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Cello Repertoire Initiative

Up-Grade! Cello Grades 3-5

by Pam Wedgwood

Instrumentation
Cello, Piano
Composed
2000
Publisher
Faber Music
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About this piece

The second cello volume of Pam Wedgwood's Up-Grade! series, 'light relief between the grades' for players working between Grades 3 and 5. Original jazzy and lyrical pieces such as 'Build That Wall', 'Castaway' and 'Pandora's Box' are mixed with light arrangements of Beethoven's 'Fur Elise', Dvorak's 'Humoreske', Franck's 'Panis Angelicus' and the theme from 'The Archers', and the book ends with a set of duets ('Journey to Egypt'). '2010' and 'Panis Angelicus' were Trinity selected pieces for cello (2010-2012).

Technical overview

Grades 3-5 material for cello and piano in jazzy and classical styles, with duets; no technical detail given by the sources.

Level rubric

Early Intermediate

Left Hand

  • Regular shifting among 1st–4th positions.
  • Frequent shifts with target notes & prepared approaches.
  • Introduce ornamentation (grace notes, slow trills, turns).
  • Begin basic double stops (often with one open note).
  • Combine extensions with shifting.
  • Consistent vibrato on sustained notes with speed variations.

Right Hand

  • Bow arm gains finesse and speed.
  • Introduce controlled spiccato.
  • Sautillé appears in rapid passages.
  • Expand legato into longer, sustained lines.
  • Practice advanced articulations (martelé, refined string crossings).
  • Add complex strokes for double stops/chords.

Bow Strokes

  • Use context‑appropriate strokes: legato, spiccato, martelé.
  • Subtle bow changes during string crossings.

Rhythm & Musicality

  • Increased challenges: sixteenths, dotted rhythms, syncopation, contrasting subdivisions.
  • Emphasize expression with crescendos/decrescendos & vibrato.
  • Balance technical precision with emotional delivery.

Levels are approximate guides, not strict requirements.

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