In 1973 Mike Oldfield produced an album that affected the lives of many people around the world. Richard Branson started Virgin records just to release it and William Friedkin shoe-horned it into his 1973 film, The Exorcist, with such an effect that people actually think it’s the theme tune to this horror classic. The truth is, he liked it so much that he wanted it in there and used it over a small sequence of Regan’s mother walking home from the doctors having been given more bad news about her daughter.
What it boils down to is that Tubular Bells is one of the most evocative pieces of music ever written. It stands the test of time, was used during the opening ceremony at the London Olympics and when it was performed live, back in the day, took over 30 people to recreate the sound.
Nowadays, with the aid of computers, the whole piece can be played by on
e person with a keyboard, but where’s the show in that? You might as well put on the CD in your car. To get the effect of this seminal album you have to hear it played using the real instruments talked about at the end of part 1, and on Sunday 23 June at the Grand Theatre you can, however rather than an ensemble of 30 musicians, this classic will be recreated by just two.
Tubular Bells ‘For Two’ is the highly acclaimed show first performed at the Sydney Festival in 2012 before becoming a smash hit at the Edinburgh Fringe that same year. Loved by audiences and critics alike, this show has left people stunned by the herculean feat achieved by Daniel Holdsworth and Aidan Roberts as they race from instrument to instrument reproducing the artistry of one of the most important albums of the 20th Century with only four hands and four feet.
This is a show not to be missed.
Tickets are available for £22.50 from the Grand Theatre website or at the box office on Church Street.
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