New Cello Anticipation, Oh, I Am So Excited!

I am so excited - I just heard from Christopher Dungey, the cello maker whose waiting list I've been on for a few years. I'm next on his list!!!!

To be fair, I've been waiting on his list because I wanted to improve my playing enough to be ready for a better instrument. I have a fine student cello that Chris set up for me. My current cello also has some of his inventions on it. One is a cable hanger assembly (attaches tailpiece to endpin). The other, and more dramatic improvement in tone quality, came from the ChrisP'IN endpin that Chris designed. I used a few prototypes of both the ChrisCABLE and ChrisP'IN on my cello before getting the final versions. Maybe sometime I'll write about what it was like to replace the cable hanger (I switched out a prototype to the final version myself, a process that included having to reset the bridge and tailpin in the right relationship). The most amazing change in tone was when we would switch endpins, old and new, and literally hear the improvement in tone. Even my husband, who doesn't normally notice changes in tone, could hear the difference. I did the same switching endpin thing with my cello and my teacher's cello during a lesson, and the change in tone with both cellos was remarkable (my teacher didn't want to give the new endpin back to me). Okay, how was that for a shameless product endorsement? If only improvements in tone could be so easy all of the time!

I really like the fact that Chris is experimenting with different technologies and inventing things to try to make cellos sound better. That really appeals to the geek in me. The engineer in me has been fascinated with the process of making a cello and I've had a lot of fun learning about cello making from Chris.

I'll be writing more about the making of my next cello - right now I have lots of questions, and the one burning question is how do I tell him what I want from a cello? I feel like such a novice in so many ways - I've only really played a few cellos (a couple of rentals and my current student cello) so I don't even know what I should ask for!