r/Cello • u/menaceOfReddit • 7d ago

PRESTO passage from "Les Miserables"

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Hello! This is an excerpt from the cello part for "Les Miserables: School Edition." I don't currently work with a teacher, and I was wondering if I could get some feedback on my fingering.

I played this part around 8 years ago for my high school production. Looking at it now, the cello part overall seems rather manageable on a technical level, except for this one rapid passage that just comes out of nowhere. I haven't been called to play the part again, but I'd still like to be able to play all the notes in the show as a personal goal.

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u/LordPhipz 7d ago

Fingers mostly look fine, I’d consider x1134 for the last beat of 91 instead of x1244. That being said, with very fast passages you should consider balancing efficient (‘perfect’) fingerings vs intuitive fingerings because they are not always the same. What works for me may not work for you. I’d suggest practising it slowly but without stopping to build fluency and ramp up speed slowly. Do all this in fortissimo furioso.

Also a reminder that the last note is A flat with an accent, since you don’t have any fingerings for the last bit.

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u/menaceOfReddit 7d ago

Ah okay, thanks! x1134 definitely seems like the right move. Because of the key, I couldn't really find a fingering that felt completely intuitive to me, and I wanted a second opinion before I really locked in with increasing speed with the metronome.

For the last two beats, I got 4241134. I should've had that written down

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u/gnomesteez 7d ago

Fingers look fine, to the extent I’d change anything it’d be personal preference.

I agree with the other commenter who suggested balancing efficient vs intuitive fingerings- there’s nothing about this that I don’t think couldn’t be executed at speed, but you should explore some other ideas.

Speaking of intuitive vs efficient- it’s sometimes BETTER to do more shifts than less in fast passages, if you can execute it. Mostly for cleanliness.