Oliver Lewis

Biography

Oliver Lewis is the fastest and most recognised acoustic violinist in the world.

In October 2010 Lewis became the Guinness World Record’s fastest violin player ever. He performed ‘Flight of the Bumblebee’ live on BBC1’s Blue Peter in 1 minute 3.356 seconds.

He has starred in productions such as the international smash hit Spirit of the Dance, can currently be seen in The Theatre Royal’s production of Oliver! and will soon be touring the UK with War of the Worlds.

After picking up his first violin at the age of eight it was not long before he was labelled a child prodigy. He led the National Children’s Orchestra of Great Britain and made his concert debut before he reached his teens.

He graduated as a scholar from the Purcell School of Music, the Guildhall School of Music and Switzerland’s Berne Conservatoire before turning fully professional, beginning as a concert soloist with the Berne Symphony Orchestra and then leading the Heidelberg Chamber Orchestra.

At this point, Lewis was an acclaimed virtuoso of the classics, but it was unknown that he was also was a master in stylistic diversity. He became a star after his first performance on Spirit of the Dance where his fiddling was a spectacular demonstration of traditional Irish culture that has thrilled audiences. Spirit of the Dance has become one of the most successful shows in history, seen by millions.

Together with acclaimed producer Dave Williams, Lewis created the Deviations Project, which blends elements of classical music with electronic on pieces such as Tchaikovsky’s ‘Swan Lake” and Bizet’s ‘Carmen’ which are recreated with modern music technology. Their Christmas album, Adeste Fiddles reached #16 in the US Billboard Classical Crossover Chart.

As an avid fan of new music many modern day composers have written pieces specifically for him to play. These pieces include ‘Insomnia’ by British composer John Pickard and Nicholas Brown’s ‘Silence is Golden’. With his piano trio he has recorded two new scores to the classic silent movies Lady Windermere’s Fan and After Death, released worldwide by the British Film Institute.

Lewis has also been used in film and commercials too, as the violin star in the car manufacturer’s Opel Astra campaign, as the concert violinist in M&S Christmas advertisements and he also recorded music for and featured in the film Ladies in Lavender.

Lewis’s concerts and performances have taken him across the globe from Europe to the United States, Australasia to South Africa and Asia to South America. He has played exclusively for Presidents and Hollywood starlets.

He records extensively for Guild Music, winning the top double five-star award from Classic CD Magazine. He is sponsored by the leading American string manufacturer D’Addario

Website: http://www.myspace.com/deviations

Twitter: @olimadcrazy

What the papers say:

“Magnificent talent, he took the audience into another world.”

The Guardian

“seamless brilliance, the audience asked for more’

London Evening Standard

‘A fine Player … underlying musical intelligence’

Independent

’Lewis left the audience mesmerized’

Daily Express

‘Exciting performance, full of swagger and panache’

Gramophone

‘His noble tone breathed with artistic phrasing’

Der Bund, Switzerland

Coverage

PRESS ASSOCIATION

Speedy violinist flies into the record books
(UKPA) – Oct 19, 2010
A nimble fingered violinist from east London has broken the record for the fastest performance of Flight of the Bumblebee.
Oliver Lewis, 39, completed his fast fiddle rendition of the Rimsky-Korsakov piece live on the long-running BBC children’s programme Blue Peter.
His time of one minute 3.356 seconds, witnessed in the studio by a Guinness World Records representative, shaved nearly a second off the previous record.
Learning of his success after the attempt was verified for accuracy, Mr Lewis, from east London said: “I feel so much relief, thank you very much.”
Professional musician Lewis first picked up the violin at the age of eight and has since performed in hit shows including: Oliver!, War of the Worlds, and Spirit of the Dance.
Copyright © 2010 The Press Association. All rights reserved.