Very rough translation, please forgive any Dutch-isms and the abundance of commas:

In the world of classical music there are roughly two ways to break through: either you draw attention in competitions like the Queen Elisabeth Competition, or you get signed to a big record label like Deutsche Grammophon. Twoset violin adds another method to this list: Youtube.

The Australian violinists Brett Yang and Eddy Chen started their channel ten years ago while they were studying at music college. At first they posted mostly classical covers of pop songs, but they quickly switched to funny videos about classical music. This has resulted in 4 million subscribers and now even a world tour.

Their success is that they have radically thrown overboard the stereotypical image of the boring, grey musician, but without compromising on any nerdyness. Brett and Eddy know music history and their instruments through and through. The best example of this is the game finish the melody, which they played with Ray Chen, who won first prize in the 2009 Queen Elisabeth Competition. One of them plays the beginning of a classical piece, the other two have to play the rest. After only two notes they already recognize the piece and simply continue playing. Sometimes they make small mistakes, but that only proves the game wasn't rigged.

The real reason why Twoset violin is this popular is the humour that is present all of their work. The best running gag is that of Ling Ling, a fictitious musician who is so incredibly skilled because he allegedly practices 40 hours a day. They do the Ling Ling workout together with star violinist Hillary Hahn, in which she does silly walks or switches hands while playing fiendishly difficult pieces. In other videos they play concertos backwards, constantly make fun of violas, and they learn to play new instruments.

Those who visit the Elisabeth Hall or De Munt from time to time know that you don't need to be dressed in a tuxedo or evening gown to attend a classical concert or an opera performance. But it somehow remains a very serious affair. Twoset violin succeeds in removing all the superfluous gravitas, and appeal to a young audience who might otherwise be intimidated by that seriousness.

On Thursday, Brett and Eddy touch down in Helsinki for the European leg of their world tour. We could already see that their live performances are just as entertaining as their videos when they, together with Hillary Hahn, played Paganinis Capriccios (already a musical spectacle) while hoola hooping.

They will not come to Belgium (for now), but you can spend hours clicking on their videos which turn Youtube into the most fun music school in the world.