G Major

I've started to play my cello again. The past three years have been pretty hectic, filled with other priorities and the cello gets pushed out of the way. Last year, I bought a wonderful new bow with money I inherited from my grandma. I hoped that would "fire me up". It did for a while, but I got distracted again. I get over zealous about playing and then I can't keep up with my expectations...sure I can practice 3 hours a day with a toddler and elementary schooler, a big, messy house and husband, and an almost full-time job.

Well, this time, I'm playing for Him. God gave me this gift and I have to share it, if only with just me and Him and the walls. I also play for them, the little ones. When I was pregnant with baby number 1, I played in a community orchestra. Whenever I would want to quit, I would think, "but this is so good for this unborn baby's development". I didn't play so much before baby number 2's birth, so I'm trying to make up for it now. I purposely try to practice when she's awake. Ha, ha. Some days it works, and other days it doesn't.

I am only playing in G Major right now. Instead of trying to refresh my finger's memory of all of the scales at once, I'm just going to focus on one until it is ingrained in my hand more than it ever was before. I play it Largo, Allegro, slurred (multiple notes to one bow, while sober), and single strokes of the bow. I take it apart and work on just a few runs of notes at a time...sometimes because I'm interupted by baby trying to help. I even play it pizzacato since baby is used to helping her daddy strum his guitar. Occassionally, I stop to play "Twinkle" with baby for a sing-along. She always dances as does my big girl. I can't wait until big girl comes home and they dance together.

I have been playing once in a while at church...just along with hymns at the traditional service and Praise and Worship songs at the contemporary service. I decided, or rather I think God is nudging me to play a little more. I found a copy of Bach's "Arioso" arranged for cello and piano in my drawer of old favorites and both parts were still together. This piece will be a perfect start. It is not all that technically difficult, but it is meditative and beautiful. It is also in the key of G Major. It will be nice to work on something to play with another person. Our church's music director can handle anything, I think. She is a real organist and pianist and can do keyboards in the praise band as well. I think we will have fun playing together too.

Since I'm focusing on playing in G Major, I decided to start playing the Bach Cello Suite No. 1, in, you guessed it, G. It is the one played all the time in commercials. Usually, it is the background for something really classy, but most recently, I think it was played to sell dog food. I was messing around, warming up at church last spring and a high school student who played cello said, "wow, I didn't know anyone that could really play that piece". I can't say that I play it that well, but I am blessed to have an opportunity to try as it is one of the most beautiful pieces composed for cello...so beautiful that guitarists, trombonists, violists, bassists, etc. have their own arrangements of it...but Bach wrote it for me!