Presented by UMW Toyota Motor and Toyota Motor Asia Pacific, the annual Toyota Classics will be held on Wednesday, featuring performances by the Baltic Neopolis Orchestra, together with pianist and narrator Pamela Tan Nicholson and conductor Vasko Vassilev.

The concert, at Dewan Filharmonik Petronas KLCC, will also see a song presentation by Rendezvous from the Faculty of Music, Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM), a talented youth choir that will have the chance to perform with the celebrated Polish orchestra. 

With its “Music that Moves Lives” tagline, the 27th edition of the Toyota Classics aims to touch lives both within and beyond the concert hall, having raised a total of US$8.6 million (RM36.12 million) for different charities regionally. Proceeds from the Kuala Lumpur show will go to the UiTM Faculty of Music and the Youth Trust Foundation.

This year, the Toyota Classics concert tour will cover Brunei, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, Laos, Singapore, Cambodia and Vietnam. The focus is Youth Engagement, in an effort to inspire and boost support for youth groups.

The Edge Financial Daily meets and talks to Nicholson and Vassilev. 

FD: Over the years, your ‘live’ and recorded output have been championed by leading soloists from different disciplines, orchestras as well as bands. You have also been involved in numerous inspirational collaborations with producers of vastly different styles. How would you define your approach? 

Nicholson: No barriers.

FD: In 2003, you created a Royal Albert Hall Gala featuring stars from 14 countries, among them Andy Serkis, Kristanna Loken and Trudie Styler, Joaquin Cortes, Mel Blatt, Zucchero, Alina Cojacaru, and Rory Bremner. Where did you get the inspiration for that? 

Nicholson: Unity in diversity. I wanted to demonstrate that people and music from different nationalities, races, religions, backgrounds can all contribute to a peaceful world for our children. The gala was in support of young victims of the Iraq War.

FD: What drives you to succeed in your career — passion, fame, money or something else?

Nicholson: I can’t say any of the above. Creating shows of one form or another is something I have always found natural to do, since I was little. It’s not passion because I never threw a tantrum if I was asked as a child to do something else for a little while. Fame or money don’t come into it for a child either. It is just an extension of my personality.

FD: You are a lawyer by profession. When did you know that music would be your life’s work and calling?

Nicholson: The music never stops — and it did not while I was at university or working as a lawyer. It was harder to keep both going at full speed when I moved to London from Singapore, not least because it just took much more time to get from one location to another to keep up at both jobs!

FD: What inspired you when you started your career as a musician, and later a conductor? What were your formative influences, role models and inspirations?

Vassilev: I grew up in a musical family. My mother was a repetiteur in the opera. I acted in theatre and movies as a child. So in a sense, my music interest was always going to extend beyond the violin.  As a conductor, I get a bird’s eye view of everything and that is very satisfying.  

FD: You have performed in more than 20 countries as a soloist, recitalist, chamber musician and conductor. Have any of these experiences influenced your creative production?  

Vassilev: No and yes. When I first started my international career, I was a typical international prize-winning violinist churning out classical concerti. One concert hall was not so different from another. I am sure I would have got bored very soon but happily, Pamela and I found each other and new ways of musical expression which really connect with people of different countries.

FD: You have been a concert violinist, directed chamber orchestras, and conducted symphony orchestras and operas. All these involve music, yet in each role what is required of you differs considerably. Which gives you the most satisfaction and why?

Vassilev: I enjoy them all, which is why I continue to do them all. The day I lose satisfaction in one, I will give up that role.

FD: You have been working with many musicians of other disciplines and styles, including Placido Domingo, Sting, Ronnie Wood, Vanessa-Mae, Paco Pena and Erasure. What drives you to embrace a multidiscipline approach and relate it to classical music?

Vassilev: Embarking on Pamela’s “no-barriers” approach and adopting it into my own performances keeps me rediscovering classical music all the time. I was brought up in the classical tradition and working with people outside it helps me keep the tradition alive.

FD: What was the inspiration behind joining the Toyota Classics for the third year?

Nicholson and Vassilev: We have something new to share.

FD: How did you decide on the concert programme and what can the audience look forward to?

Nicholson and Vassilev: Our new project brings a fresh approach not only to the piano, violin and orchestra, but to opera.

FD: The Baltic Neopolis Orchestra was awarded the Polish Grammy for Best Music Album 2015. Did the award have any influence on your decisions for this year’s programme?

Nicholson and Vassilev: Yes, they are a young and dynamic bunch — and it showed in their recording. So, when we wanted to bring opera that’s “alive” and “afresh”, not with a 100-piece orchestra in a pit, but only a small group on stage with us, they are part of the action for sure.

FD: What does classical music bring to the audience?

Nicholson and Vassilev: The way classical music speaks to us is far more personal and intimate than any other form of music. This is what we want to share with audiences. Of course, today’s audience lives in a world far different from centuries ago, when some of the best-known classical music was written. This is why as performers and ambassadors of classical music today, we need to reach out honestly to our contemporaries in a way that feels normal and not anachronistic. We need to bring back the sensation of classical music concerts, which gives the audience room to imagine and connect the music to their own emotions and memories. We are not playing music in a vacuum as a museum piece.

FD: This is your third performance under the Toyota Classics series. What can you say about Toyota’s effort?

Nicholson and Vassilev: We are thrilled that in extending and continuing Toyota Classics’ efforts over 27 years to bring classical music to a bigger audience, they have also embraced our message to contemporary classical music performances, making it relevant to new audiences. It is also great that we have opportunities to collaborate with local artists who help us connect with the audiences in all the different countries. Last and not least, to know that what we and the audience enjoy also benefits worthy causes is an extra bonus.

The Toyota Classics will be held on Wednesday at 8.30pm at the Dewan Filharmonik Petronas, Level 2, Tower 2, Petronas Twin Towers, KLCC. Tickets are priced at RM265, RM212, RM159 and RM106, and running out fast. Visit www.mpo.com.my to purchase.