# Cello - Double Stops



## fido94 (Jan 18, 2010)

Hello folks, I'm trying to grasp information on double stopping and how to figure out what's possible and what's not.

First, does anyone know of a good reference online? I've been looking around but so far no luck.

Secondly, would it be possible for a cellist to play D2 and A2 as pizzicato (they don't have to be plucked at the same time). So I'm thinking of a line that has all fifths. (D2/A2, F2/C3, E2/B2 etc...)

Any help would be great.
Thank you.


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## c0mp0ser (Jan 18, 2010)

Hey Fido, 

I'm a cellist... well, kinda, I've lost my skills a bit... but I can answer this.

Fifths anywhere on the instrument are very easy. as are 6ths and 7ths of any kind. Octaves are only possible if the lower string is an open string or the lowest note is like middle C and you're way up on the fingerboard.

Don't bother with 2nds, 3rds or 4ths unless you double-check them, those are trickier.

Hope that helps... hopefully a real string player can chime in...

Mike


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## DouglasGibsonComposer (Jan 18, 2010)

I would recommend getting a book on Orchestration. There are a few out there and most will have info about double stops and include a Cello diagram. Peter Alexander's book Professional Orchestration Vol. 1 has a good section on Cello double stops. 

The short answer is yes generally they can handle 5ths. (Violins do not take to them well) Of course I say this without knowing the specific details of what your part looks like.

However a couple things to keep in mind. It is very easy to have your tempos be too fast on the computer. Also I find rhythmic issues are the most common trouble spots in a live context. The computer can interlock any rhythm perfectly. Lastly ( and I know you said they are not playing the notes together) remember that double stops do not equal double the volume. Actually it can have the opposite effect which may seem counter intuitive. 


In general terms I would suggest looking at it from a Cello players point of view. To learn how to do that? Ideally ask the cellist you are working with questions and feedback on how it felt to play, and it is a good idea beforehand to look at some of the Cello Method books as that is what they will have been trained on. Common ones would be Bunting, C. Essay on the Craft of Cello Playing: The Left Hand Vol 2 , and the Alexanian, D. The Technique of Violoncello Playing, and the works of Popper.

Check out ... http://www.cello.org/Libraries/cellobooks.htm for an extensive list. 
Also a simple google for Cello finger board diagram can be of help. The hand positions need to be thought about in the lower register. Also the notes can take a bit longer to speak. In the lower position each finger is a semi-tone. 


Good luck, and hope that helped.


Doug

PS. Sorry if I went beyond the scope of your initial question


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## Frédéric P (Jan 19, 2010)

Yes it's ok. 
5th are easy to play on the cello.


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## Hannes_F (Jan 19, 2010)

DouglasGibsonComposer @ Tue Jan 19 said:


> (Violins do not take to them well)



?

It depends on the violinists, we play a lot of fifths in literature. And fourths is what we take a lot worse :D


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## fido94 (Jan 19, 2010)

Thanks everyone. this is very helpful.


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## bryla (Jan 19, 2010)

Anybody know about practial viola double-stops? I mean fifths?


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## c0mp0ser (Jan 19, 2010)

Fifths only for cellists. Don't write fifths for violins or violas. Yeah, like Hannes said, some are cool with it, and some will just throw rocks at you.
Avoid rocks.


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## bryla (Jan 19, 2010)

Avoid rocks.... got it!

Okay... but can't you use rocks? I mean for the percussion section? I reckon violin players throwing rocks at the conductor/composer - and missing by a mile - would hit some timpanies and help the perc section play in time... ?


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## Nickie Fønshauge (Jan 19, 2010)

You can play:
fifths, sixths, sevenths and octaves from C2
augmented fourths from Db2
natural fourths from D2
major thirds from Eb2
minor thirds from E2
up to around G5 (lowest note), *but the resonance suffers increasingly across the last octave, as it becomes harder to press the strings firmly against the fingerboard.
2nds are - as Mike said - trickier, but can mostly be done.*


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