//The Cello Lesson Comedy Show (8)//

Like most music students, I resisted practicing Etudes. They are difficult and boring.  Only in recent years that I finally gave in and picked up the infamous Alvin Schroeder’s 170 Foundation Studies for Violoncello. I usually just flip through the pages, then randomly settle on certain page to work on. So just like any other normal day, I flipped through the pages again. Then I froze.

Me: [Pointing to Dotzauer Op 120 No. 12] This was the one you asked me to play many years ago and I could never get It to work. Why did you give me this instead of this? [Flipping to the page of Dotzauer Op 120 No. 7]

Teacher: It makes perfect sense. No. 12 is an easier piece to learn double stop.

Me: It makes no sense. No. 12 is much harder than No. 7 to work with. Back then when I listened to you, no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn’t get through No. 12.   

Teacher: But No. 7 is technically more difficult.

Me: But No. 7 makes more sense. How can I work on something if it doesn’t make sense? Maybe it’s more difficult, but so what? If I can’t play the slur, then I focus on getting separate bowing to work first. If I can’t play double stop yet, then I focus on getting the upper and lower lines to work separately first. At least this piece gives me so much more to work on.

Teacher: *Head Shaking* Be my guest…