2Cellos
Encyclopedia
2Cellos is a cello
duo consisting of Croatian
cellists Luka Šulić
and Stjepan Hauser
. Signed to Sony Masterworks since 12 April 2011, the two were discovered after uploading a music video of their cello-only cover
of Michael Jackson
's "Smooth Criminal
" to YouTube
.
, Slovenia
, and Hauser, from Pula
, Croatia, met at a master class
in Croatia while still in their teens. Šulić—the younger of the two by a year—and Hauser attended the Academy of Music
in Zagreb
together, and both then travelled to study in Vienna
. Šulić later entered London
's Royal Academy of Music
, while Hauser attended the Royal Northern College of Music
in Manchester
. The duo rose to fame after their cover of "Smooth Criminal" became a hit on YouTube, receiving over three million views in the first two weeks and more than five million views in all. The creation of the music video was prompted by the cellists' financial difficulties, despite their musical success in the UK. The duo met in Pula, where one of Hauser's friends, a director, proposed that they try the pop music
market by creating a video to "Smooth Criminal." The video, originally posted on 20 January 2011, features Šulić and Hauser facing off alone in a large white room, playing Jackson's tune. In fact, before they became partners, the two cellists were sometimes considered rivals, competing against each other in music contests.
, Guns N' Roses
, Nine Inch Nails
, Sting, Coldplay
, Nirvana
, Muse
, and Kings of Leon
. Hauser told la Repubblica
that the album would also feature a cello version of Jackson's "Human Nature
." The duo said that they chose songs that could be adapted into covers playable on only two cellos. In anticipation of the release, 2Cellos released their second single "Welcome to the Jungle," a cover of the Guns N' Roses song of the same name
.
As a result of 2Cellos' success, English singer Elton John
asked the duo to appear with him on his summer tour, which began in Cardiff
on 8 June 2011. John, who personally called Šulić, said that he had watched the "Smooth Criminal" video and wanted 2Cellos to participate in the thirty-city tour. The two had previously performed on the 25 April 2011 episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show
, as well as on Perez Hilton
's Perez TV several days before that. 2Cellos also performed on 25 July 2011 at the 2011 iTunes Festival
in London.
Although the two record covers of mainly rock
songs, Šulić and Hauser say they still play with orchestras and will not abandon playing classical music
. The cellists say they would someday like to go on tour with both a classical and a contemporary orchestra.
.
Music called the duo's Nirvana cover "astonishing" and the U2 covers "nothing short of magical." However, he was unimpressed by "The Resistance," and wrote that "'Viva La Vida' is too obvious a choice" for the album.
Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
duo consisting of Croatian
Croatian
Croatian may refer to:*Croatia*Croats, people from Croatia, or of Croatian descent*Croatian language* Croatian cuisine...
cellists Luka Šulić
Luka Šulić
Luka Šulić is a Croatian Slovenian cellist.Šulić was born in Maribor, Slovenia. He comes from a Dubrovnik musical family, his father Božo is also a cellist, and many members of his family are associated with music....
and Stjepan Hauser
Stjepan Hauser
- Early life and musical training :Hauser was born in Pula to a musical family, where he began his musical education. He has a sister who is a journalist in Pula. Hauser finished secondary school in Rijeka...
. Signed to Sony Masterworks since 12 April 2011, the two were discovered after uploading a music video of their cello-only cover
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
's "Smooth Criminal
Smooth Criminal
"Smooth Criminal" is the seventh single from Michael Jackson's 1987 Bad album. The song contains a fast-paced beat intertwined with Jackson's lyrics about a woman named Annie, who has been attacked in her apartment by a "smooth" assailant. It was released as a single on October 24, 1988 and peaked...
" to YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
.
Background
Šulić, born in MariborMaribor
Maribor is the second largest city in Slovenia with 157,947 inhabitants . Maribor is also the largest and the capital city of Slovenian region Lower Styria and the seat of the Municipality of Maribor....
, Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
, and Hauser, from Pula
Pula
Pula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula, with a population of 62,080 .Like the rest of the region, it is known for its mild climate, smooth sea, and unspoiled nature. The city has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing,...
, Croatia, met at a master class
Master class
A master class is a class given to students of a particular discipline by an expert of that discipline—usually music, but also painting, drama, or any of the arts....
in Croatia while still in their teens. Šulić—the younger of the two by a year—and Hauser attended the Academy of Music
Academy of Music, University of Zagreb
The Academy of Music is a Croatian music school based in Zagreb. It is one of the three art academies affiliated with the University of Zagreb, along with the Academy of Dramatic Art and the Academy of Fine Arts....
in Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
together, and both then travelled to study in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
. Šulić later entered London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
's Royal Academy of Music
Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music in London, England, is a conservatoire, Britain's oldest degree-granting music school and a constituent college of the University of London since 1999. The Academy was founded by Lord Burghersh in 1822 with the help and ideas of the French harpist and composer Nicolas...
, while Hauser attended the Royal Northern College of Music
Royal Northern College of Music
The Royal Northern College of Music is a music school in Manchester, England. It is located on Oxford Road in Chorlton on Medlock, at the western edge of the campus of the University of Manchester and is one of four conservatories associated with the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music...
in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
. The duo rose to fame after their cover of "Smooth Criminal" became a hit on YouTube, receiving over three million views in the first two weeks and more than five million views in all. The creation of the music video was prompted by the cellists' financial difficulties, despite their musical success in the UK. The duo met in Pula, where one of Hauser's friends, a director, proposed that they try the pop music
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
market by creating a video to "Smooth Criminal." The video, originally posted on 20 January 2011, features Šulić and Hauser facing off alone in a large white room, playing Jackson's tune. In fact, before they became partners, the two cellists were sometimes considered rivals, competing against each other in music contests.
Career
2Cellos is currently signed to record label Sony Masterworks and finished recording their first album in May 2011, which will carry the Menart Records name in Croatia. Released on July 19, 2011, the album includes covers of songs by U2U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
, Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band, formed in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, in 1985. The band has released six studio albums, three EPs, and one live album...
, Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock project, founded in 1988 by Trent Reznor in Cleveland, Ohio. As its main producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Reznor is the only official member of Nine Inch Nails and remains solely responsible for its direction...
, Sting, Coldplay
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...
, Nirvana
Nirvana (band)
Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
, Muse
Muse
The Muses in Greek mythology, poetry, and literature, are the goddesses who inspire the creation of literature and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge, related orally for centuries in the ancient culture, that was contained in poetic lyrics and myths...
, and Kings of Leon
Kings of Leon
Kings of Leon is an American rock band that originated in Albion, Oklahoma but formed in Nashville, Tennessee in 1999. The band is composed of brothers Anthony Caleb Followill , Ivan Nathan Followill and Michael Jared Followill Kings of Leon is an American rock band that originated in Albion,...
. Hauser told la Repubblica
La Repubblica
la Repubblica is an Italian daily general-interest newspaper. Founded in 1976 in Rome by the journalist Eugenio Scalfari, as of 2008 is the second largest circulation newspaper, behind the Corriere della Sera.-Foundation:...
that the album would also feature a cello version of Jackson's "Human Nature
Human Nature (Michael Jackson song)
"Human Nature" is a song by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was written and composed by Steve Porcaro and John Bettis, and produced by Quincy Jones. It is the fifth single from the singer's sixth solo album, Thriller . Initially, Porcaro had recorded a rough demo of the song on a...
." The duo said that they chose songs that could be adapted into covers playable on only two cellos. In anticipation of the release, 2Cellos released their second single "Welcome to the Jungle," a cover of the Guns N' Roses song of the same name
Welcome to the Jungle
"Welcome to the Jungle" is a song by American rock band Guns N' Roses, featured on its 1987 debut studio album, Appetite for Destruction. It was released as the band's second single on October 3, 1987, and reached number #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number #24 on the UK Singles Chart...
.
As a result of 2Cellos' success, English singer Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
asked the duo to appear with him on his summer tour, which began in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
on 8 June 2011. John, who personally called Šulić, said that he had watched the "Smooth Criminal" video and wanted 2Cellos to participate in the thirty-city tour. The two had previously performed on the 25 April 2011 episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show, often shortened to Ellen, is an American television talk show hosted by comedian/actress Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it is produced by Telepictures and airs in syndication, including stations owned by NBC Universal. For its first five seasons, the show...
, as well as on Perez Hilton
Perez Hilton
Mario Armando Lavandeira, Jr. , better known as Perez Hilton , is an American blogger and television personality. His blog, Perezhilton.com , is known for posts covering gossip items about celebrities...
's Perez TV several days before that. 2Cellos also performed on 25 July 2011 at the 2011 iTunes Festival
ITunes Festival
The iTunes Festival is an annual music festival and concert series which is held in London at The Roundhouse art centre and sponsored by Apple Inc. It was first held in 2007...
in London.
Although the two record covers of mainly rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
songs, Šulić and Hauser say they still play with orchestras and will not abandon playing classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
. The cellists say they would someday like to go on tour with both a classical and a contemporary orchestra.
2Cellos
2Cellos' debut studio album comprises twelve tracks and one additional bonus track from iTunesITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
.
Reception
Chad Grischow of IGNIGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
Music called the duo's Nirvana cover "astonishing" and the U2 covers "nothing short of magical." However, he was unimpressed by "The Resistance," and wrote that "'Viva La Vida' is too obvious a choice" for the album.