5 things you don't know about Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber has built an empire through composing songs for musical theatre. Musicals that Andrew has under his belt include The Phantom of the Opera, Cats, Evita and Jesus Christ Superstar. It is estimated that this composer has a personal fortune that exceeds $200 million. Here are five interesting facts that you may not know about this legendary mastermind.
1. His first composition was at the age of 9
Andrew grew up with music being a key part of life in his family. His father William was the director of the London College of Music and his mother Jean was a piano instructor. During his childhood years, Andrew could play the piano, violin and French Horn. His first composition, The Toy Theatre Suite was published when he was only nine years old.
2. His childhood dreams
When Andrew was a child he had aspired to be Britain’s chief inspector of ancient monuments. He received a Challenge Scholarship to Westminster and entered Oxford as a history major in 1965. He only spent one term at Oxford, however, as he left to work on musical The Likes of Us. This musical was never produced.
3. His breakthrough
In college Andrew was introduced to a lyricist Tim Rice. After the pair worked on The Likes of Us, they worked on Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. This musical was given a favourable review by a Sunday Times music critic. In their next venture, Andrew and Time worked on the successful Jesus Christ Superstar which came out in 1971. Due to the success of the album, the production had advance ticket sales that generated over $1 million.
4. He doesn’t care about the opinion of critics
Andrew’s 1989 musical Aspects of Love, received many negative reviews. The production revolves around a circle of friends’ love lives. Although he received negative reviews, Andrew saw it as a valued work due to the stories relatability to all audiences. He told the New York Times the production would, “outlive and outlaugh all my other shows, because 100 percent of the world loves love. The reviews from the critics are of no interest to me.”
5. He wrote two songs for Elvis Presley
Andrew and Tim Rice wrote two songs for Elvis Presley’s album Moody Blues. The songs were ‘It’s easy for you’ and ‘Please Don’t Let Lorraine Come Down’.