HARRISON — What sort of messages would Mozart have on his voice mail?

Would Bach, with 20 children, allow them to use his cell phone?

Would Wagner eat junk food?

Taking music from Gregorian chants up to the present day, David Scheel’s “A Shorte Hysterical Historie of Musicke” hilariously compares the lifestyles of the great composers with contemporary living, imagining how musical geniuses through the ages would cope with modern society.

Scheel, a concert pianist of international stature, will bring his work to Deertrees Theatre at 8 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 18.

“A Shorte Hysterical Historie of Musicke” is Scheel’s most ambitious undertaking yet, for instead of playing works by the great masters, all the music is his own, but composed in the styles of those masters. And his recreations of Mozart, Debussy and many others sound authentic, as though they are newly discovered “lost” works by those composers – even down to his delightful exercise in “How not to write a country and western song.”

Scheel is celebrated as much for his musical spoofs on the piano as his raconteur-style. Born in Australia, he studied at the University Adelaide, earning an honours degree in languages and a concert diploma on the piano. However, theater was his first love, and after a short stint on stage, in films and on television, he decided to try his luck in England, moving there in 1982.
In the U.K., Scheel’s work ranged from pantomimes to radio and TV appearances, including the long-running series “Bergerac.” He also worked with the National Theatre; however, it was the success of his solo classical piano and comedy recitals in the mid-1980s that firmly established his reputation as the most original musical humorist of his generation.

Tickets, $20, are available at the Cool Moose in Bridgton, the Country Sleigh in Naples, Books N Things in Bethel, Fare-Share Coop in Norway; by calling 583-6747; and online at www.deertreestheatre.org.

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