Neville Cann

  • Instrument

    Cello

  • Outside of BPO, what is your occupation?

    Actor


  • How long have you been a member of BPO?

    Since 2014

  • What inspired you to take up your instrument?

    My Dad was a cellist.


  • How did you come to join the orchestra?

    I previously played in the Chandos orchestra, of which Michael Lloyd is also the Musical Director, for over 10 years in Malvern. Having given up the day job and moved to Birmingham to become an actor, found that I was often not available for the full weekends required by Chandos, so I moved to the BPO.

  • Most treasured occasion with the BPO?

    The first concert after lockdown, still with restrictions and reduced numbers, the players sitting at a distance from each other and the audience spread out, playing Nimrod from Elgar's Enigma Variations.

  • Any moments you would rather forget?

    No.


  • Favourite composer? Least favourite composer?

    My favourite composer is Shostakovich, though I most enjoy playing light music. Least favourite to play: Mahler. The textures are so dense, and there is so much going on, that you wonder if your presence makes any difference.

  • Work(s) you would like to play before you die?

    I'm happy to be playing whatever is chosen for us. Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra is a favourite. I once missed the chance of playing that with Chandos because I moved to Hungary just before the concert.

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