After seeing one of our shows, people often remark how the cello and voice are a “weird pairing” that “go so well together.” They’re often surprised at how successfully the unique concept works; adding that they weren’t sure what to expect from a concert such as ours. The truth is, it is a fairly strange concept that we’ve set out to achieve: a cello and vocal group where the cello is seen as equal to the vocals, not just a background accompaniment. The highest compliment someone can pay me after a performance is that I “made the cello sing” because giving the cello a voice, albeit without lyrics, is exactly what we’re trying to do.
Ever since Branden and I started performing together nearly a decade ago, we’ve strived to make the cello seem like it is a solo instrument interacting with Branden’s voice as an equal. We have made many conscious decisions to treat the cello a certain way during a performance to help do this: from staging choices including whether I sit or stand (and where,) to repertoire choices that allow us both to shine, and specific musical choices in each arrangement as to what the cello’s role will be. The cello can play long lyrical arco lines (with the bow) that make it a perfect duet partner to Branden’s singing, but it can also act as a guitar strumming pizzicato (plucked) chords, or playing a walking line like you’d hear on an upright bass in a jazz tune. It has a range of just over four octaves, that pretty well matches the range of notes available in a full choir meaning it can play soaring high soprano notes all the way down to tummy-tingling bass notes. What’s more, the cello is capable of being all these things in one song - deftly changing from one role to another as an arrangement unfolds. In my opinion, the cello really shines in the same range as a tenor. There’s something about the timbre of notes in this range that really hits to the core of me, and is perhaps one of the main reasons it makes such a suitable partner to the voice - and Branden’s voice in particular.
In CelloVoci, our new trio with Effie Passero, the cello’s role is the same only now we have a third voice to play with. It has been really fun working with Effie and incorporating her voice with ours to create something new and fresh. Adding a third person, and a female voice to boot, really solidifies what we’re trying to do: bring modern classical music to contemporary listeners and diverse audiences.
In a surprise move, I have found myself singing more as part of this trio. With singing talent like those Branden and Effie possess, you’d think an untrained voice would be more obviously unmatched. But actually, it’s the opposite… well, most of the time anyway! In general being able to blend with three voices means that my lack of vocal training doesn’t stick out as much as when I just sing with Branden in our duo. I’ve actually been a frustrated singer my whole life. I love singing and have sung in choirs forever, but I don’t have a voice that people really want to listen to. More recently I had an epiphany that, on stage, the cello is my voice and it helped me appreciate my role more and to channel all my expression into my playing. Even still, I love that I get to sing with these two powerhouse vocalists and it adds yet another layer to our music to help create texture and body. Pop Music with a classical twist is our sweet spot: we can play what we’re best at, but still feel like we’re breaking all the classical rules that have been engrained in us.
312
312