"So many of the great cello pieces have been mentioned, so I'll just name a few.

'Schelomo' Rhapsody for Cello and Orchestra - Ernest Bloch
Sonata for Unaccompanied Cello - Zoltan Kodaly
Symphony for Cello and Orchestra - Benjamin Britten

I'll crawl back in through my F hole now. Bye bye."


----------

