Alex Stobbs
Alexander 'Alex' Brett Stobbs (born 30 January 1990), (Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England) is a British musician with cystic fibrosis who was the subject of the Channel 4 Cutting Edge documentary A Boy Called Alex[1] in 2008 and its sequel, Alex: A Passion for Life[2] in 2009, also broadcast on Channel 4.
Early life
After an early education as an academic and music scholar at Stoke Brunswick, Stobbs became a chorister at King's College, Cambridge. It was here where he recorded for EMI with King's an album including Bach's Magnificat, which he would later conduct.
His earliest inspirations were the works of Walter de la Mare and the British novelist Jo Rowling.
Stobbs was then a music scholar at Eton College, where he conducted Johann Sebastian Bach's Magnificat in March 2007. He was a choral scholar at King's College, Cambridge, where he studied music. On 5 April 2009 he conducted Bach's St Matthew Passion at Cadogan Hall, London (with Rodolfus Choir and Southbank Sinfonia) in aid of others who suffer from cystic fibrosis.
In September 2009, his book A Passion for Living was published, a diary of his life during his A-levels and his preparation for conducting a performance of Bach's Matthew Passion in April 2009. The book was serialised in the Daily Mail during September 2009 ahead of its publication.[3]
Documentaries
Stobbs has been featured in two documentaries, each broadcast on Channel 4 and produced by Walker George Films.
The first, A Boy Called Alex,[4] followed Alex's determined and passionate attempt to conduct Bach's Magnificat[5] while suffering from cystic fibrosis.[6] It was broadcast in 2008 and was nominated for a BAFTA in 2009.[7]
The second documentary, titled Alex: A Passion For Life was broadcast in October 2009. It showed Stobbs' first year at King's College, Cambridge as he prepared to conduct Bach's Matthew Passion with a full orchestra in the Cadogan Hall, always with the backdrop of his struggles with cystic fibrosis.[8]
He also appeared on UK talkshow Richard & Judy in January 2008, on which he performed Rachmaninov's Prelude in G Sharp minor, Op. 32/12.
Future
Stobbs is in his third year at King's College where he studies music. Whilst focusing on his degree, he plans to start up an orchestra under his direction – The Stobbs Scratch. He also has a rock and roll side project The North Lounge.
References
- ↑ http://www.channel4.com/programmes/a-boy-called-alex
- ↑ http://www.channel4.com/programmes/alex-a-passion-for-life
- ↑ http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1213470/I-knew-Id-deaths-door-morning-But-didnt-matter--inspiring-story-cystic-fibrosis-sufferer-Alex-Stobbs.html
- ↑ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1177981/
- ↑ Magnificat
- ↑ http://stobbs-matthewpassion.co.uk/the-project/a-boy-called-alex
- ↑ http://www.bafta.org/awards/television/tv-noms-2009,709,BA.html
- ↑ http://stobbs-matthewpassion.co.uk/the-project/alex-a-passion-for-life
External links
- Alex's Official Facebook Fanpage
- A Passion for Living Literary Agent Listing
- The Matthew Passion Project Website
- Alex Stobbs: Singing from his own hymn sheet The Telegraph, 7 September 2009
- The Passion of Alex Cambridge News article, 24 January 2009
- The privilege of educating Alex Times Online article, 11 January 2008
- "Cutting Edge" A Boy Called Alex (2008)
- Cutting Edge: A Boy Called Alex Free Video Clips from Channel 4
- As a musical genius with a killer disease, Alex won the public's heart. But what happened next? Mail Online article 6 December 2008
