70 issues and another half a year!

Plus an insight on playing position!

This is the 71st issue of this neesletter, and it is the 1st of July. So it’s a good time to look back at the past six months.

But first, litterally, an insight on the playing position, on the video above, Sergey Malov is trying Alessandro’s Violoncello da Spalla and you can see how he uses the strap, very tight, so that the instrument is held in position by it very firmly, and you can see his left hand position, with the gap between the thumb and the neck.

We plan to publish more insight on Violoncello da Spalla technique soon, with the collaboration of some teachers and players in the field.


Now, back to our most appreciated newsletters, in case you missed something:

The most read:

Violoncello da Spalla
J. S. Bach, cantatas featuring a solo for violoncello piccolo - part 3
It’s New Year’s Day 1725, Leipzig, and J. S. Bach offers a big festive cantata, the BWV 41, featuring trumpets, oboes, timpani, strings and violoncello piccolo solo. It’s the third time Bach uses the cello piccolo in a cantata. Only a couple of months after BWV 180 and 115 (unfortunately, the catalogue numbers BWV are not in chronological order), the wr…
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The most commented (on socials):

Violoncello da Spalla
Beginner’s excitement
Usually, a new Violoncello da Spalla gets into the hand of an adult, professional or amateur, that has practised violin or viola for years. To make it very simple, the first impression is “wow, this is amazing, can I really play like a cello?”, and the second is “oh gosh it moves, how do I hold it firm, how do I do the shifting of position, how do I man…
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The most intriguing:

Violoncello da Spalla
From mercenary captains to theatre impresario
Sometimes you start for what seems an exciting research, and then it turns out that there’s nothing much more than what you already knew. We went to Wien with the plan to see the small cello belonging to the Catajo collection. But unfortunately, it was not in the exhibit and the curator was too busy (for months!) to accord us a meeting. In Wien’s Kunsth…
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The most colored:

Violoncello da Spalla
The right place, the right time…
Following from…
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The most shared 😜:

Violoncello da Spalla
Potato gnocchi
Last year I shared the recipe of my granny’s apple pie, and it was the most commented post ever 🤣! So here is another recipe, potato gnocchi! For 3/4 people: 1kg old potatoes (they are perfect when the wrinkle and start to sprout) About 60 gr flour…
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Thank you for the 3343 reads, this of Violoncello da Spalla sure is a lively world!

Writing a weekly newsletter is quite a commitment, but as any other goal, is achieved bit by bit. I like to see it more as my weekly time for research than a point on my to do list. And thanks to you readers it is becoming very rewarding!

Updates from our workshop

Alessandro’s viola has ribs and neck joint together, while I’m still on getting the perfect fit to glue the neck in the correct position. This week I completed the scroll and the pegbox, including my flowers logo on the chicken butt, or back of the pegbox. That is always time consuming, but I like that there is a piece of my story in each instrument I make. That logo comes from the little church in front of our home, from the shield of a family who got it in 1523 and later become related to the Augsburg family. And is probably the same Haffner family who helped Leopold Mozart to organize his first Italian tour and for whom Wolfgang wrote the serenade and the symphony. Isn’t this exciting?


Featured video of the week

Speaking of our first half of the year, let me share our video of the aria from Bach’s BWV 115 cantata. The Violoncello da Spalla here is the Wagner model made by Daniela in 2021, strung with gut and all single-wound basses.

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Authors
Daniela Gaidano & A. Visintini