An Irish cellist whose online recitals went viral during lockdown has expressed fears for the future of social media.
Patrick Dexter says people should consider how lost they will be if negativity signals the end of platforms like Twitter.
He said: “There’s so much negativity out there, but let’s be aware that if we lose this, and Twitter in particular, because I think it has a special role to play in this space, there’s something really tragic thing that is lost.
“To see him go down the tubes the way things could go is, I think, a great loss.”
Patrick, who started playing the cello aged seven, was not on social media until Ireland went into lockdown in March 2020.
Filmed outside his cottage in County Mayo, on the edge of Ireland’s beautiful west coast, his posts have gone viral.
“I was a teacher, so I played in front of my class of elementary school kids and now I play in front of millions of people online,” he explained.
“It touches your soul”
I asked him what he thought he resonated with his new global audience – the music, the location, or a combination.
He said: “There’s a certain visceral impact that the west of Ireland has on you. You can feel it now with this wild weather we’re having.
“That, mixed with the sound of the cello and instrumental music in general, the way it touches your soul and enters you and asks you to add something to it.
“It doesn’t tell you what to think in words, it kind of suggests a feeling, and then you bring your own thoughts, your life story to it.”
His newfound online fame has allowed Patrick to make music his career, which is “a dream come true”, he said.
Read more from Sky News this Christmas:
Can you crack GCHQ’s “seemingly impossible” party puzzle?
The best way to use Christmas leftovers
The Song Service for the Queen
He shares the credit with his co-star Naoise, his handsome rescue dog, who has become almost as famous as Patrick himself.
His debut album, aptly titled Solace, was the genre’s bestseller, and he even performed for President Joe Biden.
A letter from a fan in Canada was simply addressed: “To the cellist who plays in front of his chalet in Mayo.
“Whatever happens, if the ship of Twitter sinks to the bottom of the Atlantic, I will continue to play the cello in front of my chalet,” he adds.
