Essential Elements for Strings – Cello Book 1
by Michael Allen, Robert Gillespie and Pamela Tellejohn Hayes · arranged by John Higgins
- Instrumentation
- Cello
- Publisher
- Hal Leonard, HL00875057 (Cello Book 1 with Online Resources); ISBN 9798350120769
Purchase or download
About this piece
Essential Elements for Strings is Hal Leonard's method for mixed string classes, written by Michael Allen, Robert Gillespie and Pamela Tellejohn Hayes, with arrangements by John Higgins. The cello book follows the same numbered exercises as the violin, viola and bass books so a whole class can play together, mixing short exercises and quizzes with folk songs and classical themes, such as the Israeli folk song 'Dreidel', 'Pop Goes the Weasel' and Haydn's Surprise Symphony. The current edition comes with online access to Essential Elements Interactive, including more than 150 instructional videos and backing tracks, and it uses the same exercise numbers as earlier editions. A Spanish-language cello book, Essential Elements para cuerdas, is also published.
Technical overview
First position throughout. The book begins with pizzicato on open D and A, counting and theory boxes, then fingered notes on the A and D strings, and introduces the bow through rosin and shadow-bowing exercises. By the later pages students play one- and two-octave scales and arpeggios in D, G and C major down to open C, with staccato, two- and three-note slurs and hooked bowing, and learn forte and piano through Haydn's Surprise Symphony theme.
Technical focus
- Pizzicato
- D String Notes
- A String Notes
- G String Notes
- C String Notes
- Staccato
- 2 Note Slurs
- 3 Note Slurs
- Hooked Bowings
- Dynamics
- Rhythm
- Theory