Cello Unleashed
by Krista Swanson Lucich on 10/16/15
Lately, I've been letting my cello tell me what to play.
I've literally spent decades trying to determine and control what my cello will do.
Most of the time, a sheet of music is hovering in front of me on the music stand instructing me on how to do this. A relationship develops between this sheet of music, my mind, my body and my instrument. Sometimes it's like one of those easy friendships we fall into with someone who our personalities mesh with. Other times, this relationship can have a hard time getting off the ground. Friendships begun with awkward first conversations, a bit of drama, and sometimes inconvenience, can also breathe hope and intrigue into a routine of the mundane.
While I still have lots of these "friends," these songs that please and challenge me, I am letting go the sheet music conduit for self expression. This beautiful instrument I play, this marvel of physics, craftmanship and ingenuity, has it's own song to sing. Upbeat double-stops, plucky bass lines, airy harmonics, melody's that sing on their own, and oh, so many harmonies, THESE are my new friends. Like a friend who needs no invitation to stop by, these new songs bypass the need for the middleman of paper. May we not spend much time apart, and may we embark on many new adventures together!
~Krista Lucich