Albert Einstein was the kind of physicist that you don't really find anymore – making so many remarkable contributions to so many different areas of physics.

But in addition to his scientific achievements, a lot is made about Einstein's colourful personal life, not least his lifelong passion for music.

Sharing this passion is particle physicist Brian Foster of the University of Oxford who has teamed up with the British musician Jack Liebeck to create a special show about Einstein. Currently touring the UK, "Einstein's Universe" involves a special lecture, interspersed with classical music, which explores Einstein's legacy to physics and the role music played in his life.

In this exclusive video report for physicsworld.com, I caught up with the pair on the day of a recent performance at St George's concert hall in Bristol, UK.

Escapism from research

During our interview, Foster talked about how music inspired Einstein and how it offered a form of escapism from his research. "He often said that he had more pleasure in life from playing the violin than from anything else he did," Foster explained.

"We have indications from his wife in a letter that he would often come out of his study when they lived in Berlin, and scratch his head, play a few chords on the piano, then go back to his study and write down some new ideas that he'd had."

The Oxford professor also highlighted Einstein's own musical abilities. "I think it's true that Einstein was a very good, competent, violinist in his youth. It's clear that he could play on a stage in front of an audience with professional musicians and not make a fool of himself.

"He used his fame to become acquainted and friends with many of the great musicians of his day. He was great friends with Fritz Kreisler the violinist and [Gregor] Piatigorsky the cellist, and they played chamber music often together."

Young performer of the year

In a separate interview, I also caught up with Foster and Liebeck together just before their performance. Liebeck, who was recently named young British classical performer of the year at the Classical Brit Awards, explained to me how the collaboration came about and why he believes the format works so well.

"I remember certainly when I was at school that it's a really good idea to keep things interesting," he explained. "The idea of mixing disciplines is a way to keep an audience going. If you just had science talked at you for an hour and a half, I think quite quickly the eyes droop and people go into their own worlds."

Each performance of Einstein's Universe concludes with Foster joining Liebeck on stage to play a violin duet. At the end of my interview I was treated to a special preview as the pair performed an arrangement of a violin sonata by Mozart.

You can enjoy the full version of their duet in a separate video on physicsworld.com.