I don’t know about you, but when I think of cellos, I think of opera houses and boring choirs, not rock and roll and Jimi Hendrix. Apparently, neither do the judges on America’s Got Talent because when brothers Emil and Dariel busted out cellos in front of the judges, you could tell that the judges were about to hit their snooze alarms. In fact, Heidi Klum felt no qualms about expressing her surprise, asking “Why cellos?”
I bet for Emil and Dariel, the look of complete shock and amazement on the judges’ faces once they started playing was priceless and not more than a bit satisfying.
The brothers’ grandfather taught the boys to play the old-school instrument when they were just four-years-old, and he continues to teach them to this day. Apparently, the boys’ grandfather came to America from Russia with nothing but the clothes on his back and a cello, which is what he used to make his living. The boys have never received lessons from anyone but their grandfather, and now, today, the cello is their life. More than that though, it’s a way that they can bond with one another and the man who taught them everything they know.
“There’s this intuition between us,” says Emil. “We feel the music between us, and how we can do it one way or another way.”
“We’re constantly looking for ways to improvise the cello,” Dariel says, “and to explore everything that the cello can actually do.”
Apparently, the brothers are very good at improvisation, as even their grandfather – the master – is impressed. “Sometimes, when they play, they make me cry,” he admits. “It’s very emotional.”
But how, you may wonder, can one improvise with the cello? Well, once you watch this performance, you’ll see that there is a whole lot more to the cello and its players than meets the eyes.
When Dariel and Emil bust into Jimi Hendrix, the look on the judges’ and audience members’ faces say it all. Their mouths are agape–Howard Stern can’t keep his closed!–and Mel B. can’t stop laughing in wonder. All you can hear in the background is a chorus of cheers, and when the boys are done playing, the judges give them a standing ovation. It truly is a sight worth seeing, as though their playing is phenomenal, their performance is just as spectacular.
And best of all, when the cameras zoom backstage, Grandfather is crying. Once again, his boys impressed him.
“We’re here to pay back to our Grandfather everything he did for us, for all these years, I think he deserves to see us on a big stage,” Dariel concludes. And I think they accomplished their goal.
“Here I thought we have two nice young brothers, and they’re going to play something old school, something old-fashioned,” Klum exclaims when she finally sits back down. “I mean, I’ve never heard or seen anything like this!”
“I love the element of surprise,” Stern chimes in. “You don’t look like Jimi Hendrix fans. You guys just went to being the coolest guys on the block!”
Mel B. thanks them for auditioning, and Howie Mandel applauds them for taking something old and making it new again.
Needless to say, the brothers got 4 thumbs up from the judges, once again making Grandpa proud.
To see some cellos that rock, watch the video below.
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