From strings to wings: Cellist builds and flies airplanes

Theo Weber, principal cellist of the Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra, sees the parallels between his two passions: music and airplanes.

"When you play a concerto with an orchestra, there's maybe a thousand people in the audience, and they are focused on what you're doing, intensely," said Weber.

"There's something similar to flying a plane. It's exhilarating in the same way."

Also, Weber noted, "If something bad happens, it's very public."

To see Weber fly, watch the video below.

In addition to flying, Weber built his own biplane, and he is currently refurbishing a friend's Corben Junior Acein his shed in central St. John's.

Weber has become so absorbed in those projects, that he has taken a year off from the NSO to enrol in the machinist certificate program at the College of the North Atlantic.

He said the worlds of the concert stage and the machinist shop may seem far apart, but the attention to detail remains the same.

"I love the fact that there's a bunch of guys standing around in coveralls and we've got grease all over, and we're sitting there talking about thousandths of an inch."

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