Violoncello piccolo

Violoncello piccolo small violoncello in use in the first half of the 18th c., tuned like an ordinary cello and probably intended for solo playing; J. S. Bach scored for it in several of his cantatas, and his sixth suite for solo violoncello “à cinq acordes” (tuned C0 G0 d0 a0 e1) may have been written for this instr. or for an ordinary cello with 5 strings. In 1732 J. C. Hoffmann of Leipzig built a 5-stringed instr., 76 cm. (30 in.) long with ribs 3.8 cm. (1½ in.) deep, allegedly at Bach's…