British pop star George Michael announced May 11 he was back on the straight and narrow and returning to the stage with an orchestra for a 47-date tour of Europe this year.
The former Wham! singer is to play his first dates since 2008 accompanied by the orchestra, performing rearranged versions of his songs.
The 47-year-old said the tour was a good way to stay out of trouble following his drug abuse issues and a jail term he served in 2010.
Photo: Reuters
照片：路透
“Symphonica — The Orchestral Tour” later this year takes in regular venues on the European arena circuit but also more classical settings such as the Royal Albert Hall and the Royal Opera House in London.
“I’ve always wanted to sing with this kind of backing so I could really, really use my voice and not just concentrate on keeping thousands and thousands of people really excited for two and a half hours,” he told a press conference.
“I’ve probably got one more of those tours in me but right now I’d like to do something slightly different.”
Michael also said he was planning to record a new album during breaks in the tour.
“I felt very re-energized after my recent troubles, I felt it was really what I want to do,” the Londoner said.
The tour begins at the State Opera House in Prague on Aug. 22.
Michael then swings through Denmark, Germany, Italy, Poland, Hungary, Croatia, France, Spain, Belgium, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Britain, Ireland and Austria, ending with a show in Manchester on Dec. 12.
The show has one more date at the Paris Opera on April 29 next year, which Michael said would probably kick off a second leg touring other parts of the world.
The singer — who first found fame in 1980s pop group Wham! and has gone on to sell more than 100 million records worldwide — has a long history with drugs and scrapes with the law.
“In terms of staying on the straight and narrow, then there’s nothing better than work that you love,” Michael said.
“So I thought I should tour sooner rather than later, to keep that impetus, to keep driving me to take care of myself and to appreciate what I have.”
He said the new album he was penning would be dance-themed and recorded with other gay artists.
Michael said that when he made mistakes, he was “letting young gay people down” due to the “homophobia that was thrown at me” and wanted to “defend gay children from some of that language” with this album.
“There are things about this next album where I am going to try and make up for some of the damage that I have inadvertently caused.”
(AFP)
英國流行樂壇明星喬治‧麥可五月十一日宣布他將回歸正途，並在一個交響樂團的伴隨下重返舞台，展開今年四十七場的歐洲巡迴演唱。
這位昔日轟合唱團的歌手，繼二零零八年後，在交響樂團的伴奏下，首次再度巡迴演唱其歌曲的改編版本。
在歷經藥物濫用事件與二零一零年入監服刑後，這位四十七歲的歌手說，這次巡演是讓自己避惹麻煩的好方法。
今年下半年的「辛弗尼卡─交響巡迴」演唱會，除了將在歐洲常辦演唱會的場地舉行外，還會在屬性偏古典音樂的場所，如倫敦皇家亞伯廳與皇家歌劇院開唱。
麥可在一場記者會上說，「我一直想要與這般（交響樂團陣容）的伴奏下唱歌，因為這樣可以真正使用我的聲音，而非只專注於在兩個半小時的演唱會中，保持炒熱成千上萬觀眾的氣氛。」
他說，「我曾舉行過許多巡迴演唱會，但現在我想做點稍微不一樣的。」
麥可也說，他計畫要在巡迴空檔錄製一張新專輯。
這位倫敦歌手說，「在歷經近來的紛擾後，我有明顯重拾活力的感覺，我感到這真的就是我要做的。」
巡迴演唱會的第一站將在八月二十二日於布拉格的國家歌劇院舉行。
隨後，麥可將會前往丹麥、德國、義大利、波蘭、匈牙利、克羅埃西亞、法國、西班牙、比利時、瑞士、荷蘭、英國、愛爾蘭、奧地利，然後在十二月十二日於曼徹斯特畫下今年巡迴演唱會的句點。
明年四月二十九日還有一場在巴黎歌劇院舉行的演唱會，麥可說可能還會再度巡迴世界其他地方。
這位以一九八零年代轟合唱團走紅並在全球唱片銷售突破一億張的歌手，長期有藥物濫用與前科紀錄。
麥可說，「說到維持正途的方法，沒有比做你愛做的工作更好的了。」
他說，「也因此，我想我應該盡早而非延後舉辦巡迴演唱會，這樣可以保持那股幹勁，持續驅使我要照顧自己且珍惜我所擁有的。」
他說他正在寫的這張新專輯，將帶有舞曲風格，並結合其他同志藝術家一起錄製。
麥可說當他犯錯時，因為「同性戀恐懼症衝著我來」，而「讓年輕同志朋友感到失望」；因此，他想藉由這張專輯，「為同志孩子們洗刷這樣的汙名。」
他說，「關於這個下張專輯，我想說的是，我會試圖彌補我不經意卻已造成的傷害。
（法新社／翻譯：林亞蒂）
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