One of Britain’s best-known classical musicians will make a rare return to the concert stage in North Yorkshire this week.
Cellist Julian Lloyd Webber will perform with his wife Jiaxin Lloyd Webber at The Wesley Centre in Malton, following his remarkable return to playing after 12 years.
The internationally celebrated musician, who was forced to stop playing the cello in 2014 because of a neck injury, returned to the instrument earlier this year for a special 75th birthday concert at London’s Wigmore Hall – his first public performance in 12 years.
Now Yorkshire audiences will have the opportunity to hear him play at An Evening with Julian & Jiaxin Lloyd Webber: Bach, Bows and Arrows.
Part concert, part conversation, the intimate evening will combine live music, rarely seen archive footage and extraordinary behind-the-scenes stories from a lifetime at the heart of the international classical music world.
Julian and Jiaxin will begin with the remarkable story of Bach's Cello Suites – exploring the music's history and the influence it has had on both their lives and careers – before taking audiences on a journey through Julian's extraordinary life in music.
The evening will draw on Julian's newly published autobiography, Bows and Arrows, which charts his upbringing in one of Britain's most famous musical families and a career that has brought him into contact with figures including Yehudi Menuhin, Stéphane Grappelli, Philip Glass, Elton John, Joaquín Rodrigo and his brother Andrew Lloyd Webber.
There will also be an opportunity for the audience to put their own questions to Julian and Jiaxin.
Julian's career has included more than 60 recordings, among them his acclaimed recording of Elgar's Cello Concerto. He was also the only classical musician to perform at the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games and later served as Principal of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire.
Jiaxin Lloyd Webber is herself an internationally accomplished cellist. A graduate of the Shanghai Conservatory of Music and Auckland University, she has performed with orchestras including the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra and New Zealand Symphony Orchestra.
Paul Emberley, from The Wesley Centre, said: “This is an incredibly special opportunity for audiences across Yorkshire. Julian Lloyd Webber is one of the great names in British classical music, and after believing for many years that we would never hear him perform again, it is wonderful to be welcoming Julian and Jiaxin to our stage.
“It won't simply be a concert. Audiences will hear the music, but they'll also hear the stories behind an extraordinary career and have the chance to ask Julian and Jiaxin their own questions. To experience that in the intimate surroundings and acoustic of The Wesley Centre should be unforgettable.”
Copies of Bows and Arrows will be available to buy during the evening, with Julian signing books after the event.
An Evening with Julian & Jiaxin Lloyd Webber takes place at The Wesley Centre, Malton, on Friday, October 9, from 7.30pm.
Go to the Wesley Centre Malton website to book tickets: A Space for Every Voice - Wesley Centre Malton