James Last, the "Grand Seigneur of good cheer", is going back on tour and will be playing a show at The NIA, Birmingham, April 6 2011.
Tickets go on general sale at 9am on Friday 23 April priced at £45 & £40 plus booking and transaction fees. Tickets can be purchased online at theticketfactory.com or by calling The Ticket Factory on 0844 338 8000.
"I think there's been a bit of a misunderstanding," says James 'Hansi' Last with a grin. Many thought that his hugely successful tour on the occasion of his 80th birthday would be Germany's most successful orchestra conductor's last. Yet musicians with James Last's agility and passion never think in terms of 'farewell' or 'too old'. "It's only over when the lid slams shut," declares this 81-year-old dryly. So as always - and as he himself likes to remark - James Last will not be resting up at a resort, rather living it up on stage.
Maybe that old adage really is true, maybe music truly does keep you young. And if any proof is needed, we need look no further than this Bremen-born musician. "I don't even know which tour it'll be but there's one thing I'm sure of: it'll be exciting," says Last. Whether working on new arrangements or thinking about the stage design and lighting or even contemplating what surprise should kick off the new show, James Last radiates an unbridled passion and enthusiasm that is contagious.
James Last and his orchestra will be playing 24 shows across Europe kicking off in Germany in March 2011. "It's for the fun of it all. You spend so long preparing for it and then, when the day finally comes and you're standing on stage and savouring the audience's enthusiasm, there's just something special about that. Plus with us, every musician has fun. And I'm willing to bet my right hand on that."
As in the past, the upcoming tour will not only feature classics spanning more than five decades but also the latest hits. "It's not just music that electrifies me, it's top-notch entertainment. I only choose songs that I, myself, like - otherwise it wouldn't work on stage. But you also have to move with the times and that means that you have to put a bit of a modern spin on the older songs. And of course the same thing also applies to the technical show on stage. But if you keep your eyes open, the ideas keep coming."
Once again his multicultural orchestra features a brilliant cast of musicians hailing from all corners of the world. Apart from the necessary technical requirements, the head of this orchestra only demands two things of his colleagues: "They have to be normal people and enjoy music." And for James Last, it's as simple as that. He's not a man of many words. He's never been afflicted with aspirations of greatness; what he wants - what he has always wanted - is to spread fun and good cheer. That is his credo.
After more than six decades on stage, thousands of concerts before hundreds of thousands of happy, enthusiastic spectators and the countless awards and distinctions presented to him throughout his long career, James Last has nothing left to prove. And because of that, this entertainer simply enjoys the acknowledgement he receives from the audience. If you ask him about any unfulfilled dreams he says, "I was recently given two paintings and written on both is 'Weitermachen!' or 'Keep it up!'"
