“We waited for it like we do every year, wondering if the creative agencies behind the Superbowl ads will find a way to reference classical music,” writes Mike Rinzel in Sunday (2/5) at New York classical radio station WQXR. “It was slim pickings this year but we weren’t totally let down. During the highest-watched ad spot directly after the Halftime show, a single violin starts to play. An older gentleman with his back to us plays some Mozart-styled violin. Suddenly the violin transitions into a cover of the Lady Gaga song ‘Bad Romance.’ … The older gentleman reveals himself to be Albert Einstein. Nat Geo’s anticipated biography TV drama about the scientist [announced] its April 25th premiere date.” The performer of the violin piece was “Oli Langford, a composer and arranger who has played with groups like Belle and Sebastian and Demon Strings, is listed as the artist…. So we came away with renewed hope for the future with the classical genius of Bach and Mozart getting a hat-tip, blending with the pop genius of Lady Gaga, in an ad promoting a TV show called Genius about the scientist Albert Einstein.”
Posted February 6, 2017
