Day 39: Buddy and Me

HaydnCD39Whenever I think of the cello, I can’t help but picture the late Morey Amsterdam as Buddy Sorrell on The Dick Van Dyke Show.

Amsterdam wasn’t just “the human joke machine.” He was also an accomplished cellist who sometimes – because of the variety-show nature of the classic TV series – able to showcase his talents from time to time.

And he was good, too. This old, old clip (circa 1949) from the Morey Amsterdam Show demonstrates a bit of his talent as a cellist.

Of course, he was not as good as Christine Walevska, “Goddess of the Cello,” with the English Chamber Orchestra who, in 1972, recorded Cello Concerto No. 1 in C (Hob. VIIB:1) for the Decca label. Edo de Waart is the conductor. Today, some 40 years later, I’m Continue reading