‘Cellists are rarely selfish’

From an interview with Natalie Clein:

‘It’s a cliché that the cello is the closest any man-made instrument comes to the human voice, but true. The range of notes is much the same. And whenever I work with singers – as I will during the (Kings Place, London) “Unwrapped” season – I always feel that my bowing arm is related to the way the singer breathes.

‘Of course I’m biased, but I think this human quality is the reason why composers are often inspired to write their most heartfelt music for us. For virtuosity they go to the violin, but for sincerity it’s the cello.

‘We truly are social creatures – partly, I think, because we’re collaborative by nature. We’re used to playing bass lines, which means we’re conscious of structure and how we fit into it. You rarely find a selfish cellist: we’re a good thing, on the whole”.