My MP3 player contains tracks by Vivaldi, Cyndi Lauper, Britney Spears, Marilyn Manson, and Nirvana. To say that my musical tastes are somewhat eclectic, would be a generous understatement.

My true passion in music, however, is the cello. The range of emotion that can be conveyed by a master cellist is incomprehensible in its depth. It can bring joy to your heart, or tears to your eyes. I’d be lying if I said I’d never wept while listening to Bach’s Cello Suite Number 5.

In the world of modern music, I often cling to artists who make use of heavy guitar chords, as it is in these chords that you can find some similarity, a certain kinship, with the deep longing sound of a cello. Don’t believe me? Listen to a few concertos and a few tracks by Metallica or Nirvana, and it’ll hit you. Seprated by a century or more, their music can pull at you in much the same way.

Still don’t believe me? If I told you that you could take the guitars out of songs, say those by Metallica, or Tool or even Slayer, and replace them with cellos, do you think they’d sound the same? If your answer is ‘no’, allow me to re-educate you. Enter one of my favorite bands, Apocalyptica.

Apocalyptica is a Finnish band, whose members (Eicca Toppinen, Paavo Lotjonen, Perttu Kivilaakso) were trained as classical cellists at the prestigious Sibelius Academy. Unwilling to be stifled, to be relegated to playing classical pieces simply bacuse it is the norm, they sought to break free of the stereotypes associated with both classical and heavy metal music and merge the two into a hybrid form.

They succeeded. In 1996, their debut album, Playes Metallica by Four Cellos, hit store shelves, introducing the world to a concept none had ever dared put forward: that an instrument long associated with the upper crust, with classical pieces written by long-dead composers, could not only be pressed into the service of metal, but that it could excel.

Indeed, some of their playing is indistinguishable from guitar. Through a combination of bows and rosins, as well as their amazing talent, the members of Apocalyptica are able to coax not only the sweetest notes you could ever expect from a cello, but also all of the staccato rhythms and lingering chords of a guitar out of their intruments.

Their early success allowed them to push the envelope even further. Most of the music they play is orignal, and exhibits both sweet classical resonance and hardcore metal rhythms. Two worlds that would otherwise clash have mingled, and it is good. Their albums Inquisition Symphony, Cult and Reflections met with enthusiasm and critical acclaim, and assured them a place among musical greats.

And so it was with great eagerness that I bought tickets to their concert at the Paradise on September 15th. There is something uniquely gratifying in standing in the middle of one of the best known rock clubs in Boston, watching tattooed headbangers and nerds like myself standing side by side, entranced by the same music. We were all eager, all waiting for a show we knew would be great.

The musicians came out and took their places, sitting on chairs whose backs had skulls carved in them. With no preamble, they placed bow to strings, and began.

The floorboards shook and the air resonated with the sounds of their instruments. I rocked out, was moved by dulcet tones, and walked away glad to have seen them, to have felt their music live. It’s a show I highly recommend. They play with the fervor, mannerisms, and dress classically attributed to metal, but their skill rivals- at least in my opinion- any classical musicians I have ever heard.