Lesson 2... the Adventure Continues!

So, I had my second lesson with my new cello teacher last evening, 12/4/18. With only one lesson under my belt with him prior to this, I had very little idea of what to expect because the first lesson is always just "taking stock" of what you have done, what skills you have, and what you want to do as you progress... really just getting to know each other. So on my second lesson, after the typical small-talk at the beginning, we started digging in to the true work.

We started with scales, as usual, beginning with the D-major scale starting on the C-string. This requires extensions. Oh, had I only known the bees' nest this would open up. Pitchy, whiny, awful tones. "Your first note is sharp and your 4th finger is flat." But my poor hand was stretched as far as it would go. So let's change everything. The angle of my hand changed about 60 degrees, forcing my pinky into a whole new world of OUCH. It's not that it's uncomfortable. It's just that it's really uncomfortable, and I'm now engaging (and stretching...) muscles I've never used. My pinky, of course, revolted in all possible ways, from locking up either knuckle to making the palm shriek. Now that we're really working, we're getting into the less fun parts of cello. Needless to say, I took it easy on practice today... and marked my fingerboard with pencil. Until my hand learns the new position, it's back to basics.

My best estimate, and probably still wrong...

Did I mention we're only ten minutes into my lesson? 😳

Let's move onto etudes... he can see I'm struggling with scales because of my extensions. I finish Schroeder exercise 5, and he tells me I've really improved it, and let's address my A-string problem. Lighten up the pressure, move down from the fingerboard. GREAT! Good work. "Do you vibrate?" Come again? "Do you vibrate?" Ohhhhh, you mean vibrato! Okay. Yes. "Let's see it." Okay, so I choose A, second finger, second string and begin to demonstrate my vibrato. "Good job. You can start using that on your scales and etudes now. You do that really well, so I don't think we need to change it." Good... something positive that I've learned from my previous teacher. Inside, of course, I'm doing my little happy dance. Yay! I'm doing that right, at least.

So he assigns me Schroeder 7. 8. and 9 for the next lesson in a little under two weeks. Yikes, I have work to do. "Go ahead and get hold of Sevcik Opus 8 and 40 Variations. After your next lesson, we'll start working on some actual music." That piques my interest. My inner child squeals with delight. At the beginning of my lesson, I told him I wanted to start working towards The Swan, by Saint-Saëns. Probably the BIGGEST mistake I could have made, because once I get home and start looking at the Sevcik, I'm going, "crap....what have I done?"

If you've never looked at the Sevcik etudes, they involve lots of fast bowing (no sweat, I can work up to that...) and shifting. I had no idea we were going to get into shifting that quickly. It's not that I'm scared. Really... I just didn't expect it to happen so fast. (I also have the deed to the Golden Gate Bridge, if you'd like to make me an offer...)

Don't get me wrong. I'm SO excited about working on real music, and I DID tell him that I want to get into an orchestra, and that's something I've wanted for a very long time. Part of me is extremely excited about this. Part of me is wondering, "Am I really ready to do this?" Part of me is hoping I don't let my amazing teacher down. But I know he only wants to help me achieve the goals I've told him I had set for myself. I've always been the "Go big or go home" type. So we continue on, complete with all the inner fears and doubts. This I can deal with as I move forward.

It probably didn't help that I was crying while I told him about my goals and dreams in my first lesson... Oops.

Happy Cello'ing! #celloislife