Scales are one of the most powerful musical tools available to enable students to learn some of the most important music fundamentals. Here’s a list of some of them:

• Learning key signatures
• Learning basic fingering combinations
• As a warm-up before playing other music

Scales are great as a warm-up exercise for your fingers and your mind. A vast amount of music is based on scales and scale patterns. Being able to recognize these patterns is one of the keys to becoming a great sightreader. You will get much more out of the music you play if you master your scales.

Following are some of my favorite scales routines:

1. Klengel Technical Studies, edited by Leonard Rose (International Music Co.)
2. Galamian Scale System, arranged and edited by Hans Jorgen Jensen (Schirmer Edition)
3. Yampollsky Violoncello Technique, Edited by Epperson. (Published by Universal Music Publishing Group)
4. Carl Flesch Scale System, arranged by Wolfgan Boettcher
5. ABRSM: Cello Scales and Arpeggios Book 1 (Grades 1-5) and Book 2 (Grades 6-8)