When you use your cello as a guitar

We're all used to the cello as a beautiful melodic instrument - whether it's the gliding lyricism of Saint-Saëns's The Swan or the introspective warmth of Bach's Cello Suite No.1 but it can also be surprisingly percussive and rhythmic.

Here are three of our favorite examples of the cello being used as an instrument that's full of pluck!

1. Laufey

Icelandic singer and multi-instrumentalist Laufey here uses her cello as a guitar-like accompaniment, gently stroking out the chords in this rendition of I wish you Love

2. Vincent Segal

Vincent Segal plays his cello like no one else. His regular collaborator Ballake Sissoko plays the Kora, a beautiful harp-like instrument from West Africa, and Vincent's playing has a dinstictly African flavour.

3. Mike Block

In this rhythmically propulsive clip, American cellist Mike Block teams up with beatboxer Christlyez Bacon. You'll notice that Mike has an usual way of playing his cello, standing up! He invented his own cello strap, known as the Block Strap, and Mike assures us you can play anything a cellist would want to play from this standing position, allowing cellists to truly rock out with the rest of the band!