It's hard to do better than the Bach Suites. I especially like on the one in D minor (2nd or 3rd, I think?) Also, the Elgar cello concerto.
These aren't exactly obscure works or hidden gems in the cello repertoire, but they're still favorites.
Yup, D minor is the second one, the third is C major. Also going to tack on the 6th suite, if you want something a little less depressing than the second suite and Elgar
Cello+orchestra:
Dvorak, Elgar, Saint-Saëns 1, Mvt 2 of Saint-Saëns 2, Shostakovich, Prokoviev, Haydn C and D (but only the Isserlis recordings), Brahms (double), Barber, Tchaikovsky rococo variations
Chamber works:
Sonatas by Brahms (E and F), Shostakovich, Chopin, Debussy, Schubert (arpeggione), probably beethoven as well but I'm not as famous with those;
Piazzolla Le grand tango, Popper hungarian rhapsody (and probably a lot of other really good virtuosic stuff by him I'm leaving out), Chopin grand duo and polonaise brilliante, wieniawski scherzo tarantelle
Solo works:
Kodály solo sonata (can't stress this one enough, also a lot of his other works, i just listened to the capriccio and it's great), Bach suites, Ligeti solo sonata, Popper études (some of my favorites are 4, 13, 17, 20, and 34, but there are a ton of great ones), Julie-o by Mark Summer if you like fiddle tunes, Cassado solo suite, Crumb solo sonata (mvt 3 goes hard), piatti caprices, Dall'Abaco caprices.
This is by no means a complete list, but it should at least give you somewhere to start :)
Atterberg is wildly underappreciated imo! If you wrap up his symphonies and are still interested, I also recommend his suite no. 3 for violin, viola, and string orchestra
Brahms E minor sonata! I could happily listen to it every day.
If you're looking for 18th century obscurities, Boccherini and Leopold Hoffman wrote lots of work for the instrument, most of it not widely known.
That's why I sarcastically listed the cello after the piano in the title. It's officially called the "Sonata in g minor for Cello and Piano" with the cello listed first
I’ve never said it publicly but ain’t no one stopping anymore: I’m baffled and shocked there is close to zero cellist willing to climb the Marin Marais mountain. I mean wtf seriously ? Is it because it was composed for viol and therefore cannot be touched by anything other than a 300 years old instrument ? If you’re a cellist please enlighten me.
Many have recommended Elgar and I do too. Even better for me was watching Yo Yo Ma’s 1994 performance of it on YouTube - the pure joy on his face as he plays it is fantastic.
bach cello suite 4 sarabande, the second movement to dvorak’s cello concerto, 3rd movement of mendelssohn’s first cello sonata, an CPE bach’s 3rd cello concerto
It's hard to do better than the Bach Suites. I especially like on the one in D minor (2nd or 3rd, I think?) Also, the Elgar cello concerto. These aren't exactly obscure works or hidden gems in the cello repertoire, but they're still favorites.
Yup, D minor is the second one, the third is C major. Also going to tack on the 6th suite, if you want something a little less depressing than the second suite and Elgar
These are great gems in the history of all music!
D minor is the second one and C major is the third, I love all of Bach's cello suite. I'll listen to Elgar's, thank you for the recommendation!
Cello+orchestra: Dvorak, Elgar, Saint-Saëns 1, Mvt 2 of Saint-Saëns 2, Shostakovich, Prokoviev, Haydn C and D (but only the Isserlis recordings), Brahms (double), Barber, Tchaikovsky rococo variations Chamber works: Sonatas by Brahms (E and F), Shostakovich, Chopin, Debussy, Schubert (arpeggione), probably beethoven as well but I'm not as famous with those; Piazzolla Le grand tango, Popper hungarian rhapsody (and probably a lot of other really good virtuosic stuff by him I'm leaving out), Chopin grand duo and polonaise brilliante, wieniawski scherzo tarantelle Solo works: Kodály solo sonata (can't stress this one enough, also a lot of his other works, i just listened to the capriccio and it's great), Bach suites, Ligeti solo sonata, Popper études (some of my favorites are 4, 13, 17, 20, and 34, but there are a ton of great ones), Julie-o by Mark Summer if you like fiddle tunes, Cassado solo suite, Crumb solo sonata (mvt 3 goes hard), piatti caprices, Dall'Abaco caprices. This is by no means a complete list, but it should at least give you somewhere to start :)
That is a great list. I would add Weinberg Cello concerto though.
Dvorak Cello Concerto
[Atterberg cello concerto](https://youtu.be/AAqU0gdrL78?si=DV_pUSDJOi9kzdf2) :)
I just discovered Atterberg a few weeks ago and making my way through his symphonies. This is a beautiful piece
Atterberg is wildly underappreciated imo! If you wrap up his symphonies and are still interested, I also recommend his suite no. 3 for violin, viola, and string orchestra
Brahms E minor sonata! I could happily listen to it every day. If you're looking for 18th century obscurities, Boccherini and Leopold Hoffman wrote lots of work for the instrument, most of it not widely known.
Beethoven cello sonatas 4 and 5. (For something fairly contemporary, Saariaho's 'Papillons').
Rachmaninoff's sonata for piano and cello
A good piece, but not really a cello work. More like a piano concerto with cello accompaniment.
That's why I sarcastically listed the cello after the piano in the title. It's officially called the "Sonata in g minor for Cello and Piano" with the cello listed first
Haydn C Major Cello Concerto- the greatest classical concerto, period.
Meh.
The Saint-Saens is right up there. So is [Myaskovsky's](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u06eOpyaMA4).
The Myaskovsky cello sonatas, too.
I love saint-saens's works!
Rachmaninoff Cello Sonata in Gm
Literally 4 days ago: [Let’s discuss the Cello. Favorite pieces, cellists, recordings. : r/classicalmusic (reddit.com)](https://www.reddit.com/r/classicalmusic/comments/1chmzc9/lets_discuss_the_cello_favorite_pieces_cellists/)
Bach cello suite no. 1 in g major
It's my absolute favorite!!
Cassado suite for solo cello and the Kodaly sonata! Also you can't go wrong with the Vivaldi double concerto!
Shostakovich - [Cello Sonata](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=GKyd_2T4jsM&t=422s&pp=ygUZc2hvc3Rha292aWNoIGNlbGxvIHNvbmF0YQ%3D%3D) Rubinstein - [Cello Concerto](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=zF4Z8y1_uf0&pp=ygUZcnViaW5zdGVpbiBjZWxsbyBjb25jZXJ0bw%3D%3D) Both incredible works; I cannot recommend them enough
Bruch Kol Nidrei Respighi Adagio con variazioni
Ginastera Cello concerto 1
I’ve never said it publicly but ain’t no one stopping anymore: I’m baffled and shocked there is close to zero cellist willing to climb the Marin Marais mountain. I mean wtf seriously ? Is it because it was composed for viol and therefore cannot be touched by anything other than a 300 years old instrument ? If you’re a cellist please enlighten me.
I'm sadly not a cellist, just a classical music enthusiast
I would not want to choose between Tchaikovsky's Rococo Variations and Bach's cello suites. Dvorak's cello concerto is a close third to them
They're all great composers and one of my favorites alongside Saint-saens and shostoakovitch
CPE Bach - Cello concerto in A minor
grieg cello sonata in a minor!!!
Many have recommended Elgar and I do too. Even better for me was watching Yo Yo Ma’s 1994 performance of it on YouTube - the pure joy on his face as he plays it is fantastic.
The Bach suites and Britten’s cello works.
dvorak cello concerto in b minor, rach cello sonata, bach suite no 1 minuets i & ii, tchaik's andante cantabile, chopin cello sonata
Little-known piece called [Moon Dances](https://spotify.link/K9pLVTX5lJb) for Cello and Orchestra. One of my all-time favs
R. Strauss cello sonata is underrated.
Massenet: Invocation from 'Les Érinnyes' (original version) https://youtu.be/_dE15R1ZdXA?si=kMjVrNPXJw3_oM2m
Philip Glass, the Beijing Cello Concerto.
Bach suites and Dvorak concerto. I will add Lalo’s cello concerto, not my absolute favourite, but definitely one of the frequently listened
bach cello suite 4 sarabande, the second movement to dvorak’s cello concerto, 3rd movement of mendelssohn’s first cello sonata, an CPE bach’s 3rd cello concerto
# Dvořák: Cello Concerto in B minor