Tubular Bells For Two

Norwich Playhouse

Review published in the Eastern Daily Press, 8 July 2013

To every generation, there is given a classic album which becomes iconic, a voice for its age. And in 1973 there was Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells.

A pair of highly talented Australian musicians, Aidan Roberts and Daniel Holdsworth, recreate the 30 musical elements that Oldfield originally recorded one at a time and overdubbed.

Remastered, developed and used in films and the Olympic ceremony last year, this multi-layered, polyphonic masterpiece more than stands the test of time.

With the benefits of state-of-the-art keyboards and surrounded by carefully placed instruments, the nimble, barefoot players leaped around a stage choreography picking up one for a sequence, then another, singing, editing as they went.

The acoustic, bass, electric, Spanish and fuzz guitars were there, with multi-timbral synthesiser, Lowry organs, flageolet, glockenspiel, honky tonk piano, mandolin, percussion, timpani, kazoos, vocals and massive tubular bells.

They even added the Nasal Choir and Master of Ceremonies vocals supplied originally by Viv Stanshall.

Reluctant to be described as an Oldfield tribute band, they nonetheless played homage to a great musician’s clever variations on a theme.