Part One: First Position

Posture and Instrument Hold

The following information assumes that you will use an endpin. In recent times, it is almost universally used to support the cello on the floor while playing, and has changed the playing posture somewhat.

The player sits towards the front of the chair, takes the cello by the neck using the left hand, and fixes it with the endpin so that it stands vertically between the feet. He then turns the cello a little to the right and angles it with the scroll towards him, so that its right side leans slightly against the chest. The left side leans against the bend of the player’s left knee. In this way, the cello has three points of support: the endpin on the floor, the right side of the instrument on the chest, and the left side on the player’s knee.