Before sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll there was Bach – and 33-year-old British violinist Tasmin Little is one of many international performers who have been making big efforts to persuade the general public that classical music is worth hearing. And word has it that she’s doing it much more than ‘very well’.
The subject of a television documentary by the prestigious South Bank Show, which followed her ground-breaking project The Naked Violin, and subsequently won her an award for audience innovation as a result, Tasmin Little will be performing her solo show of the same title at Milford Haven’s Torch Theatre next week (Tuesday 8 June).
Tasmin Little’s live performances have been described as ‘mindblowing perfection’. Exuberant, passionate and committed, Little is not just a brilliantly gifted violinist however; she is also a superb musician and a magnificent communicator.
Sharing her knowledge and joy, she introduces all of the music she is about to play, often with illustrations of key features to listen out for, without ever talking down to her audience. Easy to follow for the uninitiated, her audience find themselves becoming genuinely engaged in a pleasurable listening game.
One of the supremely great violinists of our time, her programme includes Bach’s
breath-taking Partita No.3 in E Minor for solo violin written in 1720, Bach’s Sonata in G minor and Partita in E major and a masterly interpretation of Eugene Ysaye’s Ballade. In addition, she often insists on the audience questioning her about everything, treating each question, from young and old, with both humour and great seriousness.
Tasmin Little is distinctly unshowy considering her stature in the music world. Excellent, sublime and ravishingly beautiful tone don’t appear to even touch the surface of reviews by the music press.
Accompanied only by her beloved 1757 Guadagnini violin (hence the use of the word ‘naked’) you will find yourself saying ‘where has Tasmin Little been all my life?’
Tasmin Little and The Naked Violin can be seen at the Torch Theatre on Tuesday 8 June. Tickets may be reserved online at www.torchtheatre.co.uk or by calling the Theatre Box Office on 01646 695267.
