The Rubbish Bin Cello

On Saturday we enjoyed an evening of baroque music. We attended a concert at Welgemeend which is a private home that was donated to the Jan Van Riebeeck High School many years ago and is now used for private functions. The building is in a beautiful setting in central Cape Town with a lovely garden. Inside the house has an impressive collection of South African art, gorgeous old furniture and rooms that can be prepared for many uses.

Our friend Jeni who loves classical music and often knows about intimate performances around town asked us to join her. I am so glad that we took her up on this invitation. Not surprisingly, it turns out that she knew one of the musicians, a cellist named Angela. Angela was playing a cello that has been restored as a Baroque cello which means that it has real gut strings, not stainless steel.

The star instrument, if you will, was a violoncello piccolo, a five stringed smallish cello, which was rescued from a rubbish bin (thus the nickname) in Paarl, a town just 30 minutes outside Cape Town. After some research and checking, it was determined that the wood pieces of this cello were authentic and really old, dated 1707 - its likely origin traced to Bach's area of Germany -astonishing. It was obviously an honour for Hans Huyssen, the leader of the ensemble, to be playing this instrument. He adapted Bach sonatas written for the 6- stringed viola da gamba for the performance. However and whenever it arrived in South Africa, this violoncello was lovingly restored by a man who is the only one who could have done it. He was in the audience and gratefully acknowledged by Hans.Hans was a multi-talented composer, conductor and performer. For more information about him, you can check out his web site: http://www.huyssen.de/Biography.html

The real test is the sound of the music played which was incredibly rich and delicious. The trio consisted of the violoncello, a double board harpsichord and Baroque cello. The musicians performed 3 Bach sonatas and one Bach Toccata for solo harpsichord. The music was beautiful, varied and excellently played. I often note how much I enjoy live music and wonder why we do not attend more concerts. We shall correct that over the next six months in this city where concerts are plentiful, accessible and affordable.

One lingering memory of the evening is the brief conversation I shared with the harpsichordist. We spoke about the master who made his instrument and the gift it presents for him to be playing this technically amazing, beautiful harpsichord, owned by a private individual. It is an accurate reproduction of a Dutch harpsichord. The skill and delight of the musician was obvious, especially in the Toccata he performed.

So, should you have the opportunity to attend live music in Cape Town, you must take it - and savor the experience.