KHACHATURIAN, Aram

Concerto for cello and orchestra in E minor (cello and piano reduction)

I. Allegro moderato

Torleif Thedéen, guest professor

Willard Carter, student

Ofelia Montalván, accompanying pianist

Professor Thedéen congratulates the student for his performance and his sound quality.
The student has to visualise the beginning, the main cue, before starting. When we have identical phrases, they should not be repeated in the same way, by the contrary, it is very desirable to create a long period of phrasing. Thedéen talks about vibrato: different fragments may require different types of vibrato and not always the same. 
About tempo, it is possible to stretch just a little in some moment, although we keep a solid and steady pulse. We should show that something is coming, creating an expectation.
The melancholic character loses somehow the essence if it becomes too slow because it is not an excessively dense and deep material, so it is necessary to have more the sensation of flow and always think about long lines of phrasing. When shifting, it is required enough time to do the vibrato.
They talk about fingerings and the most suitable finger in each moment, more when choosing between 2nd and 3rd one. Thedéen emphasises the importance of the legato in several phrasings, even it is possible to do a little and quick glissando -it does not sound-. More, the synchronization with the bow is crucial to get a good legato.
The character changes should stand out with the help of the bow. It is important to find some feeling or sensation that help us to build a construction and express the structure of the piece.
The student should investigate how the piece would sound if playing it with 'worse taste', in the sense of giving it another different and original vision -he names the cellist Shafran-. There has to be a lot more variety of colors because it all sounds too similar.

Language: English