The fall of a cellist to Hume & Marais

When looking for pianist to play the sonatas by Beethoven at the end of eighties in Kuopio the suitable match just didn’t appear. Finally, after Pekka Vapaavuori’s arrival to Kuopio, there was someone to play with that great repertoire. Pekka’s interest was more in the earlier keybords like harpsichords and clavichords (which he also builded many) including having fortepiano at Beethoven. In our first concert I had my modern cello and Pekka had fortepiano, but his comment ”actually you should get a baroque bow” afterwards made the launch into period playing irreversible. The next step after baroque bow was a baroque cello, then gamba, piccolo cello, baryton…
There is no story of a cellist without Rostropovich and here is my story: He visited Helsinki at 1979 to play Bach in the acoustically notorious Finlandia Hall. The experience of his sound at the back of the hall was shocking: it was as powerful and vibrating as hearing it from close. There was something similar in my experience of listening Jordi Savall playing some solos by Hume at nineties in Helsinki Old Church. The same happened also with Marais in that film everyone knows today: Tous les matins du monde (1991).
The title is perhaps a little dramatic, but to tempting to leave out. More accurate would be the turning of a healthy cellist to a serious early music geek.
There is no story of a cellist without Rostropovich and here is my story: He visited Helsinki at 1979 to play Bach in the acoustically notorious Finlandia Hall. The experience of his sound at the back of the hall was shocking: it was as powerful and vibrating as hearing it from close. There was something similar in my experience of listening Jordi Savall playing some solos by Hume at nineties in Helsinki Old Church. The same happened also with Marais in that film everyone knows today: Tous les matins du monde (1991).
The title is perhaps a little dramatic, but to tempting to leave out. More accurate would be the turning of a healthy cellist to a serious early music geek.