For all those Beijingers who had Bach ruined for them by tiger mothers who forced them to attend boring music lessons, all is not lost. Classical music's spiky-haired maverick Nigel Kennedy brings his strings to the Beijing Exhibition Center tonight, performing the time-honored genre of music as you've never heard it before.
"I play Bach every day of my life, it's like breathing to me. I can't survive without it," said Kennedy, whose performance of "Sonata in A-Minor" will span half of his concert. "Every day there is something new to discover in it, whether it's playing or listening."
"It's always important to find something new to say about a piece of music," the 55-year-old English virtuoso said of his lively interpretations. "If a piece or style of music only belongs in to the time it's written, it's not worth playing."
Aside from performing Bach, Vivaldi, Mozart and Beethoven, Kennedy has made his mark on music by Jimi Hendrix, the Doors and Kate Bush, and has shared the stage with the Who and Jeff Beck.
His rebellion doesn't end with his punk hairstyle and penchant for performing in Aston Villa jerseys. His latest campaign is soulful interpretation over technical precision of Bach's works, while stressing the importance of improvisation within classical music.
"Classical training can hammer out of a musician the ability or enthusiasm to improvise," said Kennedy, who at 16 was invited to play Carnegie Hall with jazz violinist Stephane Grappelli. "For me, I discovered improvisation very early and it came naturally. I've recently started my own orchestra, and I try to get the whole ensemble to improvise individually and as a group."
Kennedy further drives home the point by pairing Bach, a celebrated improviser, with the compositions by legendary American jazz pianist Fats Waller, which he will perform with a jazz trio led by Polish guitar great Jarek Smietana.
Although his recording of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons sold over 2 million copies making it one of the best-selling classical recordings of all time, crossover artists like Kennedy can be a magnet for criticism, not always unfounded. His rendition of The Four Seasons saw critics and fans alike pan it for what they deemed aimless meandering over electronic beats.
"People love to categorize music and musicians," Kennedy said of his endeavors in experimentation. "I know a lot of what I do doesn't fit comfortably into other people's ideas of what music should be. I refuse to compartmentalize music, and it's not my problem if other people insist on it."
Kennedy will most likely make as many enemies as friends with his newest "rewrite" of The Four Seasons, a collaboration with his Orchestra of Life and ex-Massive Attack and Goldfrapp percussionist Damon Reece, slated for release this summer.
But as his Mohican haircut suggests, he's not fussed with meeting music's status quo, and will continue to play it as he hears it.
"For me, it's a waste of time taking petty criticism seriously," he said.
"The best compliment is being surrounded by great musicians with an appreciative audience. That's the only compliment I'm interested in."
When: Thursday, February 16, 7:30 pm
Where: Beijing Exhibition Center, 135 Xizhimenwai Dajie, Xuanwu district
Tickets: 180 yuan-1,280 yuan
Contact: 400-610-3721
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