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TerryM
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Posts: 429
(6/15/01 4:51:23
pm)
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Cello Duets -
Recommendations
I recently bought a book of cello duets by the French baroque
composer, Joseph Bodin de Boismortier (1691-1755). I have been
playing from another book of duets by Boismortier that is a bit more
advanced and a bit challenging in parts. This new book arrived and
when I first looked at it it seemed much simpler and only
occasionally moves up to 3rd position. At first, I was a bit
disappointed, as I expected it to be very similar to the previous
book. However, the pieces, although not complicated, are very
pleasant to play and hear. It is music that sounds more difficult
than it is. The key signatures are, for the most part, in the easier
keys to play and the second cello part is mostly in first position.
The book is called "9 Petites Sonates et Chaconne for two
cellos, Op. 66 by Boismortier and is published by Schott, 1990, CB
142. I ordered mine from Hickey's Music at:
www.hickeys.com/pages/vcduet.htm
If
you are looking for a bit more of a challenge, then you could try
the Boismortier 6 Sonaten fur 2 Violoncelli, published by
Kunzelmann, GM 1665a. This are quite musical and enjoyable to play.
They do not move beyond 4th position. I think that these may be the
same as the ones listed on the Hickey's site as Op. 40, but these
have a different editor and so may a different edition. There is no
opus number on the Kunzelmann edition.
I enjoy cello duets
and it is a great way to begin playing chamber music. It has all the
basic elements of ensemble playing and is a great way to learn to
sight read and count.
Terry
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DWThomas
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Posts: 354
(6/15/01 8:14:41 pm)
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Re: Cello Duets
- Recommendations
Thanks Terry, they sound interesting. (Maybe I could at least play
the 2nd part.  )
I
have a recording that contains a few duets by August Franchomme that
are quite nice to listen to, but I'll probably be too old to move
before I can play them 
His
Opus 7 is Caprices; Opus 15, Nocturnes; and Opus 35 is Etudes. I
think Shar lists at least some of them.
The recording I have
is "August Franchomme / Le Violoncelle Virtuose" with Roel Dieltiens
and Ensemble Explorations (there are several quintets on the disk
also). Lidewij Scheifes is the second cellist (about whom I know
nada). I nearly played the spots off the CD when I first got it.
Franchomme is occasionally described as "the Pagannini of the
'cello." I fear these are beyond the average (maybe even above
average) CBN, but I certainly found them inspiring.
As these
are rather a lush, romantic style (A. F. lived 1808 - 1884), I was
curious last year when Dieltiens was listed as doing a Baroque
session at WCC III. I attended and was pleased to see that he is
apparently comfortable with a wide range of
styles.
Dave
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TerryM
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Posts: 430
(6/15/01 9:43:37
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Re: Cello Duets
- Recommendations
Dave I have the same CD and it is quite enjoyable. The duets on
this CD are quite advanced. I have another set of duets by Franchome
that I got, as a freebee, with some music I bought on eBay. They are
the Op. 14 set of 3 Nocturnes. I have not seen these in print
anywhere and the edition I got is very old, probably the original
edition. They are challenging but playable with some
work.
The Boismortier are worth a try and I feel sure you
could do them justice. My teacher always finishes my lessons by
playing duets with me. It is a chance to sight read and to get
commentary and coaching on how to make chamber music sound musical.
I look forward to these sessions each week. Friday night is also my
cello duet night and I usually get together with a cellist friend to
play, but she is away this week and I am feeling "cello duet
withdrawal" symptoms. I have been alternating between the two parts
just to get my fill. :)
Terry
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TerryM
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Posts: 431
(6/18/01 6:37:29
pm)
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More
Recommendations you didn't ask for!
I received an e-mail note from Ellen G thanking me for posting my
thoughts on the duets. She told me that she often gets requests and
so is looking for books of this sort to bring in and offer through
Cellos2Go, as a part of her overall services to cellists. I put
together a list for her, which is by no means complete, of some of
the duet books from which I have been playing.
I
subsequently received an e-mail request from another "cello chatter"
asking about duets and so I thought that there might be some here
who would have similar interest in such a list. Please understand
that I am no expert and my recommendations are based on my personal
experience as an advanced intermediate level player, but I hope that
they may be helpful to others.
This is my
list:
Schoenbeck Op. 12 Book 1 published by Grancino
Editions, ed. by Nona Pyron and Francois Gueneux. These duets are
not too difficult and most of them are quite musical. The first book
of Boismortier, that I mentioned in my post above, are about the
same ease/difficulty as the Schoenbeck. The second book of
Boismortier are a bit more difficult from a rhythmic standpoint, but
still quite playable.
Another enjoyable set of duets is the
Six duos by Francois Cupis (1732
-1808), Op. 3. These are
published by Gerard Billaudot Editeur, 1990,
Cat. no. 4766 B. I
got these at Shar, in Toronto. These are a little
more advanced
with the first cello part in tenor clef a fair part of the
time.
In fact, the second cello part moves from time to time to tenor too,
but neither part moves much beyond 4th position. Keywise, they go up
to 2# and 3 flats.
The 6 duos by Tommaso Giordani 91740-1806)
are very classical in style and very playable as well. Both cello
parts go into tenor clef and the most difficult key is 3#s. They
have a very pleasing sound to them, but they are a bit more work.
These duets are published by Schott, cat. no. CB-119.
If you
are looking for some classical duets that are very playable
and
sound good too, then try the 6 Duos by Guiseppe Cambini,
Op.49. These
have a very melodic nature to them and the second
cello part is fairly
easy...not that the first is very difficult,
only a bit of tenor clef.
They are published by Amadeus Verlag
(Bernhard Pauler)Winterhur/Schweiz.
I also have some fairly
easy duets by Joseph Reinagle (1762-1836). These are about the same
difficulty as the Schoenbeck. They are published by Edition Moeck,
cat. no. 1048.
I you are looking for a duet book that is good
for beginners and advancing beginners, the book, "Violoncello Duos
for Beginners," published by Edition Musica Budapest cat. Z 8158, is
very good. The first few are early music pieces, but the rest of the
book are duets by Couperin, Bach, Telemann, Boismortier, Haydn,
Pleyel, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert and Offenbach. The Pleyel and
Offenbach are not difficult, but take some good playing to make them
sound musical.
The book of 6 Duets Op. 156 by Kummer are also
great for advancing beginner students who can play all strings in
first postion. The duets get a little more challenging towards the
end of the book with some double stops and some 16th note passages,
but the keys remain at or below 2 sharps and 2 flats. These duets
give a good workout in string crossings and moving around first
position and will reward you with some nice sounding music. You can
always play one note of the double stop until you get both under
your fingers.
I hope these recommendations are helpful to
some of you who may be looking for pieces to play with other
cellists.
Terry
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Ellen
G 
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Posts: 771
(6/19/01 8:02:29
am)
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Re: More
Recommendations you didn't ask for!
I spend an inordinate amount of time trying to second guess which
pieces will be worth it when I peruse catalogs. Terms like "easy"
and "intermediate" can really throw you since they aren't
particularly definitive. I like little tipoffs like "Bach, Ten
Pieces in the First Position" rather than "Easy." I have ordered
pieces for "intermediate cello" and wanted to throw them out the
window. Or jump myself. They are ridiculously hard, and it's a
little discouraging to think in the cello world there is easy,
intermediate and virtuoso, with Intermediate being this vast
expanse.
I just located, I think, another edition of the
Schoenbeck duos which is good since Grancino seems to be unavailable
in the US. Those I can play with both my girls, they are good
sightreading material and sort of fun fingering pattern exercises as
well. The repeats are handy to vindicate yourself when you screw up
the first time. I tend to have an aversion to my open A string, and
invariably the shift I use to avoid it gets me into trouble in a
subsequent measure. So the second time through I'm wiser.
I'm looking at lists of duos by Zumsteeg, Telemann, Taub,
Stevens, Schubert, Schoenbeck, Rosenblum, Moss, Linde, Kagel,
Joplin, Hofmann, Gruetzmacher, Dotzauer, Chapman, Breval,
Boismortier, Bach, Boccherini, Barriere, DeFesch, Gliere, Klengel,
Kummer, Lee, Mozart, Popper, Romberg, Servais, Couperin, Graziani,
Hindemith, Offenbach, Tchaikovzky and MORE and I haven't got a clue
as to which are suitable for our levels. That's why, as Terry, said,
we're trying to compile as much feedback from players as possible.
The Telemann turned out to be more than I expected, and some of the
others are way too boring. Little guides like "requires knowledge of
tenor clef" or "goes beyond 4th position" would be a big help.
I find the Suzuki references helpful since they are so well
known. If someone is in Book 2 or 6, you have a pretty good idea
where they are cellistically and what's going to be doable.
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karenlee
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Posts: 45
(6/20/01 12:15:51
pm)
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Re: More
Recommendations you didn't ask for!
what about the duets by Sebastien Lee?
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lblake
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Posts: 388
(6/22/01 10:30:42
pm)
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Re: More
Recommendations you didn't ask for!
Is that the same "Lee" from the Krane etude books? If so, I'll bet
they're pretty, because the Lee etudes are the prettiest ones, by
far. When I visited Andrew Victor earlier this year, he had some
Dotzauer pieces for three cellos, too.... They were very fun!
I'm playing some Boismortier duets (well, one cello, then
the second cello is really a "continuo" part) and the Telemann
canonic sonatas now, too.... all really pretty stuff. I LOVE those
canonic sonatas! My teacher and I actually play them from the
double-bass part. Very good for those of us who are stuck in the
beginning-intermediate sort of range (i.e. not very comfortable
beyond 4th position)
I really would like to know about those
Lee duos... I really like the Lee etudes! if there are duos, I'll
have to get them for sure!
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TerryM
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Posts: 433
(6/23/01 9:08:09
am)
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The Lee
Duets
This is the same Sebastian Lee (1805-1887) as the Lee of the cello
etudes. I have one book of Lee duets, his Six Duets, Op. 60 Volume
1, as published by International Music, catalog No. 1679. These
duets are at what I would term, an intermediate level, with frequent
double stops, position shifting up to 4th and 5th position. They are
not rhythmically complex, but there are numerous arpeggiated chords
with the inherent string crossings. They are melodic in nature and
the keys go up to 2 sharps, 2 flats.
Lee wrote several sets
of duets, as you can see below.
22 Very Easy Duets, op 126
Six Duets, op 60, vol. 1, ed. Schulz
Six Duets, op 60, vol.
2, ed. Schulz
Three Duets, op 36
Three Duets, op 37 ed.
Schmidt
Three Duets, op 38
Three Duets, op 39 ed. Guignard
Terry
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lblake
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Posts: 390
(6/23/01 11:42:45
pm)
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Re: The Lee
Duets
Thanks for all the great info, Terry! I'm so excited now!! 
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karenlee
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Posts: 48
(6/29/01 7:37:55
am)
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More
duets
There is also a book of duets by Bartok, very easy. They were
originally done for 2 violins; the cello edition is transposed so
some of the pieces sound odd if you are used to the violin version,
but these are still definitely fun! They are folk song based duets.
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Ellen
G
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Posts: 792
(6/29/01 3:32:53
pm)
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More "duettic"
tidbits
Oops!
Edited by: Ellen
G at: 6/29/01 3:41:41 pm
|
lblake
Registered
User
Posts: 395
(6/29/01 7:43:39
pm)
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Re: More
"duettic" tidbits
what kinda tease is that, Ellen?!
I
have another set of duets (of the easier variety) to recommend, too.
Very fun. Rather odd.... but VERY fun... Halsey Stevens, 5
Duets.
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