The cello has a wide voice. It can growl at the bottom, sing in the middle, and climb as high as a violin. These 14 pieces show all of it. Start with “The Swan,” which lasts three minutes.
Start here
1. “The Swan,” from The Carnival of the Animals, by Saint-Saëns. The cello glides over two rippling pianos. Listen for: how the player joins one note to the next with no gap. See what to hear.
2. Prelude, from Cello Suite No. 1, by Bach. One cello plays alone for about two and a half minutes. The notes ripple up and down in a pattern. Listen for: the low note that keeps coming back. Read Bach for kids.
3. The opening of the William Tell Overture, by Rossini. Five cellos begin alone, each with its own part. It is dawn in the mountains. See the William Tell guide.
Slow songs for the cello
4. Élégie, by Fauré. A sad, noble song that rises to a cry in the middle. Read Fauré for kids.
5. Vocalise, by Rachmaninoff. He wrote it as a song with no words, for a singer. Cellists borrowed it, and it fits the instrument well.
6. “Song of the Birds.” An old Catalan carol. The great cellist Pablo Casals played it at the end of his concerts as a wish for peace.
7. Kol Nidrei, by Bruch. A slow, grave piece built on a Jewish prayer melody.
Show-off pieces
8. “Dance of the Elves,” by David Popper. Popper was a cellist, and he wrote this to dazzle. The bow bounces at high speed for three minutes.
9. Variations on a Rococo Theme, by Tchaikovsky. A graceful tune, and seven ways to dress it up. The last variation is a race.
The great concertos
10. Cello Concerto in C major, first movement, by Haydn. Bright and bouncy. The music was lost for about 200 years and turned up in a library in Prague in 1961. Read Haydn for kids.
11. Cello Concerto in B minor, by Dvořák. He wrote it near the end of his three years in the United States. Many cellists call it the greatest concerto for their instrument. Listen for: the horn solo before the cello comes in. Read Dvořák for kids.
12. Cello Concerto, first movement, by Elgar. The cello opens alone with four dark chords. Elgar wrote it just after the First World War, and it is full of sorrow. Read Elgar for kids.
13. Cello Concerto No. 1, by Saint-Saëns. The cello bursts in on the first bar, with no long wait.
Many cellos at once
14. Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5, by Heitor Villa-Lobos. A Brazilian composer wrote this for a singer and eight cellos. The cellos pluck like a guitar while the voice floats above. Read Hispanic and Latin American composers for kids.
What the cello can do
| Sound | How it is made | Where to hear it |
|---|---|---|
| A long, singing line | A slow bow, with the left hand rocking on the string | “The Swan” |
| Rolling chords | The bow crosses from string to string | The Bach Prelude |
| Plucked notes | A finger pulls the string | Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5 |
| Bouncing bow | The bow is dropped and springs back | “Dance of the Elves” |
| High notes | The thumb comes up onto the string | The Rococo Variations |
Read string playing words.
A story about the Bach suites
For a long time, cellists thought of Bach’s six suites as exercises. In 1890, a 13-year-old Spanish boy named Pablo Casals found an old copy in a music shop in Barcelona. He practiced the suites every day for years before he played one in public. His recordings, made in the 1930s, showed the world what they were.
Watch as well as listen
A video shows what a recording cannot.
- The cellist sits, with the cello between the knees.
- A metal spike holds the cello up from the floor.
- The left hand slides a long way to change notes.
- For the highest notes, the player leans over and the thumb comes around onto the strings.
Read the cello for kids.
Games to play
Float like a swan. Play “The Swan.” Move across the room without a bump.
Count the cellos. Play the start of the William Tell Overture. Hold up a finger for each cello you think you hear.
Draw the waves. Play the Bach Prelude. Draw the shape of the notes as they rise and fall.
High or low? Play a cello piece and a violin piece. Crouch for the cello, and stand on tiptoe for the violin.
Sing it. Hum along with “The Swan.” People often say that the cello is the instrument closest to the human voice.
Print and play
Use a listening journal page for one piece. Read famous violin pieces for kids, violin vs cello, and Suzuki cello for kids.
More from this guide
This article is part of How to introduce kids to classical music.
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Use it with your kids
Print a listening page, a practice chart, or a composer fact sheet. Or try a tool, such as the composer timeline or the piece picker.