60 Seconds with Julian Lloyd Webber
Evelyn Lok speaks to the famed cellist ahead of his concert with his musical partner and wife, Jiaxin.
Why classical music?
I particularly loved the cello—I always thought it was the closest instrument to the human voice.
On growing up in a musical family:
My father was an organist and composer, and my mother was a piano teacher. But there was not really pressure to do [music], I definitely found that for myself.
On his father, William Lloyd Webber:
He was kind of distant, a remote figure. He was a composer but he hid his music away because it was very romantic and not the kind of thing that was being performed in the early 50s.
On his brother, Andrew:
My relationship with Andrew was always really good. We were never really doing the same thing. He comes to a lot of my concerts and I go to the first nights of his shows when I can.
Favorite songs growing up?
My father was always playing Russian music by Rachmaninov; and I really liked Shostakovich and Prokofiev, but also I liked Elgar and those British composers. They wrote a lot of good music for cello: the Elgar concerto is one of the finest of them all.
On his fourth wife, Jiaxin:
Music brought us together. She’s the first musician I have gone out with. Even at music college, I avoided musicians. Music is such an intense profession—I’m probably more mature now and I can finally cope with being with another musician.
How has your recent neck injury affected you?
I’m not playing cello anymore. I used to practice six hours a day. I still play every day, but not nearly so much—I don’t want to lose that skill after all these years. The operation I’d have to have has only 50 percent chance of success, so I’ve just decided to move on to other things. I’m doing a bit of conducting, a new CD, and I’m also doing a big tour with Jiaxin back in England.