Welcome to the Homepage of
GEORG MERTENS
(Georg Mertens-Moussa 1990-2002)
and the
CELLO CONCERTS IN THE CAVES
inside the
CATHEDRAL CHAMBER
at JENOLAN CAVES
A Blue Mountains World Heritage Venue
Concerts are held in 2008
on every third Saturday of the month - 4pm
(dates below / booking details right)
The Cello Concerts in the Cave - An Introduction
The Cello Concert in the Caves started in 1997.
At this stage the Blue Mountains Trio (see webpage on left) played regularly at Jenolan Caves House. The manager at the time, Lorraine Duffy mentioned:" The Jenolan Caves complex includes a cave, the Cathedral Chamber, which has the best acoustics in the whole world." Georg: "I would love to visit a concert there. Do you know when they are on?" Lorraine: "There are none. Somehow no one organises them." Georg: "I'd love to play there!" Six weeks later the Cello Concerts in the Cave were born.
Today these concerts are the longest series of cello concerts on the planet with more than 130 concerts in more than 11 years.
Over eleven years the Cello Concerts in the Cave have evolved into a new genre: from concerts with a program of the 6 Suites for cello solo by J.S.Bach into a fusion from Classical to Tango. On one hand you can listen to works by Bach and on the other hand to music from Brazil and Spain, Romantic favourites and also free improvisations and music written for just the Cathedral Chamber.The Cathedral Chamber is an extraordinary inspiring space, not only stunningly beautiful, but also reputed for its perfect acoustics (see our webpage: the Acoustics in the Cathedral Chamber). The Chamber is closed from the outer world and offers peace and silence combined with visual beauty. In a way we are transported back - just for an hour - into a much simpler and purer world sharing the mellow sounds of the cello. The Concerts in the Cave allow us to side step from our normal speedy, noisy and stressful environment.
Bookings: 02 6359 3911 or 1300 76 3311.
Tickets: $45 / children $25
Limit per concert are 75 visitors.Wine & Cheese
After the Concerts Jenolan Caves House offers generously at
6.30pm free Wine & Cheese
for all concert visitors.
A chance to chat with the artists
- all CD's are on display and for sale to a reduced price -
There is no need any more to bring a cushion or a chair. Comfortable chairs are now provided in the cave for visitors.
The Cave is air naturally rock conditioned at 15 degrees Celsius, warm in winter, cool in summer.
It is recomended to bring a light jumper.
Access:
Access from Sydney is via (a well sign posted) turnoff
from the Great Western Highway at Hartley.
Total distance is c 175km from Central Sydney (c 3 hrs), 75km from Katoomba (c 1.15hrs).
PROGRAM C1 - 2008
Georg Mertens plays Bach to Romantic Favourites
Jan 19 / Mar 15 / May 17 / Jul 19 / Sep 20 / Nov 15
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This program is a collection of cello favourites selected for the ambience of the cave ranging from Bach and Vivaldi to Romantics like "The Swan" and Massenet's "Meditation from Thaiss" to David Poppers brilliant "Hungarian Rhapsody", also including Georg Mertens' "Eastern improvisation - In Imitation of the Erh Hu" in which sounds are produced like from another world.
(For program notes below click here)
For the Program of the Concert at Wellington Caves
Saturday 8th November 5pm
click here below
PROGRAM C2 - 2008
Georg Mertens plays music written and arranged for the Cathedral Chamber
Feb 16 / Apr 19 / Jun 21 / Aug 16 / Oct 18 / Dec 20
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This program features exclusively music arranged and composed for the Cathedral Chamber. Over the last 10 years Georg Mertens composed many works with the effect of the Cave in mind. He also did arrangements of compositions suiting the venue.
You will hear a program for this particular cave, which is performed nowhere else in the world except here - similar as if you could experience Handels fireworks music at the original time and the original place.
Georg Mertens plays a cello made c 1740.
(For program notes below click here)
* Recorded by Georg Mertens on the CD "Music at Jenolan Caves"
** Recorded by Georg Mertens on guitar on the CD "Classical Guitar re - issued"
An opportunity to have your own concert with your own friends.
Your choice of program, date & time.
Program Notes to C1
by Georg Mertens
C1 - 1 Sergej Rachmaninov - Vocalise
Originally the Vocalise is written for voice. Vocalise means that instead of a song with words we have a melody sung without words. However the phrases (the length of breath) are often so long that they are difficult to sing - and the closest to the human voice is the cello, where this work became one of the standard repertoir. Originally Rachmaninov (Russian 1873-1943) wrote this piece accompanied with piano. I though like playing it unaccompanied, as he wrote in some sections pp (very soft) and the piano plays there heavy and full passages, drowning out the very beautiful soft melody. This piece introduces the audience to the cello singing in the cave.C1 - 2 David Popper - Fond recollections (Happy recollections)
Titled also "In memory of my parents - Once upon more beautiful days".
Popper (Bohemian 1843-1913) wrote this remarkable melodies as a recollection of peaceful and inspired dialogs between his parents, using the high and low voice of the cello interacting with each other.C1 - 3 William Henry Squire - Tarantella
There are many stories about the Tarantella, all leading back to the bite of the Tarantula spider of the Mediterranean. Supposed to, once you have been bitten by the big spider you jump (not fall) into a trance which makes you dance the Tarantella. You have not to resist the urge to dance or you will die. If you dance until you get frantic and collapse - you fall into a coma and next morning everything is fine.
Although to a large part a 20th century composer and cellist, Squire (English 1871-1963) writes in a full Romantic tradition keen on brilliance and effect. The Tarantella here takes the listener through the whole Tarantula cycle starting calmer to end up frantic.
C1 - 4 Antonio Vivaldi - Sonata e minor
Quite soon after the wound strings for the cello had been developed in Venice - replacing the harsher sounding all gut strings - the Venetian composers started to write concertos and Sonatas for cello; Vivaldi (Venice, Italy 1678-1741) wrote 26 cello concertos and 9 cello Sonatas. In my interpretation I rely on the Urtext edition with original bowings by Bettina Hoffmann (Baerenreiter) and employ Baroque ornamentation.
By surprise I discovered when teaching a student that in the Largo 2 melody and accompaniment can be played on one cello, which is the way I play it in the concert.
C1 - 5 Johann Sebastian Bach - Suites for solo cello
Undoubtedly the set of the six suites for cello solo is the greatest masterpiece written for cello solo. The original of the Suites has been lost and it is among cellists a big questions, what choice of bowings one has to play - what would Bach have written. I rely in my performance on the contemporary facsimiles as published in the Urtext - facsimile edition by Barenreiter (Bettina Schwemer) and also on the edition of Werner Icking. Most cellists rely on the script of Bach's wife Anna Magdalena. However as pointed out (Schwemer) her script of the violin works virtually ignores often the correct bowing by Bach.
As a guitarist I have played the majority of Bach's works for solo violin on guitar and I am familiar with Bach's ideas on bowings on the violin. I also have played many transcriptions of the violin works on cello (available as free download from Werner Ickings Music Archive, WIMA). It became clear to me, that Anna Magdalenas bowings don't reflect the simplicity and common sense of Bach's bowings - Anna Magdalena did not play a string instrument. By trying to understand Bach's logic in bowing and incorporating the common ideas I came to my own edition. To my surprise I found my bowings literally in many movements of Werner Ickings edition, a violinist who also compared Bach's violin bowing concepts to the cello suites. I differ in places, as Icking was a violinist and hasn't played the suites on the cello. -
My cello is of Baroque origin, made during Bach's life time and is still fitted with the original Baroque bass bar.
C1 - 6 Georg Mertens - Eastern Improvisation - in Imitation of the Erh Hu
One of my free improvisation. I have a rough concept, but never a particular plan. The improvisation is always different and depends on ideas and the mood of the day. The Erh Hu is a Chinese instrument in a similar range as the cello. One of its particularities is, that its 2 strings are fed through the bow, so that the bow and the instrument can never be separated - a symbolic union. In my performance I dismantel the bow and feed the middle strings (D and G) between hair and stick. This makes it possible to play the outer strings A and C together - which is usually impossible. I play also A and G together - the A from the top / the G from underneath. In the left hand I use only one finger and glide up and down (when the finger is tired, I take another one). Opposite to the general assumption, the clearness and intonation is by just shifting more accurate as when played with fingers. I am - even as the player - always wrapped into the absolute perfection of harmonies.
I used to play just free melodies, but once I played this piece at a private caves concert in front of an audience from Taiwan. They praised my sound and the imitation of the Erh Hu technique, but criricised, that I did not play purely pentatonic (only the notes CDEGA), still strictly used in classical Chinese music. Since then I improvise the frame parts A and C based on the pentatonic C scale, where as in the middle part with the G in the bass I just let go and improvise anything entering my mind.
This piece is an extension of what we expect a cello could sound like. I always think that instead of going atonal, why not finding ways of making a cello sound really different, something really new.C1 - 7 Camille Saint-Saens - The Swan
The cello jewel from the "Carnival of the Animals". That is what The Swan is known for. Originally the whole work though has been composed for 2 pianos, for a childrens birthday party. Saint-Saens took the work never seriously and it was never published in full until after his death. The Swan became famous in the orchestral version with harp and cello - the harp representing the water, the cello playing the swan himself.C1 - 8 David Popper - Hungarian Rhapsody
David Popper (see C2, 1843-1913) was one of the greatest cellist in history, famous for his big sound, polished performances and his compositions. The later part of his professional life he was professor at the Budapest conservatoir (Hungary) where he wrote one of his most brilliant works, the Hungarian Rhapsody, full of expressive slow melodies, fast runs, very high (the note of the the highest key on the piano!) and very low parts, a masterpiece of cello entertainment.C1 - 9 Jules Massenet - Meditation from "Thaiss"
This famous melody by Massenet (French 1842-1912) is from his Opera "Thais" (1884). For the present solo performance I added harmonies and small sections from the accompaniment. Although it is originally for violin I prefer it for cello - the cello has more ability to sing like a human voice.
_____________________________________________________________________
C2 - 1 Georg Mertens - Jenolan Ciaconna
This Ciaconna is written for the Cathedral Chamber. After I had played for two years only Bach in the cave (1997/8) I felt, that the roughness and also the special acoustic is asking for a more matching composition and I decided to write the Ciaconna with always the sound in the Cathedral Chamber in mind.
A Ciaconna is a set of variations, but instead of based on a song it is based on a bass theme or a set of chords, in this case a bass melody with a set of chords on top. The theme starts with chords in the narrow position, which change to a wide position using the same notes, thus symbolising and supporting the grand enriching of sound in the room. In each of the variations I try to explore the different sounds, which resonate particularly well in this caveI and put them into a flow of melodies. In this piece the whole large room seems to reverberate.
C2 - 2 Georg Mertens - Variations on Maytime (Neidhardt)
The song "Maienzeit" or "Maytime" is the oldest song I know. Neidhardt (1180-1240) was a troubadour of the middle ages. This song is still sung in Germany and it has always been one of my favourites. The melody is based on a 6 note scale - the seventh note being missing like often in songs of this time. I limited the Variations on these 6 notes - in different ranges - to maintain the flavour. Visitors tell me it sounds like very ancient folk music.
C2 - 3 Vicente Sojo - Cantico - transcribed from guitar by G.M.
"Cantico" meaning "Song" is the first of "Five pieces from Venezuela" for guitar by Vicente Sojo (1887-1974). A song as it could have been written for the best range of the sonority of the cello with beautiful double stops.C2 - 4 Heitor Villa-Lobos - Prelude No 3 - transcribed from guitar by G.M.
I played this piece first on guitar in 1974 and my initial response was, that it would sound better on cello. In 1978 I wrote my first version, the current one is from 2006.
Heitor Villa-Lobos (Brazil, 1887-1959) played both cello and guitar, like me, and his compositions show a combination of a sense for a full and rich melody and also a continuous chord structure, the elemets I love to bring out in my play. Interpreting his music strikes something very familiar in me although he is strongly influenced by Brazilian folk music and I am German. In my view the piece gained a lot in the arrangement and I feel sad, that I have never been able to present Villa-Lobos the cello version.C2 - 5 Georg Mertens - Eastern Improvisation - Arabia
Like most our instruments, the cello has its origin in the Arab world; so has the violin, the organ, the guitar, the lute, the oboe, the clarinet and of course our numbers.
This piece turns out every time differently. Sometimes I start in one way, other times in another. In the main part I employ the open D string as a bordun - which means it sounds all the time. This gives the impression as if the solo part, the higher string - or sometimes lower - is accompanied by a support instrument, the D string. The cello sounds here - I am told - like not belonging to the classical instruments but an Eastern band.
C2 - 6 Anonymus - Spanish Romance - transcribed from guitar by G.M.
This Romance is one of the most well known classical guitar pieces. It was the theme in the movie "jeux interdit". Supposed to it has first been written down by an Italian source c 1890. On the other hand the "Romance" is a traditional Spanish character piece in 3 beats, and as such older than the Romantic period. I include in my arrangement a free introduction, a little cadenza, and treat the traditional theme rather as a chance to variety than a literal transcription.
C2 - 7 Georg Mertens - Tango Celloguitar
Often just to play around I used to play the cello like a guitar - and many friends told me: write a piece like this, I have never heard anything like it. I delayed the plan for a long time, as probably nobody except me would be able to play the piece - you have to play both instruments on a professional level.
But last year (summer 2006/7) I finally wrote it. As a main feature I adopt the tremolo on the guitar (like in "Recuerdos del Alhambra" by Tarrega) and put underneath the melody a Tango bass rhythm.The bow is only used in the middle section, which I based on Eastern scales. What you hear is a cello in a very different way than usual.
C2 - 8 Astor Piazzolla - Verano Porteno -- transcribed from guitar by G.M. 2007.
One of Piazzollas (Argentinia, 1921-1992) great Tangos. I have at home a recording with Piazzolla himself & his noneto and a guitar version. My transcription is mainly based on the guitar version with minor changes, where in the guitar version notes are missing, added or put in different ranges to accomodate the guitar technique. I do similar things to accomodate the cello technique and its different sound. The piece has strong rhythmical sections and a very lyrical part in Piazzollas typical dry sweetness with his excessively beautiful melodies. Composed c 1972, edited 1982.
C2 - 9 Isaac Albeniz - Leyenda (Asturias) - transcribed from guitar by G.M.
Actually originally this piece is written for piano, as Albeniz (Spain, 1860-1909) was a pianist and did not play guitar. However Albeniz himself praised Francisco Tarrega's rendition for guitar as preferrable. Like many guitarists I performed this piece often and recorded it. I always felt that both, the piano and the guitar can't do justice to the long drawn menlodies in the slow middle section. Here the cello brings out the mournful tune like never heard on the other arrangements.
GEORG MERTENS
Georg Mertens is an international soloist and chamber musician residing in Katoomba in the Blue Mountains .
He was born in Aachen / Germany where he started cello lessons at the age of 9.
He did his degrees at the reputed Staatliche Hochschule fuer Musik in Freiburg / Germany majoring in cello and Classical guitar.
During his studies he received a scholarship to a masterclass with cellist Enrico Mainardi;
aged 21 he conducted international chamber music classes in Salzburg and Koenigstein.
He toured 1973-1977 Germany, Switzerland, France and Sweden and did in 1978-80 solo recital series in the old village churches of Berlin;
1980 he was called to be head of Department at the Conservatorium of Schleswig-Flensburg. In 1986 he taught at UNE Armidale / Australia.
In 1993 herecorded the complete Suites for cello solo by J.S.Bach for 2 MBS FM (first complete Australian recording)
and perfomed in 1995 live an air for the 20 years celebration of 2 MBS FM.
In 1997 he started cello solo concerts in the Cathedral Chamber.
Georg is a cello teacher at the Mitchell Conservatorium of Charles Sturt University (Bathurst) and teaches privately in Katoomba and Mudgee.
Many of his students are today professional musicians overseas and in Australia. He wrote a comprehensive study on bow technique for string players (which can be viewed on this website).
Georg is a member of the Paganini Duo and the Blue Mountains Trio.For available recordings with Georg Mertens see "CD releases"
Georg Mertens as a composer:
Many of Georg Mertens compositions have been performed and broadcast.
He wrote works for small orchestra, guitar, cello and chamber music combinations.
He also wrote a method for guitar and for cello.
You can hear Georg's "Multicultural Suite" (2002/4) for recorder and cello on the CD "Sounds of Timber".
(click on CD cover to listen)
Compositions for the Concerts in the Cave:
"Jenolan Ciaconna" (1999)
"Tango Celloguitar" (2006/7)
"Variations on Maytime" (1999)
Free improvisations:
(1) "Eastern Improvisation - Imitation of the Erh Hu"
(2) "Eastern Improvisation - Arabia"
Transcriptions from guitar to cello:
Heitor Villa-Lobos - Prelude No III (1978/2004),
Vincente Sojo - Cantico (2003)
John Dowland - Melancholy Galliard (2003)
Issac Albeniz - Leyenda (Asturias) (2006)
anonymus - Spanish Romance (2006)
Astor Piazzolla - Verano di Porteno (2007)
Georg Mertens on Classical Guitar
(click on CD icon to listen)
p.s.
The c 1690 German made cello as heard on the CD "Music at Jenolan Caves" is for sale:
For details please email Georg on:
georgcello@ hotmail.com
CONTACT
( & joining our email list )
click here on:
georgcello@hotmail.comConcert Bookings:
ph. 1300 76 3311 or 02 6359 3911 then dial 2
(the music on call waiting is from the CD "re-issued" - see CD releases)
For other caves Tours visit the website: jenolancaves.org.auShuttle Bus options (also Concert bookings)
with:
BMGST Cultural Tours
(Door to door shuttle bus service on request) ph 02 4784 2881
www.bmgst.com
&
"Fantastic Aussie Tours"
(24 hrs) ph 02 4782 1866
www.fantastic-aussie-tours.com.au
On site Accomodation:
Jenolan Caves House
ph 02 6359 3322
www.jenolancaveshouse.com.au
NEW CD 2008
Cello Favourites
Georg Mertens (cello) and Gavin Tipping (piano)
(click on CD cover to listen)(You find the program notes for this CD in this column below the CD displays)
TRACKS1 Ludwig van Beethoven: Sonatina in D minor (originally for mandolin)
2 Jean Babtiste Breval: Sonata in C major: I. Allegro
3 Georg Friedrich Handel: Aria in F major
4 Domenico dalla Bella: Sonata in C major: II. Giga
5 Henry Eccles: Sonata in G minor: I. Largo
6 Sonata G minor: II. Allegro
7 J.S.Bach: Suite No. 1 in G major, BWV 1007: I. Prelude
8 Suite No. 1 : III. Courante
9 Bach - Gounod: Meditation - Ave Maria
10 J.S.Bach: Arioso from Cantata BWV 156: I Adagio
11 Antonio Vivaldi: Sonata E minor RV 40: I. Largo
12 Sonata E minor : II. Allegro
13 Giovanni Baptista Pergolesi: Nina - from the opera Tre Giorni
14 David Popper: Happy (Fond) Recollections Op. 64, No 1
15 Gabriel Faure: Sicilienne Op 78
16 Cesare Cui: Oriental from Le Kaleidoscope Op. 50, No 9
17 Piotr Ilyich Tschaikovsky: Chanson Triste in G minor
18 Gabriel Marie: La Cinquantaine
19 Piotr Ilyich Tschaikovsky: Valse Sentimental Op. 51, No 6
20 Bernhard Romberg: Sonata E minor Op. 38: I. Allegro non troppo
Georg Mertens (photo courtesy by Peter Adams)
Gavin Tipping (photo courtesy by Diane Tipping)
Program Notes for the CD " Cello Favourites - From Learner to Master" by Georg Mertens
I mention in the program notes the closest version to the one I play, although I alter in all edition bowings and fingerings. This is an overview of the recommended changes.
1 - Beethoven, Sonatina. (Peters/Stutschewsky) I play virtually all bowings and fingerings recommended. Like in all Beethoven, the articulation is extremely important. A clear distinction between staccato and slurs brings life to the phrasing.
2 - Breval, Sonata C major, Allegro. (Schott/Stutschewsky). Editions by e.g. Schroeder or Suzuki simplify passages, which are not the difficult ones and miss out important musical content. I use the recommended bowings except the slurs in the triplets, which seem rather arbitrary to me.
3 - Handel, Aria (Schott/Rapp from "Alte Meisterweisen"). The melody should sing like a voice. The printed dynamics don't make always sense to me; the middle section line 5 needs to be stronger, not piano. Line 7 should instead be p. The parallel melodies bar 7 and 13 could have the same fingering. (I start bar 15 with down bow again).
4 - Dalla Bella, Giga (Nagels-Baerenreiter/Upmeyer). One of my favourites as a child, also a fantastic study for positions. I slur all triplets (except the 3 before the end note). I also play V V for all crotchets (1/4) plus quavers (1/8) (they always occur in V). This bowing supports the rhythmical weighting and musical phrasing.
5 & 6 - Eccles, Sonata g minor, Largo and Allegro (Schott/Cahrnbley). I don't know any other edition. Edited 1918, Carnbley lived before the time anyone cared about originals and not much was known about Baroque style and performance. All bowings are here in order to impress in a Romantic manner. I changed virtually all bowings to my own intuition and general knowledge about Baroque music.
In the Allegro I play in the theme bow direction units of quavers (1/8).
I recommend for a Baroque sound to hold the bow a few cm more inwards than usually, even allowing to touch the hair, and play the bow very light; also to create a forte by rather playing a faster bow than pushing.
7 & 8 - Bach, Prelude and Courante from Suite No 1, G major (from Werner Icking Music Archive - WIMA). For original bowings the new Baerenreiter edition is the only representative one. I worked out my own edition after comparing all the early manuscripts with the logic of Bach's bowings in his own works for violin solo of which the original survived. To my surprise I found my bowings to be identical with the Werner Icking ones, who also compared the cello with the violin works. -
9 - Bach-Gounod, Ave Maria (Williams/Squire). I start with V. Like a controlled voice we need to control the beginnings and ends of the bow: that the start is gradual, the end not rushed - especially not towards the nut; a bow can finish just where it ends, anywhere, when the time is right, without acceleration.
10 - Bach, Arioso (Fischer/Isaac). It is important to watch, that the first and last note in a slur of quavers (1/8) is played fully out, not rushed in timing or bow speed.
11 & 12 - Vivaldi, Sonata e minor, Largo & Allegro (Baerenreiter/Hoffmann). It is refreshing to play Vivaldi with original bowings and no fingerings written in (there is a simple logic in his fingerings, which occurs by just playing a few times through; it is amazing how artificially complicated and the music contradicting our editions are. I thought always something is wrong with the works until I found this version (edited 2003).
13 - Pergolesi, Nina (Schirmer/Deri). Four bars before the repeat it sounds better and is easier to shift from the high G on D with 3 back to A, ready for 2 on Eb. The pause in the Coda needs to be taken seriously; I like to put a comma between Eb and D, as you do it in a recitativo.
14 - Popper, Happy (Fond) Recollections - In Memory of my Parents (Several editions). The music is a peaceful dialog between the deep voice of the father and the soft high voice of the mother, sometimes dramatic, sometimes telling just little stories.
15 - Faure, Sicilienne (IMC) This piece is originally written for cello and dedicated to Squire. I always wondered about the frequent repetition of G-D, and I imagine a conversation like this preceding the composition: the young talented Squire demonstrated how well he could stretch without difficulty from G to D and even with vibrato!; Faure answering: I write you a piece with x stretches from G to D (9x), Squire answering: please don't! But Faure promised to give the stretch a fancy dressing, sounding really not so bad! - - For me there is always a question and answer game in the theme, the 5th bar ending in a strong D major, where as the following answer in bar 9 should end in p (I start the upbeat D in bar 5 with down bow).
16 - Cui, Oriental (AMEB/Allans) The series of VVV is not meant as a staccato towards the nut, but as a bumping bow at the tip imitating a drum (always, even if there are only 2 notes). In bar 36, most players might find it easier to start in 4th position with 3 (then the recommended 1).
17 - Tschaikovsky, Chanson Triste. There are many editions and many bowing varieties, impossible to relate to. Here are some details: I play all high Bb with down bow (in the outer sections in a slur). I prepare the high Bb every time with a 1 on G. - The middle section should be noticeably more moving ahead and have a freer feel.
18 - Marie, La Cinquantaine (Costallat).This piece, originally written for cello, is dedicated to Monsieur E.Binon. In my old edition the repeats are not written out, and I prefer not to play them. I didn't like the piece for a long time, until I changed the bow direction found in all editions. Many phrases go towards the F in 4th position, which are V; the note tends to sound choked, the harmonic reminds of anything else except lightness. All these F's need to be down bow, the bowings leading to it need changed. Suddenly this piece turns to not boring any more (I start even with a down bow).
19 - Tschaikovsky, Valse sentimental (IMC/Rose) In bar 1 I go already for the A# with 2 in the 4th position; be careful not to tilt the bow inwards for the change to A string or the sound will not be clear. I start bars 30 & 62 with V and start a new bow on the high B to enable a full sound in f; to prepare I play the D# in bars 28 & 60 with V. - For me the outer sections are a slow valse, in a sentimental mood, where as the Piu mosso sections I feel should be noticeably faster.
20 - Romberg, Sonata e-minor, Allegro non troppo (IMC/Jansen) I play most fingerings and bowings. In this movement it is essential to add dynamic markings and not play everything mf. P2 - I start every 2 bar phrase and line 2 with V. In line 5 & 6 it is important to remain for the quaver (1/8) passages before the semibreve (1/1) in the upper half of the bow.G.M.
.
