🎉 Got a Question? 20K Q+A! Enter to win a lesson with me!
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- Опубликовано: 21 ноя 2023
- 🎉🎉 WIN A LESSON WITH ME! We will be picking one person who asks me a question below in the comment section to win a free, one-hour Zoom lesson with me. 🎉🎉
♫ LEARN MORE ABOUT GETTING THE ULTIMATE START ON CELLO:
Cello in 30 Days Course: www.adultcello.com/courses
The Strad Podcast Episode #46: Billy Tobenkin on starting the cello at 25 - www.thestrad.com/podcast/the-...
Billy Tobenkin is a Los Angeles-based cellist who specializes in teaching adult learners. As a professional cellist who started playing the cello from scratch at 25, he is in a unique position to help others, like him, who found the cello later in life. He has developed strategies from his own musical journey to accelerate the learning process, and he is here to share them with you.
Please contact him at billy@adultcello.com with any questions or comments! Or visit adultcello.com
My question; how to take a piece you have been working on from say 80% to "performance" quality. I'm not talking about rostropovich level, but consistent without mistakes. I seem to get stuck at the 80% point, I can play it all, just not always at the same time. I make mistakes in fingering, bowing, or notes and then the chance I make more mistakes increases since i'm out of sync. Sure, practice, practice, practice. But maybe there is a more methodological approach that I'm missing.
The A string. Help. The A string sounds good when I practice along with your lessons, but when I'm playing a piece and the A shows up, it's often strident in sound. Am I using too much pressure? I'm not sure what visualization to use since the A may only be a quarter note long and it doesn't feel like there's enough time to visualize the surfer, as in the lessons in the 30-day journey.
Btw I *love* all the visualization tips and similes and metaphors you use in your teaching. Super helpful.
I'm really enjoying Cello in 30 + Masterclasses are excellent reinforcements & tips for us--thanks so much!
Q: How does the adult cellist know when s/he is ready to play with others?
(subset questions: How do we find others to play with since we no longer hang out at school...;
Is it better to begin with orchestra & then chamber groups or vice-versa? What combination might be best to start with--piano/cello, violin/cello, duo, trio, quartet, voice/cello; How do we get over the fear of playing with others?; How do we get over thinking of ourselves as the metronome or drum-beat when we're not carrying a melodic line?)
Congratulations Billy on your major (well-deserved) milestone! I live in an area without a cello teacher so I'm learning online and I really appreciate how well thought out your lessons are and how clear and relaxed your explanations are. I would like some advice about practicing. I know you've said not to have an excessively long practice, but I'd like to practice 2-3 times a day, but not sure if I should separate those practices into working on scales, repertoire, rhythm, intonation etc.. Without a teacher's guidance, I meander
Hi Billy,
20K subscribers from around the world .... Congratulations!
I would like to ask you a bow question.
Do you play down bow on the inside hairs of the bow and up bow on the outside of the bow hairs? Or, do you play on the full flat hair of the bow?
I have just been playing for a year and you are my only teacher.
You truly are an amazing communicator.
Safe travels back home from South Korea. Do love how you plan your day around nap time ..... cherish the special times with a little one.
Take care of your shoulder.
Cello cheers,
Sue
Hi Billy, congrats for hitting this milestone. Well deserved! And thank you for your inspring and down-to-earth, precise support. My question: could you make a video about principles for phrasing music - with different examples? Warm regards
Hi Billy - Thanks so much for sharing your experiences and talents with the world of aspiring adult cello players! I started cello as an adult and have been at it for over 8 years. Because I am older and do things more deliberately, I struggle with playing fast passages...fast. As soon as I see 16th notes (or worse), I PANIC - my eyes lose focus, my body tightens, and things go down hill from there. My left hand struggles to play the notes fast enough while my right hand/arm/brain struggles to remember what to do to produce a clear, crisp sound. Please share some wisdom on how to improve finger agility and maintain focus. Thanks!
Congratulations Billy from Hangzhou China! It is amazing to share your family trip in South Korea as well as your tips about keeping a healthy body balance to play cello. Besides, as you mentioned, I also believe physical therapy like acupuncture really works to relieve the pain. My question is: as beginners, what is your specific suggestions to practice flexibly and expressively? Do you encourage students to compose their simple piece? I like your teaching method and the analogy to play like "the brain is singing with cello".
how do you play relaxed without dropping the bow?
What is the one most consistent mistake you see newer players make when playing the cello and how would you recommend going about fixing it?
Congratulations on this milestone, Billy! What advice do you have for keeping one’s right shoulder down when practicing? Every time I look in the mirror, I see my shoulder hiking up and correct it, but the correction doesn't seem to stick. Any help you can provide will be greatly appreciated … thanks!
How do I develop consistency in my playing? I am frustrated that sometimes, my playing is okay, other times, really bad…..
As I play, tension slowly builds in both my arms. How do we release tension as we play?
How can we practice efficiently ? Congratulations on 20k subscribers Billy.
How do you take the leap from good beginner cellist to a higher skill level of sound and performance? I’ve been learning cello for about six years through different online programs and online lessons. I’ve had two periods where I practiced the cello every day for a year to try and advance my skill level. Currently I spend about 3 hours per week practicing. I still struggle with vibrato, smooth transitions between positions, and playing at the right speed for the piece. Thank you for your advice and congratulations on your milestone! 🎉🎉🎉🎉
Do you recommend, as a totally beginner, to use strips of tape on the fretboard to indicate where you put your fingers? Thank you for your videos!
Obviously too late for this Q&A, but I wanted to ask you this question for a little while now! At which point in your journey did you start teaching? How did it happen? How did you know you were ready? Did someone offer you this opportunity or did you reach out for a position or something else? Did you start teaching younger people/kids first? How did it play lut when you started teaching adults? Are people reluctant to be taught by someone who started "recently" even though they are at college/universiy level?I am also studying cello in college at almost 30 now and I am wondering how this transition to teaching can happen! Take care!
Here's another question; how much "markup" on shared pieces is reasonable. I'm talking bowings, fingerings, "reminders" etc. when playing with a stand partner in orchestra etc. I seem to appreciate quite a few bowing notes, at least every few bars, and certainly fingering reminders are important also particularly around any tricky bits. I don't want to annoy my stand partner too much however. Any general rules to follower here?
Hi Billy, love your lesson plans and working through them right now. Question for you, do you have any suggestion on finding time to play? For reference, I have 6 kids from a 1 month old to a 11 year old and I can't seem to find the time to play. Any hints wouod be greatly appreciated. 😊
Thank you for all the information provided and shared since now.
Congratulations for the baby.
Get well soon.
Best wishes for you and your family.
Sincerely
Are you in Korea? Welcome. It's so nice to see you in Korea.😊😊
Hi Billy, I just want to thank you for your inspiration and all the great advices you gave in the videos. It helped me tremendously. When you started this channel I just had just returned to the cello after years of neglection. One of the first videos I saw from you, you talked about your journey and you gave me so much motivation (and recognition) to go for it too. So I moved the inner critic aside and started practicing. And practicing. I worked hard and now I am finally at the point that I start to appreciate my own sound and carefully start to play with confidence. I am playing with other students in a quartet. The cello brings me so much joy! I will continue to follow you, always like your videos and learn from it. We once met in a zoom meeting, which was great! Congrats with your milestone, lovely to see a glimpse of your personal life. And take care with your shoulder!
I’m getting a cello Friday!!! Sadly we won’t be able to find a teacher for a while because there’s not a lot where I live but I will watch a lot of your videos until then❤❤❤
My bow arm gets very tired. What are some check points for me to ask myself to make sure my posture is not compromised?
I've taped my cello like you showed in your video, but there's no way my hand has that reach. Will I need to engage all four fingers at once for some notes?
When I am bowing the A string, I don't have the arm length to finish at the end of the bow. If I try to do that, either I'm hunching over, or the bow loses it's parallel position. Is it okay if I stop short of the full bow length? I'm simply learning for pleasure, not professionalism.
How do I know if a luthier is good or not? Are there any tells or things to look out for? Are violin luthiers also cello luthiers?
Hello. Thank you for this invitation. I am noticing a scratchy/crunchy sound at the beginning of notes. I've tried to lighten pressure on bow... changed the distance from fingerboard... tried different angle. No sweet spot. I cringe at the sound which of course creates tension. What are ways to approach? building blocks? things to pay attention to? thanks again
Hi Billy,
Congratulations!
Thanks for sharing your knowledge and personal journey!
What exercise would you recommend for someone who has a trigger thumb (left thumb).
When I use my thumb, I clamp too hard. I try playing without my thumb but then I feel I press too much on the strings.
Thanks again and enjoy your vacation!
Virginie
What do you think of the electric cellos. I’m interested in the NS CR model because it sounds the best (in my opinion) and will fit in the plane overhead for travel. Hoping it will keep me from missing practices when traveling! What do you think?
Hi Billy! Greetings from Brazil! Congratulations for the milestone (you deserve it!). After two and a half years on my cello journey I'm wondering if someday I will really combine everything I'm studying (bow arm, intonation, smooth shifts, dynamics, vibrato etc.)? I swear: I just want to make a beautiful sound 😁
Hi Billy, I have a question here, how do you keep upper arm up while keeping the shoulder down when playing A&D strings? I have found myself shrugging while playing on D&A and it is super annoying 😅
Started my cello journey 10 months ago. My goal is to eventually play with others. How long can that take?
if you had to pick one cello in the 1-2k range what would that be? what is your go to recommendation with your student ? I know that's a tough one :)
love your channel and approach. cheers
How do I know tyoe cello to start with and please explain the difference. Could you also recommend a beginner friendly cello?
Thanks
How has you and your wife's pregnancy and parenting journey altered your practice time with your instruments, if any? Many adults (including me!) want to progress in learning an instrument, and find it challenging when kids are in the picture.
Hey, another question. Regarding cleaning strings. I've been playing in the upper positions 7th+, around the D on the A string. I'm finding that my finger keeps on getting stuck, literally. The string sets sticky and I cant slide up to the next note. I can clean it with alcohol and that helps. I can also rub my fingers on it for a while and it gets smother, I feel like it this oils it a bit (?). I'm finding this a little chicken-egg scenario. I don't practice up there much because its sticky, and maybe its sticky because I don't practice there much? Its not just the rosin which I clean off often, at least around the bridge. I can wipe it down, but its still sticky. Is this a "thing" or just me? Not sure how best to approach this. Clean or, somehow just playthrough it until its slippery like the lower half of the string.
If you only had one hour a week to practice, what would you do in that hour? What's the most important in practice in your opinion?
Hi Billy. I have been learning the Cello for 2 months now. Is it normal to feel like you are stuck or even regressing? I have been playing everyday. Some days feels easy, some days I feel like I am playing bad or that I can't find the right position, and it frustrates me 🙂
I’m sadly in between teachers right now. I’ve been playing the cello for 1 ½ years (I’m a life-long musician, though), and even pro’s are amazed by my progress. Sofar I’ve been playing mostly bandmusic for my two bands, because I needed to learn fast. Now my question: What should I begin with? I’m getting ready to loose the tapes, and I’m feeling ready to begin playing solo pieces. I would like to hear your suggestions😊
what are your biggest tips for memorizing pieces?
IF you selected me for the free one-hour Zoom lesson, can we wait until I am further along in my endeavors of learning the cello? Okay, that isn't exactly a great question that will benefit anyone with learning the cello, but I believe in that question is a question that would benefit others. At what point might such a lesson be beneficial? How would it benefit the newborn infant, vs. a few month old baby cellist, vs. the toddler cellist (I am speaking figuratively here about the newborn, baby, toddler, etc). vs. someone who might have a little more experience, but be returning to the cello?
Also, thank you for your very vulnerable video about what is going on in your life. AND congratulations on the over 20K subscribers! Looks like it will be 21K before the end of the year.
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️