KING OF THE G STRING

The cellist Stjepan Hauser is revelling in his reputation for making classical music sexy again as he fends off female fans and reflects on performing for the King

- GILL PRINGLE

He’s the cello-playing heartthrob who has made classical music sexy, and when he’s not performing for royalty, presidents and popes, Stjepan Hauser can be found fending off his army of female fans.

“I have become Celvis,” jokes the Croatian musician when HELLO! meets him backstage at The Greek Theatre in Los Angeles during his sellout North American tour.

Hauser, as he is known, inspires fandom usually reserved for Tom Jones, Julio Iglesias or his hero, Elvis Presley, with swooning women throwing lingerie at him.

“They throw pants and bras on stage,” says the star, 39, who's performing at The O2 in London and Manchester’s AO Arena. “It’s crazy. Every night, I walk into my dressing room and there’s a woman there. Nobody knows how she got in.”

With a No. 1 album under his belt, seven million followers on Instagram and more than a billion audio streams, Hauser doesn’t try to play down his sex appeal.

His shows, which include music from Titanic, Phantom of the Opera, La La Land and The Godfather – plus a selection of Sir Elton John covers, after he toured with the singing legend – could be described as a tad suggestive.