Exciting New Things (and Old Faves)
Hello cellists!
I hope you’ve had a musically enriching year, and, as we near the year’s end, I want to let you know about the events from Cello Courses coming in 2026.
Throughout the year, the very popular, accessible, exciting and immersive series All About My Bow presents a programme of major and shorter pieces from our repertoire that we explore together. I love preparing and presenting these classes, and afterwards, you are sent detailed notes covering our work on phrasing, structure, technique and history so you can continue to cook the ideas in your own time. These classes are attended by teachers and cello players of varying levels of experience, and sometimes people come without a cello; they sit, take notes, and absorb. It’s all about learning. The dates and music we are focusing on are already posted, so you can pop them in your diary now.
At the centre of the year are two summer events. The annual Unsung Heroes Summer School in July has a rich musical garland and a programme of ideas, technique, improvisation and history awaiting you. I want you to feel expanded and confident at the end of this week’s playing, and I love seeing it happen! Cellists enjoy coming to Lewes from around the world as it’s small, ancient and beautiful, set in the South Downs with nice walks and fresh air. We have such a good time together, and it’s already booking, so I advise you to pop your name down soon.
August 2026 sees the launch of a truly thrilling new project, The Darkness thinking the Light. This is for professional cellists and for intrepid advanced cellists (Grade 7 minimum) wanting something new, challenging and different with a remarkable programme to inspire your imagination and your playing. The music is wide-ranging, from Lassus to Messiaen, and also includes two new pieces being written right now by two cellist-composers inspired by Unsung Heroes courses and ideas: Joanna Borrett and John Blood. We rehearse and develop our collective cello voice to prepare a programme you have already practised and become familiar with, as we work towards giving an exciting public performance on August 14th.
You may not know that Vaulted Sky Music is the small publishing house of Cello Courses, where you can find a lot of wonderful ensemble music alongside new music by contemporary composers. There is music for solo cello by Christopher Fox that I love playing. There is also music for cello and string orchestra by Peter Copley and an Elegy for cello and piano by Julian Broughton. Mark Sinclair’s book One Chair in a Room is also (like all the composers mentioned) available as downloads too. Joanna Borrett has ensemble music here too, as duets, and also for a cello quartet. Teachers, I think, will also find it a helpful resource.
The Unsung Heroes series, in four beautiful volumes, makes a wonderful present to yourself or a cellist you know, and many of the scores from each book can be downloaded, too. Take a peek at some inspiring music!
The technique series Your Tool Kit – this is the class dedicated to slowly examining and expanding our playing skills and the understanding of what we do, which is vital as we are our own teachers in our practice. I will be focusing on sound production, vibrato, cantabile, legato, shifts & extensions, and getting into and out of thumb positions in particular.
The Online Timeline Series came into being during COVID and is still attended by players from far and wide. Many cellists see this as an opportunity to hone their ensemble skills and understand the music’s context for their own ensemble rehearsals. The repertoire extends across time, which helps develop the historical context we all need awareness of. If you haven’t tried it, maybe do so next year.
I do look forward to hearing from you and to working together.
With warm wishes, Catherine x