Fast Forward

About this piece

Fast Forward is the third volume of Katherine and Hugh Colledge's Easy String Music series for Boosey & Hawkes, following Waggon Wheels. It contains 21 short pieces for cello with piano accompaniment. Boosey says the book uses '0-12-3-4 and 0-1-2-34 finger patterns'. It adds that 'new rhythms and compound time are introduced, along with a wider range of expression marks and some varied bowing.' The titles include Winter's night, Lazybones, Hallowe'en, Singapore sunset, Polly's polka, Boogie-woogie, Mellow cello, Sweet dreams, Hornpipe and The ceilidh. The book was first published in 1993. It is now sold as a cello book with online audio and as a cello-and-piano edition, and Boosey's demonstration tracks are by Carina Drury and Robin Bigwood. Pieces are set for ABRSM Grade 2 (Sweet Dreams, The Ceilidh), Trinity Grades 1–2 and RCM Preparatory to Grade 2.

Technical overview

21 first-position pieces, mostly one or two pages each. The opening pieces seen (Winter's night, Lazybones, Hallowe'en) use pairs of slurred notes on the D string, mf/mp/f/ff contrasts and first/second-time bars. Hallowe'en moves onto the A string and adds dotted crotchet–quaver rhythms, accents, a four-quaver slur and crescendo/diminuendo hairpins, ending on the G string.

Technical focus

• D String Notes
• A String Notes
• G String Notes
• 2 Note Slurs
• 4 Note Slurs
• Dotted Rhythms
• Dynamics
• Hairpin Dynamics