Celebrating Rudolf Matz

Part 1: Reintroducing Cellists and Teachers to the Foundational Materials of Master Cello Pedagogue Rudolf Matz (1901-1988).

Dr. Stephen Feldman--Professor of Cello at the University of Central Arkansas.

Duet in C Major for Two Cellos, Mvt. 4 (Finale).

Stephen Feldman, Cello 1.
Miguel Pereira Muruchi, Cello 2.

Tempo: Half-note equals ~ 44 /96.

[Find this Duet and other works by Matz at www.dominismusic.com]

Rudolf Matz published 3 different sets of materials for two cellos. His 21 Duets (written last) only use first position, but his 12 Duets and Duet in C Major frequently move between 1st and 4th position and each require adept bowing skills and rhythmic precision. The Duet in C Major has four movements and employs melodic and structural elements from the baroque and classical era. The individual parts are equal in difficulty, often trading lead and accompanying roles. As with the 12 Duets only one part appears on the page, though a separate miniature score for the Duet in C Major is available at Dominis.

(A note about tempos: Matz does not put metronome markings in his music. I have aimed for tempos that make the pieces most engaging to listen to, but other tempos can also work quite well.)
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Croatian born Rudolf Matz (1901-1988) began work on what would become his First Years of Violoncello in the early 1940’s, and he would continue to expand, revise, and make more complete this monumental undertaking for the next 45 years. His interest and experience as a teacher, performer, composer and author informed the content of these technical exercises, etudes, and concert pieces, as did his early life experience as a competitive sprinter and his later interest in and study of anatomy, physiology, and ergonomics. Furthermore, Matz’s work with the Vaclav Huml, a Prague-trained violinist and former student of Sevcik, and Antonio Janigro, a virtuoso cellist well-versed in the modernizations of cello technique by Casals by way of Janigro’s study with Diran Alexanian provided a model and added richness and depth to Matz’s endeavor. The 31 volumes of Matz’s First Years of Violoncello were published in Zagreb between 1946 and 1971, but these editions are no longer in print. Many of the works have been newly published by Dominis Music beginning in 1982—a publishing house established by Matz’s former student and friend, Slobodan Gospodnetic.

All of the pieces I will add to this channel in the first part of this Celebration of Rudolf Matz are published by Dominis Music and are widely available.