A-Chording to the Cello

For all the resources that exist for teaching young string players how to play scales and arpeggios, there are surprisingly few that address the playing of chords. Understanding how to play chords can be a very useful skill for a variety of reasons, aside from the number of times that they appear in the repertoire.

For example, understanding chords improves a player’s ability to:

• Think harmonically

• Analyze music

• Sight read

• Play arpeggios and double stops

• Have a left hand whose fingers work together as a team compose and improvise

My unique books on the topic, Compendium of Chords, guides readers through the process of understanding and playing chords on a string instrument. It is systematic, thorough, and clear, with hundreds of musical examples.

“A-Chording to the Cello” is a series of videos designed to introduce cellists to these topics and to how to use the books most effectively.