‘I wish I had more time in Israel.” That was the first response Lindsey Stirling, violin and dance star, gave when asked about her upcoming performance in Tel Aviv.
Stirling, an original songwriter and cover artist alike, has garnered a massive following on social media with her extravagant performances. With over 13.6 million YouTube followers, she has invented a style that has yet to be mimicked: playing the violin with prowess while dancing across the stage.
“It all kind of started because I loved dance since I was a child, though I never did really get to dance, but it’s something that I’ve always been so intrigued by and I always thought it was beautiful,” Stirling told The Jerusalem Post. “When I started writing my own music, it was very dynamic, and I was like, ‘I can’t just stand on stage and play this!’ I wanted to put on shows.
“One thing led to another, and movement turned into backbends and spins and then full-on choreography – and now I’m a dancing violinist.”
Her music videos, as well, play a huge role in her acclaim, with otherworldly filming locations and extravagant costume designs for each one.
“Sometimes, when I’m writing the music, I’ll be like, ‘My gosh, this is a masquerade ball!’ or ‘This is a Western showdown!’” Stirling said. “It’s really fun to figure out what the song wants to be. I’m a very visual person, so it’s fun to kind of bring it all into real life.
“I definitely have a folder saved on my computer of just when I’m wandering the Internet and I see a pretty place or a cool place and I’ll save that for a future day; next time I have a music video,” she confessed.
Her faith's role in music
Israel was no exception. While Stirling, at the time of filming “O Holy Night,” could not get to Israel herself, she made it her mission to imitate the ancient stone facades seen in Jerusalem and Nazareth for her Christmas-themed music video.
“I’m a Christian myself and I grew up reading all about the Bible stories and I still learn about them and have a testimony of Christ,” she said. “When I was making a video for ‘O Holy Night,’ when I did my arrangement of the song, I really used it as a chance to just pour my spirituality and some of my beliefs into this song of my relationship with God. When I did the music video, I was like, ‘I don’t want to just find a pretty place’ or ‘I don’t want to just put a bunch of Christmas trees around.’ I really wanted to lean into the historical significance of why the Christmas story means a lot to me and to a lot of Christians.”
With that, Stirling expressed incredible excitement to come and see the land that inspired her creation.
“Luckily, we have one day off, so we’re actually going to go into Jerusalem and I’m so excited,” she concluded.
“I’ve always wanted to come to Israel, to Tel Aviv, Jerusalem… It’s always seemed so far. I am beyond excited to come.”
Stirling will be performing at the Charles Bronfman Auditorium in Tel Aviv on Friday, July 14 at 9 p.m. Tickets are available at https://eventation.co.il/lindseystirling