A LIGHT-HEARTED evening of classical music and chat will be held in Bromsgrove with world famous cellist Julian Lloyd Webber.
The event, at Artrix on May 12, will feature performances from Julian and see him speaking about his high-profile career which has spanned more than four decades.
During that time he has performed with a variety of stars, including Nigel Kennedy, Elton John, Tim Rice, Stephane Grappelli and many more. There will be footage of some of those performances screened on the evening.
The event will also be aimed at breaking down any misconceived barriers about classical music.
“I have never thought classical music is for the elite – I think it’s for everyone.
“And I really do believe the composers have the same view as me when they are writing the music,” said Julian.
Julian comes from a very musical family – his father was great composer William Lloyd Webber.
When asked if there was any sibling rivalry between him and his brother Andrew, Julian told The Standard: “No, not at all. We were always doing our own things.
“He always wanted to write and always wanted to create musical theatre, whereas I really loved working with composers and getting new music for my cello.
“We haven’t worked together that often, but when we did, it was always fun.”
There will also be a family feel to the evening at Artrix as Julian will perform alongside his wife, fellow cellist Jiaxin on the evening.
The pair have recorded two CDs of cello music.
“I really enjoyed working with my wife on that project – it went so well and it will be something for my daughter Jasmine to have in the future.”
He said Jasmine, although only three-and-a-half, was already showing a love of music, asking for pieces to be put on and ‘dancing around a lot’.
And he added he would encourage people coming on May 12 to bring along their children and use the evening as a kind of introduction to classical music.
“If a young person comes with a cello, we can give them some tips and give them the chance to perform on stage,” he said.
Julian was forced to cancel the remaining dates of a tour last May when he sustained a serious injury.
A herniated disk in his neck reduced the strength in his right arm meaning he can no longer play large concertos.
“I needed to make a decision on what to do next and I thought to myself ‘I can still do other things within music’.
“I thought I can still play gentle music and gentle pieces and I can talk about everything I’ve done.
“I wanted to put on a really entertaining and light-hearted evening and the concept of what we are doing here came to me in the middle of the night.”
As well as the speaking and performing, there will be a question and answer session at Artrix as part of the evening where audience members will be welcome to ask whatever they want.
“I want people to be able to get an insight into what it’s like to be a musician for all these years, working with a lot of other musicians,” added Julian.
And he said this would probably the only time he would be going on a tour like this.
“After that I don’t think I’ll be going on the road again – I will be moving into doing something else.”
He added he did not yet know what that would be, but said a role in musical education or conducting appealed to him.
Tickets for May 12 at Artrix are £25 and can be bought by visiting www.artrix.co.uk or by calling 01527 577330.
Go to www.julianlloydwebber.com for more on Julian Lloyd Webber.
Reprinted by kind permission of The Bromsgrove Standard