31 Days of Classical, Day 23: An authoritative cello

Each day throughout July, I'll share with you a piece of classical music. Thirty-one days, thirty-one pieces.

The list is by no means definitive, nor is it necessarily a list of all of my favorite music from the classical world. Every morning, I start my day with music that inspires me in some way, whether I'm inspired by its happiness, its loneliness, the instrumentation, the harmony, the colors, the melody -- each piece is special in some way -- and offers an opportunity to either hear something you've never heard, or hear something new in a piece you've known your whole life.

Edward Elgar, Cello Concerto, 1st movement

I love how authoritatively this concerto starts. The cello is able to state unequivocally that it is in charge for this piece. I love when Yo-Yo Ma hands it off to the string section at 1:33 and those strings creep in on the same note and play the gentle theme, it's almost like the music could break, it's so fragile. That theme gets traded back and forth between soloist and orchestra for a bit, and then it blooms into a sigh of tragic music beginning at 2:34. The good part is at 2:58 though, when the cellist plays that giant ascending scale and the orchestra is then in full swing. This particular performance is special — the cellist who made this concerto famous was Jacqueline du Pre, married until her (quite untimely) death to the conductor in this video, Daniel Barenboim.

Take the 31 Days of Classical Challenge

31 Days is a bite-sized month-long trial of Classical Music from across the spectrum of the wonderful, expansive music we love at Classical MPR. Join the fun by subscribing to the 31 Days of Classical newsletter, or use #31DaysofClassical on Twitter or Facebook.

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