l etoile

The cello did not arrive at LHR as expected. She's had to crowd source a cello from fans on her FaceBook page. She was also missing her luggage so clothing and various cords for looping. I know Zoe from long ago, but not more recently. Her fans seem to be who are coming through for her now; not BA.

Concerto

I'll be thinking about her when I'm accompanying the cello class at the conservatoire next week. It's so stressful when such things happen.

gustavmahler

I've had exactly the same. There was a time when I was conducting a lot of choirs and so permanently kept a tuning fork in my bag. It took a bit of explaining at security! Never had a problem with batons, though arguably they could do more damage!

irishguy28

Once they find the case of the missing cello, surely the cello will be inside....

Concerto

I sure hope so. In theory you should be able to tell by the weight, but cellos aren't exactly heavy instruments. I only had transport a cello once in my life (I don't play the cello, the strings on a double bass are completely unrelated to those on a cello, so there is no way if you play the bass that you can automatically play the cello). The route was NUE-ZRH-GVA, all on LX in its early days around 2005, and it all went off without a hitch, separate seat reserved etc.

squawk

*groan*

Of course, the natural follow-on would be to ask what it said when it turned up again. "Why cello there!"… I'll get my coat.

In all seriousness, I do hope it turns up soon and in perfect condition. I can't imagine how stressful it must be for a professional musician to be in that situation - despite being only a casual (and very amateur) guitar player, I would be distraught if my guitars went AWOL.

I was incredibly surprised just how light a friend's cello was when I picked it up recently, actually - from the size, I expected it to weigh much more. I haven't ever picked up a double bass for comparison - are they similarly lightweight for their size?

antichef

I occasionally travel with electric bagpipes in a tube. Always gets a secondary check.
http://www.fagerstrom.com/technopipes/

Concerto

A double bass is much heavier. They are always getting bashed. God knows how airlines deal with double basses. But the advantage is, they are so big that they are impossible to lose. Going back to those touring days, I remember getting to Edmonton (on an Air Canada Lockheed Tristar in 1983) and some of the cellos that had been transported in the baggage hold had bridges that had slipped (collapsed). Luckily there was a local luthier (string instrument repair specialist) who could repair them.

The problem with the cello is that it is neither a piccolo nor a double bass. It falls right in the middle, which means it could come into the cabin, but it could equally be confined to the hold. In all fairness, you can't expect a gate agent or baggage handlers to understand the importance of a cello. But if you've paid a seat for it, you've paid a seat. That should be honoured.

henry999

Yes. There was a very interesting article about this a few years ago on the BBC Online.

http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-19706812

irishguy28

At least you got it!!! ^

simons1

https://www.thestrad.com/news/zoe-ke...m/7149.article

A bit stressful, I'm sure. Not convinced about BA "going the extra mile" though....