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Looper's Delight
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I assume you'll all get my continuation email shortly if not already. >Tell us some cello stories. For example, your equipment, finding gigs, >how people react when you tell them what you do for a living, etc. > >Also, since you have an electric cello do you try to get an amplified >acoustic sound or do you mangle it like an electric guitar with >distortion >and effects? Can you get controllable feedback with it? OK. My rig - a Jensen 5-string electric cello. A solid cocobolo stick with an ebony fingerboard. Transducer bridge sums the 5 strings to a mono 1/4 inch output like your basic electric guitar. Learn about Jensen's instruments here: http://www.halcyon.com/jensmus/ My email link on the player's page of the above URL is old, BTW. The cello has no sound cavity, therefore no acoustic properties whatsoever. The EC goes into an ART TubeMP preamp, then a Samson 1/3 octave graphic EQ, a Digitech DHP-33 harmonizer, the 32-sec JamMan, and finally into a Lexicon MPX-1. I mix on a Mackie 1202vlz into a Tascam DA-20 DAT recorder. I used to have a Tascam cassette 8-track multitracker, but sold it for the Mackie and some capital to buy a PowerMac 8500. I'm learning the digital recording thing. I got into electronic music at Eastman - tried a Barcus-Berry transducer on my cello into a friends distortion pedal and big Peavey amp. Way fun, but the acoustic cello sound confused me, what with the odd-yet-cool stuff coming out of the amp. Feedback was also a problem, so I got a full electric cello. I am in no way trying to get a decent cello sound out of the electric (although I can get it pretty close). I figure I'll use my real cello if I want a real cello sound. Yes, there are psychological escapism ramifications here... comes from being a classically trained orchestral musician. I love it, but enjoy the freedom of doing my own wierd thing sometimes. No conductors, no management, etc. At this point I make a living solely with the "real" cello. The season is hectic and very busy - not enough time to do electric stuff, let alone work out some live solo gigs. I did 52 services last December and it didn't slow down until May, which is why I'm taking the summer off (retired from my summer festivals), to concentrate on electric stuff. I used to play in a duo with a friend who played electrified clarinet and Yamaha WX-11 wind controller when I was with the New World Symphony. We gigged around, put out an independent cassette release, and won a New Forms Florida artists grant. Sadly, he passed away about the time I started freelancing, so I'm just now gathering up the courage to go it alone. I played live electric solo once last season (to see if I could) at a local bookstore/coffee bar, and people were very receptive (I love the "Where can I buy your CD's" comments. "Uhh, don't have any yet, but I'm working on it.") Seems not a lot of people do this kind of music with this kind of instrument. I'm into looping and delays and love the possibilities with this kind of equipment with a solo performer. I'm not a trained improviser - I just take my cello experience, mix in 4 years of music theory, and the influences of Philip Glass, Steve Roach, and a bunch of others and see what comes out of the speakers. Kinda fun :) Enough bandwidth for now. Again, I'm very happy to have found this list. +------------- | Christopher H. Glansdorp | Cellist/Electric Cellist +-------------