Editing Cello (section)

== General description ==
=== Tuning ===
[[File:Cello study.jpg|thumb|Cello close-up]]
[[File:Violoncello open strings.png|thumb|Cello open strings {{audio|Violoncello open strings actual.mid|Play}}]]
[[File:Cello and a bow.jpg|thumb|Cello close-up with a bow.]]
Cellos are tuned in [[perfect fifth|fifths]], starting with [[Scientific pitch notation|C<sub>2</sub>]] (two [[octave]]s below [[middle C]]), followed by G<sub>2</sub>, D<sub>3</sub>, and then A<sub>3</sub>. It is tuned in the exact same intervals and strings as the [[viola]], but an octave lower. Similar to the [[double bass]], the cello has an [[endpin]] that rests on the floor to support the instrument's weight. The cello is most closely associated with [[Classical music|European classical music]]. The instrument is a part of the standard [[orchestra]], as part of the [[string section]], and is the bass voice of the [[string quartet]] (although many composers give it a melodic role as well), as well as being part of many other [[chamber music|chamber]] groups.

=== Works ===
Among the most well-known Baroque works for the cello are [[Johann Sebastian Bach]]'s six unaccompanied [[Cello Suites (Bach)|Suites]]. Other significant works include Sonatas and Concertos by [[Antonio Vivaldi]], and solo sonatas by [[Francesco Geminiani]] and [[Giovanni Bononcini]]. [[Domenico Gabrielli]] was one of the first composers to treat the cello as a solo instrument. As a [[Figured bass|basso continuo]] instrument the cello may have been used in works by [[Francesca Caccini]] (1587–1641), [[Barbara Strozzi]] (1619–1677) with pieces such as ''Il primo libro di madrigali, per 2–5 voci e basso continuo, op. 1'' and [[Élisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre|Elisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre]] (1665–1729), who wrote six sonatas for violin and basso continuo. [[Francesco Paolo Supriani|Francesco Supriani]]'s ''Principij da imparare a suonare il violoncello e con 12 Toccate a solo'' (before 1753), an early manual for learning the cello, dates from this era. As the title of the work suggests, it contains 12 toccatas for solo cello, which along with Johann Sebastian Bach's Cello Suites, are some of the first works of that type.<ref name=VWalden2004>{{cite book|title=One Hundred Years of Violoncello|date=2004|author=Valerie Walden|publisher=Cambridge University Press}}</ref>

From the [[Classical music era|Classical era]], the two concertos by [[Joseph Haydn]] in [[Cello Concerto No. 1 (Haydn)|C major]] and [[Cello Concerto No. 2 (Haydn)|D major]] stand out, as do the five sonatas for cello and pianoforte of [[Ludwig van Beethoven]], which span the important three periods of his compositional evolution. Other outstanding examples include the three Concerti by [[Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach]], Capricci by dall'Abaco, and Sonatas by Flackton, Boismortier, and [[Luigi Boccherini]]. A ''Divertimento for Piano, Clarinet, Viola and Cello'' is among the surviving works by [[Duchess Anna Amalia of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel]] (1739–1807). [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart]] supposedly wrote a Cello Concerto in F major, K. 206a in 1775, but this has since been lost. His [[Sinfonia Concertante for Violin, Viola, Cello and Orchestra (Mozart)|Sinfonia Concertante in A major, K. 320e]] includes a solo part for cello, along with the violin and viola, although this work is incomplete and only exists in fragments, therefore it is given an Anhang number (Anh. 104).

Well-known works of the [[Romantic music era|Romantic era]] include the [[Robert Schumann]] [[Cello Concerto (Schumann)|Concerto]], the [[Antonín Dvořák]] [[Cello Concerto (Dvořák)|Concerto]], the first [[Camille Saint-Saëns]] [[Cello Concerto No. 1 (Saint-Saëns)|Concerto]], as well as the two sonatas and the [[Double Concerto (Brahms)|Double Concerto]] by [[Johannes Brahms]]. A review of compositions for cello in the Romantic era must include the German composer [[Fanny Mendelssohn]] (1805–1847), who wrote Fantasia in G Minor for cello and piano<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no96055867.html|title=Hensel, Fanny Mendelssohn, 1805-1847. Fantasia, cello, piano, G minor|last=Congress|first=The Library of|website=id.loc.gov|access-date=2019-11-27}}</ref> and a Capriccio in A-flat for cello.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/aug/22/felix-fanny-mendelssohn-works-for-cello-and-piano-review|title=Felix & Fanny Mendelssohn: Works for Cello and Piano review {{!}} Erica Jeal's classical album of the week|last=Jeal|first=Erica|date=2019-08-22|work=The Guardian|access-date=2019-11-27|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}</ref><!--Who claims these are important or even well-known works?-->

Compositions from the late 19th and early 20th century include three cello sonatas (including the Cello Sonata in C Minor written in 1880) by [[Ethel Smyth|Dame Ethel Smyth]] (1858–1944), [[Edward Elgar]]'s [[Cello Concerto (Elgar)|Cello Concerto in E minor]], [[Claude Debussy]]'s [[Cello Sonata (Debussy)|Sonata for Cello and Piano]], and unaccompanied cello sonatas by [[Zoltán Kodály]] and [[Paul Hindemith]].  Pieces including cello were written by [[American Music Center]] founder [[Marion Bauer]] (1882–1955)  (two trio sonatas for flute, cello, and piano) and [[Ruth Crawford Seeger]] (1901–1953) (Diaphonic suite No. 2 for bassoon and cello).

The cello's versatility made it popular with many composers in this era, such as [[Sergei Prokofiev]], [[Dmitri Shostakovich]], [[Benjamin Britten]], [[György Ligeti]], [[Witold Lutoslawski]] and [[Henri Dutilleux]]. Polish composer [[Grażyna Bacewicz]] (1909–1969) was writing for cello in the mid 20th century with Concerto No. 1 for Cello and Orchestra (1951), Concerto No. 2 for Cello and Orchestra (1963) and in 1964 composed her Quartet for four cellos.

Today it is sometimes featured in [[Pop music|pop]] and [[Rock music|rock]] recordings, examples of which are noted later in this article. The cello has also appeared in major [[hip-hop]] and [[R & B]] performances, such as singers [[Rihanna]] and [[Ne-Yo]]'s 2007 performance at the [[American Music Awards]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYlgd5bfOUI| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211124/mYlgd5bfOUI| archive-date=2021-11-24 | url-status=live|title=Rihanna feat. Ne Yo - Umbrella & hate that i love you live american music awards 2007|date=December 25, 2015|website=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}</ref> The instrument has also been modified for [[Indian classical music]] by Nancy Lesh and [[Saskia Rao-de Haas]].<sup>[[Cello#cite note-5|[5]]]</sup>