Royce J.

Baker's rosin was certainly the "flavor of the month" for a while. I got on the list about a decade ago and bought one of each of the two varieties they made at the time. Still have them in storage someplace. I was offered the opportunity to purchase the next year and declined since I hadn't even opened the second one yet. Baker's didn't like that and dumped me off the list. The rosin's fine, but if you're not already on the list, fuggedaboutit. I've been on their mailing list for years, waiting for a chance to get back on the purchase list.

Just seems to me that anyone who plays a string instrument ought to be able to keep their bridge straight and change a string when necessary.

On another forum I saw a post from a student cellist who'd been advised by their teacher that their bridge might be starting to warp. From the picture provided warp seemed very minimal and certainly a small adjustment at most. The plan was to have their "repair person" look at it and adjust if needed. I was surprised that a teacher wouldn't just take care of it. I keep an eye on my bridges and adjust when they need it. I've also changed strings, swapped tailpieces and tailcords and endpins as well. I'd never try to carve a bridge or fit a soundpost, plane a fingerboard or glue a seam myself. A man's gotta know his limitations. Over the years I've enjoyed experimenting with different strings, tailpieces, etc. and I wouldn't have been able to do that if I had to pay somebody every time. I realize not everyone feels "handy" and might worry that they'd break something or cause more problems. What kind of things do you feel comfortable doing?

Which is frequently not well-received.

There was a cello on there recently labeled Martin Baur 1849 which was bid to 5 grand or so until it was disclosed to be 1/2 size and in ratty condition. Went for $48.

If you'd read your own Ebay listing, you'd know that "I've also taken it to an auction house and they've confirmed that to their knowledge, the label is accurate and the instrument is authentic." Busted.

Cello strings are worse.

I installed geared pegs on my cellos so that I could get rid of the ugly, heavy fine tuners. They're wonderful.

I'm starting to miss Connie Sunday...

I've decided it's time upgrade my cello bow. My upper limit is $2500. I realize this excludes most "fine" bows, but as my current bows are probably worth 50 bucks apiece, I should hopefully be able to find something nice. I'd like to try as many bows as I can. Can anyone recommend a shop in my general area that will have a good selection in my price range? I'm in the San Bernardino area of Southern California. Los Angeles would work, as would Palm Springs or anyplace in between. Any suggestions are most appreciated.

I bought my first cello 12 years ago. It was second-hand but in brand new condition, unlabeled and presumably Chinese. I loved the way it sounded and looked, highly flamed maple back and ribs and very fine-grained spruce top. I only noticed several years later there was some bear claw figure on the front. Seeing this revivified thread, I took another look at the top and I see there's a lot more bear claw figure than I realized. Seems to be a bit more on the treble side and it's visually very subtle, which I prefer. It kind of makes the plain straight-grained front of my other cello look a little bland. I've always loved the sound of my Chinese cello, but I also love the tone of my 100 year old German cello.

Congratulations on starting cello, It’s a wonderful instrument. To play it, you actually have to put your arms around it and embrace it, and it lays against your chest and vibrates and resonates like a living breathing being. And you get to make music. Just lovely. I bought my first cello a few years back, used from a yard sale. It was an unlabeled Chinese student model. It came with a bow, the typical cheap generic brazil wood bow that you could get anywhere for $50 (probably more these days). I never liked the bow because it looked cheap. The cello didn’t look cheap, it has absolutely gorgeous highly flamed maple back and sides and bearclaw spruce top. Just beautiful. I went to my first cello lesson expecting my teacher to take one look at that bow and order me to get rid of that abomination immediately. She took a careful look at it to make sure it wasn’t warped and said “OK”. And my teacher complimented me from the beginning on the beautiful tone that I got from that cheap bow. As I started to make progress learning to play, I was eagerly anticipating the day that I would outgrow that horrid cheap bow and I could buy a new one. A decade later I still own that bow. Over the years i have accumulated a couple more bows. I bought them used and cheap, not as an upgrade, but just for spares. None of these bows could be considered “good”, but they’re still apparently “good enough” for my current abilities. I can afford a better bow, and one of these days I will buy one but my point (and I do have one in here somewhere) is that a modest bow may be able to take you quite a ways. I play tested a bow once: a vintage German bow, real pernambuco and silver mounted which would easily be priced at $1000 or more in a shop. It didn’t make playing any easier, and my teacher agreed that my cheap bow pulled a better sound. Now this was a sample of one and maybe it was a dud or it just didn’t suit me, but it was an education. Which brings me to my actual point: If you want a bow upgrade, go for it! My advice would be to try as many bows as you can. Every bow is different and there has to be a fit with cello, bow and player. One day I hope to take my cello to a shop and try a bunch of different bows and find a great one (that doesn’t look cheap, haha). Best of luck to you.

Q: How do you know someone is a vegan? A: They tell you.

But how does it sound?