Vibrato is an important skill to learn and to start using in your music making process. But it is important to also know when NOT to use vibrato. Remember that vibrato is used to enhance the music and not as a crutch for things such as finding your intonation or as a default addition to everything. You eventually want to expand your musical "toolbox" to be able to use vibrato at different speeds, intensities, and basically increase your control. In…
In this new video I give you practice tips on how to play Popper Etude #16 successfully. Popper etudes can be a challenge but with the right mindset and paying attention to details you can master this Popper etude. Remember it is often the little things that will set you apart from other cello players playing the same thing. There is a reason Popper is such a standard in the cello repertoire, but just keep practicing and you will get…
It is crazy to believe how fast the summer has flown by. Now that it is back to school season I am talking about a few tips and tools that will help make your school year with music run smoothly. If there are any other things that I have missed be sure to let me know! Now if only the TX heat would go away so it feels like a proper fall! Remember the best preparation often yields the best…
This post contains an affiliate link. Click here for the full disclosure Here is my newest video on how to play Delicate by Taylor Swift on the cello. You can grab the sheet music here:http://bit.ly/2v7Y0vW There are a few skills that are good to know to play this song. However, if you don't you can easily learn them and then get going on this song! Last week I shot the cover video for the song to show "how does it go"…
This post contains an affiliate link. Click here for full disclosure Hey Swifties! Here is my latest cover on the song Delicate by Taylor Swift. I am getting into transcribing popular music so that I can teach it to you guys! I wanted to make this video so you could hear and see what the sheet music would look like. You can get the sheet music to the song right here: http://bit.ly/2v7Y0vW Be on the lookout for the tutorial video with tips on…
Here is my newest video in the Cello 101 series! I cover the first position on the cello talking about all the notes on the d string. This post contains an affiliate link. Click here for full disclosure The technique I use to teach beginner cello players is one that I learned from Dr. Laurie Scott when I took her music education class. (Thanks Dr. Scott!) I use her book that she co-wrote with William Dick called Mastery for Strings…
Disclaimer: If you are a beginning cello player, I really encourage you to have a private cello teacher for a bit. It is good to have someone who can keep an eye on establishing good foundations of playing cello. Check out some local teachers or myself via: liz@cellomoji.com Getting Started First Position is really important to establish when you are first learning the cello. Make sure that either a private teacher or a music shop has put on some dots…
You Made It! You are playing in an orchestral section. First of all, congratulations! There are so many cello players out there, but YOU are part of the section. It doesn’t really matter if it is a paid position or not, being part of an orchestra can be a thrilling experience. Here are a few tips that I feel are really important to remember when you are part of an orchestra. This can vary slightly based on different circumstances, but…
This post contains some affiliate links. Click here for full disclosure statement here Keep It Simple but Relevant I admit this to actually being a second draft. I recently just finished the book The 10 Habits of Highly Successful Women by Glynnis MacNicol and Rachel Sklar. At first, I was going to talk about important points of each “episode” in the book. Then going over it I realized that no one would want to read all of that AND the book,…
I Don't Feel Like It We all go through times when the last thing we want to do is practice our instruments. I always feel the hardest step is taking the instrument out and actually sitting down to play a few notes. Sometimes it helps if you have a looming deadline to perform. But here are a 7 Practice Motivation Tips to help you feel more inspired to practice and get better no matter what the situation may be. …