For our preview article about the Cleveland Cello Society’s ‘I Cellisti’ Concert, we wanted to interview CCS president and Cleveland Orchestra acting principal cellist Richard Weiss, but he was on tour with the Orchestra in Europe. We sent him some questions via email to Vienna, but due to a technical glitch, his response languished in cyberspace until the deadline was past. Once back in Cleveland, he forwarded his answers, which we think were such fun that they deserved publication even after the fact. Richard Weiss also taught cellist Alisa Weilerstein, whose interview appears in an earlier posting on this blog.

CC.com: Cellists seem to be a lot more gregarious than other instrumentalists. They form societies, they hang out together and support each other, they schedule events where they play works for multiple cellos, etc. Do you have any insights as to why cellists are more likely to behave this way than, say, violinists or oboists?

Richard Weiss: Possibly because the cellist population is about 1/2 in number compared to violinists, yet 3 times more than oboists (consider orchestra sections), we feel neither lost in the crowd nor like loners — perfect for bonding. As the joke goes, “Question: How many violinists does it take to screw in a light bulb? / Answer: Four… one to actually do it, and 3 more to say they could do it better!” Cellists are generally less competitive and open to working together. We also like to exploit the wide range of the cello by playing in choirs without the assistance of violin or viola. (Viola societies are increasingly popular for bonding but they lack the lower range for a bass line…)

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