MIKE OLDFIELD’S TUBULAR BELLS LIVE IN CONCERT - The 50th Anniversary Celebration

When Englishman Mike Oldfield released his debut album "Tubular Bells" (1973) at the age of 20, he shook up the entire progressive rock scene. The international press quickly included the album in the best of the year and the genre lists. Oldfield celebrated the most successful period of his career in the 1980s with albums such as "Crises" (1983), "Discovery" (1984) and "Earth Moving" (1989), all of which reached number 1 in the album charts in Germany. "Tubular Bells" and its successor "Hergest Ridge" (1974) remained his only number 1 successes in England, where the debut stayed in the charts for 288 weeks and was awarded multiple platinum with millions of units sold. In March 2024, Mike Oldfield played "Tubular Bells" at a completely sold-out show at the Berlin Theater am Potsdamer Platz and was enthusiastically applauded. In 2025, the Mike Oldfield Project, led by Robin A. Smith, will return to Germany to bring the album to the stage alongside hits such as "Moonlight Shadow", "Summit Day", "Family Man" and "Ommadawn" and to continue to celebrate Mike Oldfield's life's work after the end of his career.

In 1971, multi-instrumentalist Mike Oldfield, who had just turned 20, began working on his debut album "Tubular Bells". In an almost frenzied process that was limited to a week of studio time, Oldfield recorded the almost fifty-minute album together with Tom Newman in the Manor House. He played almost all of the instruments on the album himself. "Tubular Bells" made the musician's rise to fame in a very short time and became known worldwide, especially through the use of the intro in the soundtrack of the horror film "The Exorcist". With influences from classical music, electronic ambient sounds, pop and the avant-garde rock of the late 60s, Mike Oldfield created an album that set the standard for his career. It is therefore not surprising that the composer continued the concept of his debut album with the albums "Tubular Bells II" (1992), "Tubular Bells III" (1998) and "The Millennium Bell" (1999). On the occasion of the 30th anniversary of his debut, Oldfield presented the album in a new recording under the title "Tubular Bells 2003". After 26 studio albums, nine of which reached a top 10 position in the UK charts, Oldfield announced his retirement and withdrawal from stage life in 2023.

His impressive discography continues to be performed under the direction of Robin A. Smith, who Oldfield knew with great confidence and trust would bring "Tubular Bells" to the stage to perfection. With a premiere at the Royal Festival Hall in London in August 2021, "Tubular Bells" was performed for the first time under Smith's direction as a tribute to Mike Oldfield's life's work. The show delighted the press and long-time and new fans, who quickly felt connected to the timeless work through Smith's unique interpretation.