# Fav cellist



## 009

We're always talking about violinists, maybe we've neglected cellists, eh?  
Who's yr fav cellist?
And do u prefer YoYo Ma's epitomised style of playing- clean and clear,
or u think the cello sounds betterm, more emotional, with those down to earth scratchy sounds? For instance, Jacqueline D' Pru's manner of playing. Actually she's one of my personl fav, very talented cellist..A pity she died so young. I love her pasison and the way she pushed her instrument to the limit each time. Her playing is really 1 of a kind, so intensely beautiful.
Her Elgar and Betthoven Concerto recordings speak of emotions like no other. And having watched the movie : Hilary and Jackie just made me adore her even more.


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## Nox

...well, other than my friend (the cellist...who has been very nice humouring me and playing with me...)...I'd have to say YoYo Ma...he puts that 'thing' into his music that make even pieces I normally find uninteresting interesting...if you know what I mean (apparently I don't have the nec. vocabulary at hand...but give me a second cup of coffee...)...

...for example...I recently purchased a Nigel Kennedy CD, playing Walton (violin and viola)...I read that he's one of Englands Enfant Terribles...so I was expecting that certain 'something' ...but he didnt' produce it...at least not on this CD...I've listened to it several times, seriously...and all I can say is that I dislike Walton...


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## becky

Yo-yo Ma! I was introduced to his music when I was a youth, so there's nostalgia there!


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## Daniel

I love Casals (so a heartful playing), Dupres of course, Leonard Rose, Feuermann. Rhostropovich has a strong bowing . Maisky hm, don't like him that much. Yo yo is really amazing, but actually i didn't listen to much of his recordings


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## 009

I love Casals also...I think when it comes to cello...everyone will prefer soulful playing more to agressive manner.
I don't like Rostropovich ..He's too agressive for me.


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## oistrach13

my favourite would definitely be Fournier.

he is never agressive (french :lol: ), 

his technique is perfect (even better than rostropovich, my evidence: rostropovich confessed that he had a lot of trouble playing the arpeggione sonata, while you get young fournier playing it at twice the tempo rostropovich was playing at, without any mistakes :mellow,

his style is the extremely refined and elegant (nicknames: prince of the cello, the aristocrat of cellists)

and he has some of the best bowing ever (the unique high-elbow-technique), which every cellist has envied. (tortelier once confessed to him that he really wished he had fournier's right arm).

and last of all, the tone, if you hear fournier's cello suites you'll understand, while something in rostropovich's tone always puts me off (what the linear notes proudly referred to as "depth of tone"), fournier's tone is unobtrusive (the cellistic equivalent of Backhaus), extremely bassy , and reminds me of oranges :blink: (maybe his cello has orange varnish).

I do adore casals though (so heart-felt)

haven't heard du Pré (that sounds horrible, I know)

not a fan of yo yo ma (heard a bit of his bach, unimpressed :mellow: )

never heard Rose.

Feuermann was nice, but I haven't heard enough of him.

Shafran was wonderful. (to those who don't know him, russian cellist, middle generaton between Knushevitsky (oistrakh trio  ) and Rostropovich.

I am severely intrigued by Knushevitsky, he is supposed to be one of the greatest (ever), all I have is his beethoven triple (with oistrakh and oborin). the mic placement is horrible, the tone seems distant and week. (remind me to kill the engineers, well, old recording, so they're probably already dead.


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## oistrach13

oh my, what a long post


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## 009

> *he is never agressive (french ),*


Yes, I agree. I think most frenchs like and play their music this way...refined and silvery.
This is an interesting reply oistrach...I'm going to check out all the artists that u mentioned...whom some I've not heard b4. 



> *and he has some of the best bowing ever (the unique high-elbow-technique), which every cellist has envied.*


This is hard to get, but produces very open tone, and extremely good bite.



> *fournier's tone is unobtrusive (the cellistic equivalent of Backhaus), *


Really? Then I must check him out.  
Daniil Shafran was a legend, he is considered as one of the all time great masters of the cello on a level with Casals and Cassado. If u like Casals, u'll like Shafran. He has this very clean and velvety way of playing. I like his Shostakovich and Tchaikovsky recordings  , but I'll still hang on to Du Pre for Beethoven( He's too gentle for Beethoven, I think. ) :blink:


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## oistrach13

I am seriously going to start looking for some shafran and du Pré  

if you really want to look into this fournier guy, I suggest the bach suites, perhaps not as much feeling as casals, but some people argue for his approach (some people even want them dryer... dry bach :blink: ). as I said to daniel the other day, I prefer a wet sound :lol: , that goes for pianos (boesendorfer), cellos, violins (oistrakh), and picked instruments (oud  ). although that doesn't work with singers <_< 


The sound is wonderful, although I am not at liberty to say this about the new "originals" remastering. I have the old (from the 70's) issue, which was made before I was born. (lucky me, nobody in lebanon buys these things).


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## Daniel

> * I prefer a wet sound , that goes for pianos (boesendorfer), cellos, violins (oistrakh), and picked instruments (oud ). although that doesn't work with singers *


For me Boesendorfer is really dry against Steinway (hehehehehehe   ).....oistrakh for violin, hehe who else 


> *(lucky me, nobody in lebanon buys these things).*


indeed lucky you, so you are the EXCLUSIVE buyer


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## oistrach13

boesie is dry against steinway? :huh: 


first time I hear that


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## Daniel

In serious now, yes for me its more dry than Steinway, its more crystallic (which isn't a negative argument), Steinway is more soft and warm.


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## oistrach13

in the upper register it does sound a bit crystalline (on the new models)

but I have alot of recordings on boesendorfer, and steinways, I can say for sure, the middle and lower register are very much "wet"

daniel, I didn't say soft and warm as opposed to hard and crystalline, I said dry and wet, which is a different thing.

any way, this is very subjective, and I don't think there is a point in arguing about such a thing, not to mention that we should be talking about cellists :blink:


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## 009

Ok...  
Here's what I think...
It depends on your defination of wet and dry.
Alot of people associate wet and dry with other elements also, such as tonal depth and like what Daniel said 'body' of sound( warm...).
But if yr talking about 'pure' wetness alone, I think Pianos with very heavy tone and deep 'ring' tends to be more wet.  
So, for me boesendorfer is more wet,esp. the middle and bass registers, just like Bluthner and Feurich.  
But there's no doubt in the world that Steinway is the best piano... if you're talking about overall acoustic wetness...Steinway's balanced and round tone somewhat seems more wet than boesendorfer, but refinedly wet, if u asked me. It's wetness of a different kind... :blink: But if you really exterminate all the other factors...than I would have to say that Boesendorfer is really wet, heavily wet. Steinway's reflex is too crisp to classify under that kind of wetness.
I think the 2 of u are talking about 2 different kind of wetness...or maybe have very different opinions of wetness.  
Nobody's right, nobody's wrong. It's all a matter of perspective.


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## Daniel

> *Nobody's right, nobody's wrong. It's all a matter of perspective. *


That's true....But maybe it is my misundertanding of the meaning of "wet"...english speaking people know it better than I, even because you don't learn any musical vocabulary in school


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## 009

> *even because you don't learn any musical vocabulary in school *


Yeah, they don't teach music vocabs in schools. Music itself is a special language...there are certain words that u can use, and certain that u can't. How did u pick it up Daniel? Caz I think yr music vocab is remarkably good for a German.  Do u read alot? B) 
I know you pick up your English on the web, but what about the music vocabs? Do u read alot of reviews?


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## Daniel

yes actually i try to read as much as possible music related articles....but i still feel uncomfortable to express myself...reading is quite ok, but myself writing...hm


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## oistrach13

> *But there's no doubt in the world that Steinway is the best piano*


I beg to differ on that point. the, a boesendorfer's wetness can get very much refined in the right hands, just don't use too much pedal  
that and there seems to be a subjective link between me and boesies, I don't know, they seem more earthy :blink: what ever that means, steinways seem distant and cold to me (many will disagree strongly with me). I am not talking about coldness in tone or timbre, as daniel already said, the tone is quite warm and soft, I am talking emotionally here


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## 009

> *I don't know, they seem more earthy what ever that means, steinways seem distant and cold to me (many will disagree strongly with me). I am not talking about coldness in tone or timbre, as daniel already said, the tone is quite warm and soft, I am talking emotionally here *


Yes, I know what u mean. Boes really sounds more earthy. I like them when I play Brahms and so on...It depends on what I play also...BTW, have u played Bluthners? They sound very much like Boes.
The Steinway feels more distant ( though it's really beautiful ), caz the sound is more rhetorical. But with good pianistic control, u can get a Boes from a stein also, though of caz, not that deep in sound.
I love steins...their reflex and flexibility is amazing. But again, nothing quite like a Boes also.
Ok, lets's not talk about good pianos, how about the really horrible ones( who obviously don't deserve the good reviews ) and that u think whose production lines ought to be shut down?
I think Kawai is top on my list.
2nd up is Perzina ( no quality control... They come in with different tone and reflex with each batch )
3rd? :angry: What else?


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## oistrach13

I really don't know that much about pianos, the only real one I ever touched was an improperly tuned, and rather old, upright Neumann, from west germany

what do you think about schimmel? they are getting good reviews, but maybe you don't like them


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## oistrach13

that neumann by the way, wonderful sound, the bass is sooooooo beautiful

don't you think we should move this discussion to another thread?


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