The melodic sounds of the cello and the piano intertwined and complimented each other as the musicians played their first song of the recital for the Crocker Classical Concert Series, Seven Variations on a theme from Mozart’s “The Magic Flute”.

The soft, graceful sound from the piano keys and cello strings flowed and danced through the full auditorium.

Cellist Susan Lamb Cook said she feels as if she is telling a story when she plays her instrument.

“I feel like I am speaking. I’m telling people a story and I try to make the story as interesting as possible,” Cook said.

The second song, Apre?s un réve, op. 7 written by French composer Gabriel Fauré, resonated through the room. Certain parts of the song where there was a repetition of notes from the piano could be compared to the sense of raindrops pouring from the dark sky.

The accompaniment of the piano had the ability to set the atmosphere, while the music from the cello released a certain feeling.

Pianist John Cozza, said when he accompanies the music, he has to feel a connection to the person he is playing the music with.

“It’s a very intense state of concentration where time sort of slows down and elongates,” Cozza said.

Cook and Cozza played nine pieces including a few short ones after the finale.

Cook said the cello has a wider range compared to the violin that can expand into the lower bass notes.

“The tone quality of the cello has a certain warmth, a resonance that I think many people find very pleasing. Particularly, it has a wide register from the lowest notes up to the highest notes,” she said.

Cozza said the piano is like the glue that holds everything together.

“The piano can play with a lot (and) blend with a lot of different instruments. It can imitate various instruments and it can also imitate the full orchestra,” Cozza said.

Throughout the concert, the sounds of the cello and piano complimented and supported each other. At times, it was just the cello being played, then the piano would come in and the music of both instruments could be heard throughout the hall.

Jennifer Manuel, a member of the community, said she thought the performance was fantastic. She liked the mixture of the cello and the piano and mentioned that the music was relaxing.

“You could kind of visualize some of the things they were playing,” Manuel said. “There were parts of it that sounded like a conversation between two people. There were a couple of parts that actually made me laugh because it sounded like two people kind of going back and forth.”

Christina Li can be reached at [email protected]