THE iconic multi-award-winning album Tubular Bells, which featured in the classic horror film The Exorcist, will be performed in full at Chester's Storyhouse theatre next year.
Mike Oldfield's instrumental masterpiece will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2023, with a celebratory UK tour set to mark the milestone. The best selling instrumental album of all time, the album's main theme even featured at the London 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony in one of the rare performances of the project that Oldfield has given.
Tubular Bells The 50th Anniversary Celebration will feature an expansive live group, conducted and arranged by Oldfield’s long-term collaborator Robin Smith. It will see Tubular Bells performed in full, along with further Oldfield compositions, and will arrive in Chester on March 19.
A version of the show premiered at Royal Festival Hall on the Southbank in London last year, with The Times calling it ‘… a slick presentation of Tubular Bells at 50’, and the Mail on Sunday commenting ‘… the bells do the business’.
A bold and progressive fusion, Tubular Bells is a journey through classical, jazz, folk, progressive rock, and electronica and went on to win a Grammy for Best Instrumental Composition in 1974.
Conductor Robin Smith said: "Along with the musicians, I'm really thrilled to be offering this beautiful re-imagined version of Tubular Bells to a wider audience up and down the country. It was premiered at the Royal Festival Hall in August 2021 to great acclaim, as an early celebration of Mike Oldfield’s stunning work - so to be touring the UK in the 50th year is a huge privilege for me and a perfect tribute to one of England’s greatest composers.
"Joining us on the tour will be the renowned guitarist, Jay Stapley who performed with me at the iconic Tubular Bells II concert live from Edinburgh Castle in 1992.
"The wonderful thing about Tubular Bells is that it never seems to age, the actual composition is just perfect and is as spell-binding now as it was 50 years ago. It incorporates so many things - folk and rock, blues and jazz which evoke such melodic beauty and drama. This performance also features others works by Mike: Moonlight Shadow, Omadawn and Summit Day."
A full list of tour dates and tickets can be found at www.mikeoldfieldofficial.com.
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