The cello is a beautiful, versatile instrument that offers listeners a way to escape—through a melody so delightful that it lifts the spirit—almost into another realm of consciousness and pure joy. Much like similar stringed orchestral instruments, with an expressively rich voice, the cello is an instrument that can relieve tension and elevate the senses because it can create therapeutic music that has the power to speak to the soul.
If you’ve recently decided to learn to play the cello, you may be curious to know if there were any additional benefits to learning this wonderful instrument. As well as offering players and listeners a way to relieve stress through music, knowing how to play the cello and performing in an orchestral ensemble during your school years can provide you with key advantages for future success. It will not only increase your academic performances now, when it’s time for you to solicit the college of your choice and interview with potential employers, your years playing the cello will look great to both admissions and hiring boards.
Active music participation helps develop key marketable skills and the type of individuality and determination that collage review boards keenly seek.
College Applications
With several years of playing the cello in both student classes and small ensembles or string quartets, you gain the personal experience needed to sway admissions board members. College acceptance is very competitive for many schools. With a strong background in playing the cello successfully, you demonstrate teamwork, leadership—including group and time organizational skills—and an increased level of general knowledge. The presence of which give you an advantage when you’re presenting your merits and achievements to the individuals who are able to approve your enrollment.
- Teamwork—to perform in a musical ensemble successfully, each individual must be able to participate within a group. You have to be able to work together as a team to produce both melody and harmony; and each member must be able to judge and support each other’s weaknesses and strengths. Colleges look for students who have demonstrated critical teamwork skills because they are essential for succeeding in the workforce later on.
- Leadership—an effective leader is able to organize and guide others for successful results. Learning to play the cello and developing a quartet displays leadership qualities that universities look for. By planning, executing, and improving your musical group’s activities, you develop the skills that will be a marketable asset; and colleges are more favorable to applicants with this type of leadership experience.
- General Knowledge—playing the cello also improves your store of general knowledge by increasing the amount of music and historical facts you know. As you learn to play the cello, you incorporate parts of the Italian language, the names and times of famous composers and pieces of music, and other historic information that helps improve both test scores and conversational abilities.
In addition to these very crucial skills, playing the cello during your school years helps you build confidence and the ability to handle pressure situations. It’s not easy to perform in front of large crowds, keep your cool, and play great. This is another way that playing the cello in a group provides the necessary preparation you’ll need to stay calm during an interview—for your college and for your job of choice.
Real World Advantages
Admissions boards look for the skills mentioned above because those are the same type of accomplishments that hiring boards consider desirable. Playing the cello builds the marketable skills that current employer’s value, offering the real world experience that will give you a slight edge over your competitors.
The cello is an incredible instrument that will provide you with hours of personal enjoyment. The music you can create alone, or within an ensemble is a wonderful skill that will offer a lifetime of benefits, but it also surprisingly offers an excellent way to improve your acceptance odds at your college of choice, as well as a heightened advantage in competitive job markets. The marketable skills you develop now, are attractive to both enrollment and corporate decision makers later, making it just a little bit easier for you to realize your goals.
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