Recommended String Heights for Cello

Introduction

I am a beginner at cello, having taken four lessons so far. I am playing a very nice cello that I inherited from my mother. I am struggling right now to learn how to play in first position, with the usual problems of sour notes and scratchy bowing.

I’m also having problems just pressing the strings to the fingerboard to get a clean tone. My guitar brain says, “the action is too high!” So I learned about recommended string heights for cello strings. I also learned that, because temperature and humidity changes in the summer can cause changes in string height, some cellists have a slightly shorter bridge installed during the summer months to compensate.

TL;DR

I measured the string heights on my cello, and I do not need to make any changes to the cello. I just need to learn how to play correctly.

Recommended String Heights

Edgar Russ Distinguished Violinmaker in What’s the RIGHT String Height?! provides the following recommended string heights for a cello, where the heights are measured at the end of the fingerboard:

• A string: 4-5 mm
• C string: 8-10 mm

Aitchison & Mnatzaganian Cello Specialists provide a very informative website article, Left Hand Comfort for Cellists, in which they write:

The standard measurements for string clearance are made at the bridge end of the fingerboard, measuring the perpendicular distance from the surface of the fingerboard to the centre of the string. In this system the standard height for the C string is 8.5 mm and for the A string is 6.0 mm. However, these measurements could be altered by as much as 2 mm either way, depending on the flexibility of the strings used and the strength of the individual player.

If playing in first position is tiring, you should check your string heights at the nut. It should be just possible to slip a business card beneath the A and D strings at the nut; if the gap is any greater, the nut should be lowered.

Measuring String Height

Aaron Wong in Summer Cello Care: Bridge Height and Playability provides these instructions for measuring string height:

You can check the string height at the end of the fingerboard using a ruler (in millimetres). Place the cello on a flat surface, gently press a ruler against the fingerboard just beneath each string at the end (nearest the bridge), and read the distance from the fingerboard to the bottom of the string.

Summer Cello Bridge

Aitchison & Mnatzaganian Cello Specialists in Left Hand Comfort for Cellists write:

String clearances can change in response to atmospheric conditions. When there is a lot of moisture in the air, string clearances increase and they decrease when the air is very dry. In some countries cellists have different bridges and sound posts for different seasons.

Paul Perley Cellos in Your Cello in Summertime write:

In the summer, the various pieces of wood in your cello expand in such a way that they cause the angle of the neck to lower, resulting in an increased string height above the fingerboard. The amount of increase varies greatly from cello to cello, but most players find it necessary to have a second, shorter, bridge for summer playing.

I thought it was possible that my cello was swelling from heat and humidity this summer (in the Boston area we’re currently experiencing high temperatures in the vicinity of 90 °F with increasing humidity). If so, I would need to take my cello to Luthier Collective and ask Eva Broadway to install a summer bridge.

My Measurements

I used my Stewart-MacDonald String Action Gauge to measure the heights of my cello strings:

• A string: 0.150 inch (4 mm)
• D string: 0.275 inch (7 mm)
• G string: 0.275 inch (7 mm)
• C string: 0.225 inch (6 mm)

These are the correct heights. The height of my cello’s nut is also correct.

Conclusions

The string heights of my cello are not unusually high and are actually a little low. My mother, who played until she was 88 years old, probably had her cello adjusted for comfort.

I need to strengthen my left hand so I can play clean notes.

To prevent any problems with swelling, I moved the cello to the first floor of our house, where we run an air conditioner to reduce heat and humidity.