Violin double-act breaks up
OrchestrasMonths after signing on for an orchestral tour with German management firm K D Schmid, the Australian comedy duo TwoSet Violin has split up, taking down all their videos on social media.
Their parting message reads: ‘This will be the last piece of content we post as TwoSet Violin. It’s been a wild ride with you all for the last 11 years. We’ve all grown up together and it’s kinda surreal that we’re ending our chapter here. Thank you for all the laughs, the genuine encounters in real life and all the special moments we’ve had with you online and offline. Much love, Brett and Eddy.’
Their farewell note has received quarter of a million likes.
Hilary Hahn messaged: ‘So many congrats on a job well done! And thank you for everything you have done for the musical community. Not just classical! You guys rock.’
They had four million Youtube subscribers.
These young guys were fine professional violinists but even better as a double act introducting various aspects of classical music to so many people around the world. Their following on youtube proved this, as did the concerts they presented on their few world tours. Classical music really needs this kind of enthusiam, fun and energy. Very sad to see them give up, but wish them both the best for their futures.
I understand that the band has to move on and all – but why taking all the
Unpopular opinion:
Exploiting Music for personal gain.
They butchered classical music and string players to fulfill their need to present content to their large, and largely new-to-classical, audience.
They took pieces we hold dear and instead of treating these marvels of musical architecture they sliced and diced the music into BGM (background music) for their [amateur] comedic stunts. Sibelius’ Violin Concerto, Paganini’s 24th Caprice (with the help of intonation queen Hilary Hahn and a hula-hoop) and so many other works of art—used to compensate for weaknesses in their creativity. Had they been TwoSet Architecture they might have gone to Notre Dame and measured how many rolls of toilet paper could they throw to cover its West façade.
Had they been TwoSet Literature they might very well have seen which publishers’ paper was most ideal for a litter box. Had they been TwoSet Culinary Art they might have tried using the best truffles for rabbit feed. Had they been TwoSet Art they might have…you get the point .
Many of the most popular social media influencers thrive on using others’ work to fuel their shticks.
“But, but, they reached new audiences.”
Not really. Many of those audience members have gotten a distorted picture of what classical music is. They are not likely to attend more than one or two concerts before they realize it’s a serious art form that is best left alone from the bite-sized, fast-paced, Tik-Tokked world. However, the artists frequently in the TwoSet orbit have gained social media followers; no surprise their social media presence mimics as TwoSet’s offspring.
Classical music, I believe, should be left alone, lest we risk degrading it.
After TwoSet, major works of art are to many nothing more than vehicles for a quick laugh (or eye roll). Social media is about trends. Classical music is not a trend, nor will it ever be. Much of it has sustained its concert presence longer than The Beach Boys and P Diddy.
Victor Borge was a comedic genius. He, like Jack Benny, could actually play. Both were brilliant on stage—not needing countless layers of video editing and “merch” sales.
One can’t help but feel sorry for the Strad one of them supposedly bought. For now we can rest assured TwoSet Violin will not experiment to see how fast a Strad burns compared to an Amazon violin.
You’ll outgrow this snobbishness. And develop a sense of humor in the process.
You know they won’t. They rarely do positive comments. Poor them.
This is a deeply cynical and fuddy-duddy view of a tremendous success story.
TwoSet’s greatest achievement was to find a fresh (and often fun — horrors!) way to communicate their obvious love and deep respect of the music, the composers, and the artists.
And, yes, it does take enormous creativity to achieve all they did. You try running a YouTube channel for over a decade, attracting millions of subscribers, and building it into a lucrative business.
As for attracting a large, younger (more horrors!), and primarily new-to-classical-music audience: well, how dare they! Don’t they know that this music belongs to YOU alone??
But it’s NOT an entirely cynical / fuddy-duddy view.
In an age where every serious cultural product is dumbed-down, cheapened, made easier to digest to fit in the market place – where the only value is the price tag – it is helpful that there are voices pointing towards the Real Thing.
Finding new, younger audiences by making music more accessible, suggests that youngsters are entirely incapable of digesting something that is a bit more challenging in terms of content and necessary effort than the milk they have been fed when a baby. So, modern society is saturated with lazyness and regression, and in the end this is patronizing and ignoring a natural instinct of youth: to take on challenges and be ambitious to grow and to be able to achieve things.
Some unpopular opinions are unpopular for a reason
12 people share your lack of humor. Hope you enjoy your Webern and Boulez!
As a frequent defender of snobbery, I can say that you give snobbery a very, very bad name. It’s good to be snobbish about things that actually undermine classical music—orchestras and classical radio stations giving over their entire schedules to Classical Top 40 and films scores, simplistic inclusion efforts that prioritize mediocre music, and concert etiquette that turns concert halls into sports arenas. People being silly while talking about classical music, even if that is all this pair did (which is definitely not the truth) would have no power to undermine classical music one bit. You can’t destroy an art form through the way you talk about it.
I did not frequently watch their videos, but when I did, they never remotely engaged in the pointless or destructive idiocy you imply in your comparisons. Some clips that I saw covered how different conductors approached the same work, virtuoso pieces I was unaware of, and aspects of violin technique. It is true that they discussed them in a jokey way and didn’t gush over the music or provide puffery that great music never requires. Certainly, their output provided a lot more information about classical music than Victor Borge who, whatever his talents as a musician, was interested primarily in entertaining rather than informing. If someone knew classical music through Victor Borge of Jack Benny, he would know almost nothing. From this pair, you could learn a fair bit. And, although neither could have won a solo career, I think both can at least as well as Jack Benny. I think you prefer those two entertainers simply because they are old, rather than young.
Talking in a funny way about masterpieces doesn’t destroy the pieces themselves or anyone’s enjoyment of them. Likewise, talking about pieces in a gushing, reverential, and solemn way doesn’t enhance a masterpiece or anyone’s enjoyment of it. But the latter is much more irritating.
I have to disagree on Victor Borje. He wasn’t didactic, but whatever he did was musically tasteful, at least to my ears. Good taste is primarily taught by osmosis. Take the Minute Waltz sketch. No explanations, but what a wonderful sense of waltzing lilt.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wV-zGrx9QhM
It never ceases to amaze me how goddamned miserable some people are on this site.
Nobody has done more damage to the future of classical music than all the snobs who tell people that they’re enjoying the music the wrong way. Gerry Feinsteen can now join their ranks.
Also, twoset started as a side act for fun, not personal profit. So you have your facts wrong on top of that.
In Victor Borge’s day Video was unknown.
I’m surprised that you’re not railing against music on records.
Uhh, Mr. Feinsteen, tell me you’re extremely envious of their success without telling me you’re extremely envious of their success.
The global camaraderie that these two young guys created a space for, then developed and cultivated, among a mostly young audience of youngsters and teenagers, within the vocabulary of western classical music is remarkable. I’ve seen first hand how they illuminated an art form for kids who otherwise may not have cared. Not to mention introducing obscure or not well-known composers to a new audience (yes, there are many instances when this happened).
If your disdain for TwoSet weren’t funny enough, your contempt for Hilary Hahn is absolutely hilarious and extremely telling.
This guy is not envious at all…lol
Perhaps a little harsh in details but basically correct, right to the last point. Well done, Gerry.
“ Had they been TwoSet Architecture they might have gone to Notre Dame and measured how many rolls of toilet paper could they throw to cover its West façade.”
So true
I wholeheartedly agree with Gerry!
“Exploiting Music for personal gain.”
Perhaps the silliest complaint of all to pose for an audience of professional musicians.
…I could never laugh at Borge…..
Oof Gerry Feinsteen, you are one of the main reasons for the terminal decline of the classical music. Probably the biggest reason.
I watched and saw Victor Borge and Jack Benny quite a few times. Comic geniuses both. But did I learn much about classical music from them? No! They were entertainers pure and simple who used classical music as part of their acts. Two Set were so different as to be a world apart. They were not comic geniuses and they did not use music as an incidental part of an act. They started from the basis that they wished to communicate aspects of classical music in an entertaining way to anyone who wished to watch them, be they classical music lovers or those with nothing more than a passing interest. Yes, their later shows were running out of interesting material, but what they taught their millions of followers was vasty more beneficial to the future of classical music than either Benny or Borge.
Perhaps – in a way – they were the social media generation’s answer to Bernstein’s education TV programmes with the NY Phil in the 1960s. What station could possibly afford to do that today with a full symphony orchestra? None! Two Set communicated their interest and fun in a way the younger generation could both enjoy and learn from (and some from older gernerations).
Has there ever been a post on this site with as many downvotes, I wonder?
It seems they are rebranding to something called TwoSet Academy. Don’t know what that is yet, but my guess is that it will require less of a daily grind on their part; maybe it will offer instruction/masterclasses/lessons, like Tonebase.
That would be good for them. My kids, both still in school, loved them for several years but they just got tired of it, especially in the last year or so, feeling that their material was gradually becoming exhausted. We mostly stopped watching at some point. They are evidently fine musicians, and did provide a lot of fun. Definitely think they should leave the older episodes up.
Update on this: The kids are really, and I mean really, disappointed that all 11 years of weekly videos are taken down with the exception of 29. They did like to revisit many of the older ones.
Much unhappiness in the household now, alas. The new academy had better be good. By the looks of things, they risk alienating a very large fan base (millions).
Twoset: if you are reading this, and I’m sure you are, please, urgently reconsider keeping the videos up. Does it cost you anything to do so? Its like suddenly taking a bunch of nice toys away from an age group that has not yet outgrown them. They still find them valuable, and by extension, so do I! You will reap much in the way of good will. Cheers!
The word Academy suggest students which suggests grants.
I’ve heard that they’ve taken down all their material too, not sure if this is correct.
It’s a shame if they have.
These two young men have done a lot for classical music in many ways. They’ve made it fun in a serious and intelligent way.
Many people , especially youngsters who otherwise probably wouldn’t engage or have the opportunity to hear and learn anything remotely to do with classical music have been lucky enough to learn something other than what we do is “elitist”.
In a world where the arts are constantly neglected and funding cut, we need more of their like.
I wish them the best in whatever comes next.
Wait what???!!! This is bigger than the Wang/Makela break up. What’s the back story?
Since the 70’s the formula has been the same: Become buffoons and use comedy to “attract new audiences”.
It hasn’t worked, it doesn’t work, it will not work, but people literally cannot put two neurons together to think of alternatives.
It’s the proverbial dog banging itself against the wall metaphor.
Meanwhile, the best sellers for DG, Sony and Decca are all pops artists…
You say that; personally, I mostly enjoyed their videos comparing versions of, say, Sibelius concertos, explaining how to differentiate musicians, the intricacies of how Ray Chen’s bowing is different from Hilary Hahn and how that changes their sound, etc. Or trying to play along to conductor videos and then explaining in detail how to follow a conductor, how different conductors indicate beats or conduct similar motifs, etc.
You can call them buffoons. Their content is/was way, way more than just silliness.
Well then, put your two neurons together and get back to us!
I’m not buying it, either a gimmick or their socials have been hacked.
Watched and enjoyed many of their videos. E.g. Concerto battle was funny, and I also learnt something about violin playing and classical music. Would have watched fewer videos of Hilary Hahn and other great violinists without them. That being said, I also felt their material was exhausted, and I skipped much of their more recent as it was obviously more aimed at the (Asian?) teenage girl audience.
Are you sure it’s not a hack? Maybe you should check with them
Got tired of the viola jokes ages ago.
Jack Benny was better.
I would place a large sum of money on the bet that this is a prank.
It’s a costly one for KD Schmid
Maybe…. if they were as bad at their job as you are! What happened to journalism NL, you really so easily fooled?
It doesn’t look like the breakup lasted very long …
https://twosetacademy.com/
TwoSet Violin is still listed on the K D Schmid site under ‘Special Attractions’, along with The King’s Singers, Philharmonix, and the 12 Cellists of the Berlin Philharmonic, among others. They have not split up, they are changing direction (a mature and sensible decision) before their highly enjoyable YT channel became stale.
Umm they haven’t taken down any videos. They’re YT channel is still up…
And making them a lot of money, I’m sure. YouTube pays people with that sort of following very well.
And it only has 29 videos on it. I can assure you there were a LOT more.
Their [sic] channel is still there, but many, many videos are not. Or do you think that they achieved their fame and fortune with only 29 videos?
There seem to be only 29 left, out of 11 years!
They had @ 1500 videos on You Tube platform alone
Some people value the trappings and snob appeal of classical music more than the music itself.
TwoSet Violin posted their share of purely fun and silly videos (no harm in that) but many of their videos provide more information and educational value than most New York Times classical music articles or BBC classical music documentaries, which usually have no technical content and consist largely of celebrities (musical and non-musical) gushing about how “amazing” this or that composition is.
Nonetheless, because these two are relatively young and take a light-hearted approach to music, they are viewed as inexplicably more lightweight and an indication that classical music is in decline.