cellopera

True, I thought he was asking about Auguste Sébastien Philippe Bernardel, I didn’t even take a look at the label. All clear!

I have seen and tried four different Bernardels in the past two years and from that experience, this looks nothing like those instruments. He uses dark red varnish on 90% of his cellos. Go check Bernardel on the Cozio Archive https://tarisio.com/cozio-archive/browse-the-archive/makers/maker/?Maker_ID=951&filter_type=4

I was not aware of that, just presumed that those sudden changes in moisture might affect the instrument more rapidly.

Good to know, I’ll stop using them. I was not aware of that, just presumed that those sudden changes in moisture might affect the instrument more rapidly.

Interesting information, a crack would definitely be way worse. The opened seams are on the back—upper left rib and lower right rib.

Thanks for the response. Luckily, I usually squeeze and dry the dampits so they don’t drip but I agree that they could be easily misused. Referring to Nathan’s observation, I always had my main instrument in a room near the rehearsal hall, precisely for being able to avoid sudden temperature changes, so that was never a problem. The Cello was most of the time in its case, safest environment. That is why humidifiers changed the game for me, because without them, I would open the case and my hygrometer would read below 30% humidity. Even so, open seams still happened.

After reading about humidity on Mr. Burgess’ website a few years ago, I have become very careful in managing my instruments. Bought a room humidifier, a stretto case humidifier (comboed with Dampits) and case/room hygrometers. I started to notice the low humidity levels in rehearsal and concert halls, as low as 21% this past winter. Even though I was very careful, my Cello has opened seams for the second time this year (January/May). Fortunately, the two places that became unglued this time are not as bad, approx. 5 cm in length. Are these sudden differences in humidity levels going to affect a Cello in the long term? When I open the case the hygrometer usually reads between 42-55% and by the time I finish the rehearsal it reads under 30%.

Incredible information. I have done a lot of experiments on my instrument the past few years but never something like this. Thank you for letting me know, I will definitely investigate! The latest successful experiment (done by a luthier) was shaving wood from the back of my Bois d‘Harmonie Tailpiece to reduce its weight. I was reluctant to try it but the result was unexpected. It opened up the higher register and improved the overall response.

You mean the tension of a soundpost, right? If you mean tension by tuning up the instrument, that could be such a bummer. If my Cello would sound better at 440 Hz (or lower), I wouldn’t be able to use it in Germany. The usual tuning here for the orchestras is 442 or 443 Hz, and even 444 Hz in some.

That was a very good observation, steel strings do not feel at home with the 415Hz tuning. I wholeheartedly agree, modern strings are ˋin their world´ (also tested) at 440 to 443 Hz. This was just a small experiment for me. I prefer the higher tuning, since it increases projection instantly and brings the natural resonance of the strings to balance better. From a purely physical point of view from the player, the vibrations of the back/ribs of a cello tell the story. The more tension on the bridge, the more condensed and intense the vibrations of the back and lower ribs. The Cello is a very physical creature. On another note, I remember a few years ago asking Yo-Yo Ma backstage the reason why he always tunes the Cello higher when playing with an orchestra. The response: „More Sound!“

Thank you all, glad you liked it! Here is an arrangement I made a few years ago: Same Cello but with a different setup and 415Hz tuning.

As much as I dislike self-promotion of any kind, I would like to share with you a recent clip played on my French anonymous Cello (ca. 1830). The bow is a E.N. Sartory.

I own a Mario Gadda (built in 1990) which was purchased from his nephew, in Porto Mantovano. His late wife still lives there too. The instrument is built on a Strad pattern and sounds fantastic!

Just use chopsticks through one of the f—holes to pick it up.