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I'm a beginner to cello. On some cello cheat sheets. You can play the D note on A-string by holding down two fingers (in first position)

But you can also play the D note on the D-string without holding down any finger.

So you do expect the notes sound identical using both method?

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  • I think the question I posted is an exact duplicate of yours. I've added an answer to it to address "cheat sheets" that just use, say, the letter "D" rather than staff notation.
    – Andy Bonner
    Apr 10 at 12:29
  • But I would ditch whatever source you're using if it tells you that "D on A string, in first position, is two fingers." That's C.
    – Andy Bonner
    Apr 10 at 12:55
  • @Aaron The ukulele question is still about timbral differences between "the same [exact] note." The fingering described here makes it clear that this is about notes of the same pitch class but different octaves. Open D can not be played on A string except by scordatura.
    – Andy Bonner
    Apr 10 at 13:34
  • @AndyBonner Thanks. I've retracted my close vote, since it was based on the wrong duplicate.
    – Aaron
    Apr 10 at 15:23
  • @Aaron Heh, though now you can't re-vote, can you?
    – Andy Bonner
    Apr 10 at 15:49

3 Answers 3

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The A string is the highest string on the cello, the D string is the second highest. This means that the D you get on the A string (should be 4th finger in first position, not 2nd) is an octave above the empty D string. What would make sense is the difference between playing the empty A string or playing the A on the D string, which is in fact the same A. Here playing the same note on a lower string will change the response and tone color as will also allow for a wider vibrato.

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  • Note, an early beginner probably won't be shifting. I don't think the question is about playing "the same" pitch on a different string.
    – Andy Bonner
    Apr 10 at 13:40
  • I did not think so. I’ve included this remark as the comments and answers here all seem to suggest that this is the same note, just played on a thicker string, when it is not.
    – Lazy
    Apr 10 at 17:32
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The thicker the string, the mellower the tone.

Open strings will always sound different, and somehow seem to resonate better and longer.

It's only possible to apply vibrato to a stopped string, making the sound very different from an open one as well.

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  • I don't think OP is asking about how to choose a certain fingering for a given pitch, but rather which octave to choose when only told a letter name. An exact dup of an old violin question.
    – Andy Bonner
    Apr 10 at 12:31
  • @Andy Bonner - I wonder (as I often do, lonely as a cloud...) if OP is confused. And Lazy addressed the issue more accurately?
    – Tim
    Apr 10 at 13:21
  • I think the clue is in "cheat sheet." I added an answer to my proposed dupe; I bet they're either reading off of a chord chart, or the sort of very-beginner notation that notates a melody using letter names and no indication of register (like the piece of paper that comes with purchase of a tin whistle and tells you how to play "Hot Cross Buns").
    – Andy Bonner
    Apr 10 at 13:32
  • @AndyBonner - never come across 'cheat sheet', but listening to the octave of the notes should give a good clue as to whether they're up or down, surely.
    – Tim
    Apr 10 at 13:35
  • Yup. Which is to say, yes, this OP and the one of the violin question are confused, probably because they're working from confusing material, like say trying to learn a tune given only letter names and no knowledge of how it's supposed to sound.
    – Andy Bonner
    Apr 10 at 13:36
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No, they don't. Playing on the D string is more mellow and especially so when you use the harmonic. The A string has a brighter sound.

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  • This question is not about playing the same pitch on two different strings; the OP is confused about how to choose which octave. The pitch played on D string "without holding down any finger" can not be replicated in any way on A string (except scordatura).
    – Andy Bonner
    Apr 10 at 12:54
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    @AndyBonner that is not exactly true. If you get the D string to squeak you might be able to replicate the pitch on the A string.
    – Lazy
    Apr 10 at 17:38
  • @Lazy Hehe, I suppose so. how about "you can't get D3 out of a cello A string." Though there is an extended technique involving placing the bow on a harmonic node and bowing very heavily, that can produce a pitch lower than the normal open string. I'm not sure what the ratio is, I think maybe P4 below...
    – Andy Bonner
    Apr 10 at 18:19

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