Tubular Bells (50th Anniversary Edition)

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Several sections of music on Tubular Bells were written by Oldfield and recorded as demos on cassette before he entered the Manor — a 16th century building bought by Branson and converted into a recording studio — to begin work on the album. A repeated motif

So I would definitely say to anybody who only knows the beginning is to embrace it, listen to it, and come and see us – I have tried to take the whole work and give it an overall modern sound which hopefully enhances all these different episodes. There are some bits which, when changed slightly, the orchestration sounds like it could have been the Game Of Thrones theme or from a Hans Zimmer film. Still in his teens, Oldfield was disillusioned with the rigours of touring and the limitations of live performance. His vision was to produce an album taking full advantage of the sound production opportunities offered by the recording studio. Robin Smith: There are plenty of those, my word! I really respect that, and as I said, they can go down to the pub and see a band play that almost every weekend. There’s somebody always doing that. In fact, this year the concerts are full of people doing the original version as it is – somebody’s doing the [1974] version by David Bedford with an orchestra. The difference is, I started this six years ago when I played it to Mike – who said, “This is absolutely beautiful, Robin. Do finish this off.” So I didn’t actually write this for the anniversary, I wrote this to bring it to an audience because I love the work; it’s coincidental that we’re playing it on the anniversary.

You don’t need to sign-up to a streaming service such as Tidal or Apple Music to hear the spatial audio mix Multi-instrumentalist Mike Oldfield named his first album Tubular Bells, best known for providing the musical theme to The Exorcist film (1973). At the beginning of his solo symphony recording project in 1972, Oldfield discovered a set of tubular bells at The Manor Studio in Oxfordshire, England, and asked new owner Richard Branson for permission to use them. The chimes were played by Oldfield on parts of the album, and they supplied the album name. Branson's company Virgin Records benefitted tremendously as Oldfield's album sold millions of copies; this also contributed to Branson's personal wealth and industry leverage. [4] Other uses [ edit ] 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. To celebrate next year’s 50th anniversary of Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells, the multi-million-selling and multi-award-winning album will be performed live in concert for a celebratory UK tour.

Additionally, Mike Oldfield’s 5.1 Surround Mix from 2009 is also included. That was only ever issued on DVD at the time, so it sees its debut here on Blu-ray as lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1.In tubular bells, modes 4, 5, and 6 appear to determine the strike tone and have frequencies in the ratios 9 2:11 2:13 2, or 81:121:169, "which are close enough to the ratios 2:3:4 for the ear to consider them nearly harmonic and to use them as a basis for establishing a virtual pitch". [3] The perceived "strike pitch" is thus an octave below the fourth mode (i.e., the missing "1" in the above series). There are some things we make with our technology that you literally can’t create live. Just because you’ve got a string sound [on the record] doesn’t necessarily mean you want an orchestra playing all the way through it. You take each section and you make it as vibrant and as modern as possible. Mike Oldfield’s seminal 1973 album Tubular Bells is being reissued for its 50th anniversary and amongst the formats is an SDE-exclusive blu-ray audio which features a brand new immersive Dolby Atmos Mix along with other rare spatial audio versions, a new stereo mix and an unreleased demo of a planned – but scrapped – Tubular Bells 4, which was made five years ago! A custom-made distortion was used to create the “bagpipe guitars” (so called because their sound is similar to bagpipes) heard on side two. And at the end of side two a familiar tune is heard: Oldfield’s arrangement of the Sailor’s Hornpipe brings the album to a close. A template for innovation

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Mike Oldfield’s ‘ Tubular Bells’, the multi-million-selling and multi-award-winning album is being performed live in concert across the UK. Tonight at the Brighton Dome was the second show of the celebratory UK tour. Mike Oldfield’s ‘Tubular Bells’ The 50th Anniversary Celebration, Brighton Dome 5.2.23 (pic Ian Bourn) So, set two was upon us. I had seen Mike Oldfield perform ‘Tubular Bells 2’ in Edinburgh. What a night that was, great sounds and a gentle gale force wind blowing across the castle esplanade. Therefore, tonight the assembled musicians had a pretty tough act to follow! Mike Oldfield’s ‘Tubular Bells’ The 50th Anniversary Celebration, Brighton Dome 5.2.23 (pic Ian Bourn) You said you’re also looking for a new audience. Younger, possibly non-classical or non-prog audiences, would that be correct? The Tubular Bells Concert Tour will celebrate the 50th anniversary of Tubular Bells, the iconic masterpiece will be performed live with a full band across the UK in Spring 2023. Tubular Bells Concert Tour 2023

A multi-format reissue of Mike Oldfield’s seminal 1973 debut Tubular Bells will be released on May 26, to mark its 50th anniversary. It will be available in double vinyl and CD formats and as a Blu ray exclusively via Super Deluxe Edition. The new editions feature an unreleased demo made by Oldfield five years ago and intended at the time to herald a new 50th anniversary version of the work. The orchestra got together for a well-deserved bow for the Brighton crowd who were now on their feet for the second time tonight. It was THAT good! Mike Oldfield’s ‘Tubular Bells’ The 50th Anniversary Celebration, Brighton Dome 5.2.23 (pic Ian Bourn) Chosen as the album’s title and the subject of a great fanfare at the end of side one, tubular bells constituted something of a novelty item and source of fascination for listeners.

We all filed out into the cold frosty air and everyone was clearly buzzing about what they had just seen and enjoyed. It was great to see the Dome nearly full again, and also the wide range of ages making up the audience. This is a concert for anyone, for those who grabbed the album when it came out on vinyl in 1973 to the Spotify audiences of today. Music is at its best when it’s live! A most enjoyable experience. Mike Oldfield’s ‘Tubular Bells’ The 50th Anniversary Celebration, Brighton Dome 5.2.23 (pic Ian Bourn) I told Mike I wanted to reimagine [ Tubular Bells] as a ballet, and he sent me a message saying, “Robin, this is beautiful – find a choreographer but do one thing for me. Don’t involve me at all because I won’t get involved.” That always makes me laugh – I’ve got it pinned on my wall. Does that tell you something? But he’s been very supportive. When we first premiered this version at the Royal Festival Hall [in 2021] for 10 performances, he sent the most beautiful messages through. Well I can’t believe it’s 25 years since I bought the 25 anniversary CD! Now it’s the big Five O! The CD omits Tubular X that appears on the vinyl. TB4 intro 2017 demo would have been better off left off the disc as it’s a rejigged blender of very familiar sounds from the original and sounds like a kid in his bedroom doing a ‘variation’ into his Mac book! TB2 was enough of a rejig and TB3 was at least a techno outing but this is totally uneventful. The London Olympics 2012 is cool though and the swing section was new for Mike. The York remix is an ambient techno workout which hits the discotheque full blast, it’s like a Pet Shop Boys remix! Just imagine Neil Tennant as MC! “Grand Piano!” The show was premiered at the Royal Festival Hall in London in August 2021 to great acclaim as an early celebration of and tribute to Mike - who in my view is one of England’s greatest composers in the last century. Along with the musicians, it’s a real privilege to be performing this extraordinary work. It’s as fresh today as it was when Mike created it in 1971 - and I love having the chance to bring it to new audiences as well as those who, like me, are still captivated by it whenever they hear it. In the early 20th century tubular bells were also incorporated into theater organs to produce effects.

Tour

Tubular bells (also known as chimes) are musical instruments in the percussion family. [1] Their sound resembles that of church bells, carillon, or a bell tower; the original tubular bells were made to duplicate the sound of church bells within an ensemble. [2] Each bell is a metal tube, 1 + 1⁄ 4– 1 + 1⁄ 2in) in diameter, tuned by altering its length. Its standard range is C 4–F 5, though many professional instruments reach G 5. Tubular bells are often replaced by studio chimes, which are a smaller and usually less expensive instrument. Studio chimes are similar in appearance to tubular bells, but each bell has a smaller diameter than the corresponding bell on tubular bells. What goes into getting this whole production together? It’s not as large as having an orchestra, but still… It’s the only way to enjoy the Dolby Atmos mix (and the new stereo mix) of the album via aphysical product