Poking Fun at Classical Music, With Wigs, Hula-Hoops and Puns

New York Times

05-12-2024

The violinists Eddy Chen and Brett Yang arrived in the suburbs of Bangkok recently on a mischievous mission. They had come to record hip-hop videos about Beethoven, Bach and other titans of music as if they were alive today.
'They called me calloused, called me unfeeling,' Chen, dressed as Beethoven, with a gray wig and crimson scarf, rapped in one video. 'Can't let them know what I am concealing.'
It was just another day in the life of Chen and Yang, better known as the comedy duo TwoSet Violin, who have millions of fans for the humor and whimsy they bring to the often very serious world of classical music. Over the past 11 years, they have galvanized a younger generation of musicians and helped dispel their field's stuffy image.
Chen and Yang have performed Pachelbel's Canon in D with rubber chickens, hosted wild composer-themed games of charades and brutally taken down actors pretending to play the violin in movies. They have produced skits about showboating musicians, pushy parents and high-stakes auditions.
Some of classical music's biggest names have joined in on the fun. Hilary Hahn joined Chen and Yang to perform Paganini caprices while hula-hooping. Ray Chen played a game in which he and the duo imitated violinists like Jascha Heifetz and Anne-Sophie Mutter.
Now, to the dismay of many fans, Chen, 31, and Yang, 32, who are based in Singapore, say they are moving on. They announced in October that TwoSet Violin was ending. They removed nearly all their videos from the internet and wrote on Instagram, 'It's been a wild ride with you all.' The post garnered more than 330,000 likes, with many fans in disbelief.
In an interview, Chen and Yang confirmed they were finished with TwoSet Violin, though they said they would likely continue to work together. They said they were increasingly worn out by the demands of creating more than 100 videos each year. And, with 4.3 million subscribers on YouTube, they said, they were growing tired of the scrutiny.
'We've said all that we wanted to say,' Yang said. 'It felt like I had 50-kilo weights on my shoulders for the last 11 years, just trying to please people and be the best that we can.'
Chen and Yang, who have made a habit of reading comments on their work, said they felt like they were under a microscope. At times, they were stung by criticisms of their personalities, music and style.
'Sometimes social media becomes this question of, 'Who's the next person for us to all hate on?'' Chen said. 'We needed a break.'
As part of their farewell, Chen and Yang are planning to release six videos in which they play members of a band of composers called B²TSM. (Inspired by South Korean pop, or K-pop, the band's name stands for Bach, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich and Mozart.)
In the first video, titled 'I'm Bach,' released on Thursday, Chen, as Bach, finds himself dismayed by modern music. He raps:
Chen described the videos as a final gift to fans: 'our blood, sweat and tears.'
'We're showing what TwoSet has meant to us through our art, in the same way a composer shares how they feel through their music,' he said. 'To us that feels very meaningful.'
Chen and Yang were both born in Taiwan and raised in Brisbane, Australia. They met as teenagers, enrolled in Friday night math classes together and playing in the Queensland Youth Symphony.
They pursued a traditional path in music, studying at a conservatory and joining Australian orchestras. But they found themselves drawn to social media. They posted their first videos as TwoSet Violin in 2013, recording violin versions of pop songs.
In 2016, Chen and Yang quit their orchestra jobs and made plans to perform a mix of comedy and music on their own. They financed their first tour by livestreaming as they played violin around the clock on the streets of Sydney, while fans tuned in and made donations. After four nights of sleeping on benches, they reached their fund-raising goal of 50,000 Australian dollars (about $32,200).
TwoSet became known for jokes about violinists, conductors, prodigies and pit musicians. Chen and Yang sometimes tackled weighty topics, such as the pressures of auditions, discrimination in classical music and the mental health struggles of artists.
They did not shy from controversy, calling out the K-pop band Blackpink in 2022 for using a bit of Paganini in their hit song 'Shut Down.' In a video called 'Sell Out,' Chen played Paganini.
'Barely making songs, how you call yourselves pop stars?' he rapped. 'You must play the tuba, 'cause you keep repeating only two bars.'
As their popularity grew, Chen and Yang drew the attention of top violinists like Hahn, who met them at a cafe in New York in 2018, after she commented on a post of theirs and they started messaging back and forth. They quickly became friends.
Hahn said that TwoSet Violin captured the quirks of classical music in a relatable way.
'They don't have a separate persona; they are exactly who they seem to be,' she said. 'I think the world of them. I think they're phenomenal.'
The TwoSet universe, which is chronicled in minute detail on sites like Fandom and Reddit, is rife with heroes, villains, code words and fantasy. Fans unite in their worship of Ling Ling, a fictional violinist who is said to practice 40 hours each day.
Chen and Yang built a company around their brand. In 2015, they started a streetwear clothing line, which they described as 'the world's first classical music fashion brand.'
In 2018, Chen and Yang devised the 'Ling Ling Workout,' a series of tasks meant to test even the most formidable virtuosos, including Hahn. She was forced to play part of the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto with the only the lower third of her bow. And she had to reverse her usual bearing — putting the bow into her left hand and the violin in her right — while playing an arrangement of Schubert's 'Erlkönig.'
In 2021, during pandemic lockdowns, Chen and Yang produced a virtual tour, performing a show about going back in time to save classical music.
Then, in the 2023-24 season, they went on a 39-city tour, appearing at some of the world's top concert halls. At the Philharmonie in Berlin, a fan threw a bra onstage.
But their grueling schedule began to take a toll. During a vacation in Japan earlier this year, Chen and Yang found themselves tied to their desks. They reached what they described as a mutual decision to move on.
'It's exciting to question yourself and challenge yourself sometimes,' Chen said, 'and not just do things purely out of inertia.'
In October, back at home in Singapore, they removed most of their more than 1,500 videos from YouTube, preserving only 29 — the crème de la crème, in their view, with titles like '21 Types of Orchestral Players' and 'The World's FASTEST (and most INACCURATE) VIOLINIST!'
In their farewell post, they wrote: 'We've all grown up together and it's kinda surreal that we're ending our chapter here. Thank you for all the laughs, the genuine encounters in real life and all the special moments we've had with you online and offline.'
The reaction from fans was intense. Some were angered by Chen and Yang's decision and chastised them for removing their content. Others said they had grown up watching TwoSet Violin and were not sure how they would cope.
'My childhood crumbling before my eyes,' the pianist Erica Lee wrote on Instagram.
Chen and Yang unplugged from social media and stayed silent. Friends messaged to ask if they were OK. Fans published investigations and commentary. ('What Happened to TwoSet Violin? The Shocking Truth About Their Future!,' one YouTube video was titled.)
They did not want to post a trite video explaining their decision, they said, and resolved instead to make the B²TSM videos as their send-off.
'I would much rather give all of you our best in these music videos than give you a nice, kind, seems-authentic video,' Yang said. 'I'd rather let your dreams and fantasies run free.'
For the B²TSM videos, which are lavishly produced, the duo filmed in Hong Kong, Thailand and Austria. They worked with Hong Kong Ballet to record a video about Tchaikovsky. In Austria, they produced 'Papa Wolfgang Style,' a Mozart-themed video, at the Eckartsau palace. They also filmed at Vienna's storied Musikverein concert hall.
Chen and Yang said they did not know what would come next, though they said it was possible they would perform again as B²TSM, which they introduced in 2022.
'It would be stupid to throw this all way,' Yang said, 'after all the ups and downs we've been through together.'
Chen agreed. 'I'm pretty useless in some areas of life without Brett,' he said.
To the fans disappointed by their decision, they offered a simple response.
'Go practice,' Yang said. 'There are no excuses anymore.'