Hans Zimmer, The Dark Knight and Gladiator composer, to take his soundtracks on the road

The in-demand German composer has announced his first ever European tour kicking off in London next April

Hans Zimmer has written the scores to more than 150 box office hits (Corbis)

One of world’s most “in demand” film composers, who wrote the scores to more than 150 box office hits that include The Lion King, the Dark Knight trilogy and 12 Years a Slave, is to make the unusual move of taking his greatest hits out on the road.

Hans Zimmer, who has won a string of awards for his soundtracks, has announced his first ever European tour kicking off in London next April.

The show will involve more than 70 musicians on the stage, including his 20-piece studio band, with whom he records his soundtracks, as well as an orchestra and a choir. The German-born composer will lead the band, playing piano, keyboards, guitar and banjo during the concerts.

“Performing a tour like this is something that I have always wanted to do, and I am thrilled that the time has finally come,” he said. He will play in 18 cities in total, finishing in Sofia. Stuart Brown, head of programmes and acquisitions at the BFI, said: “Zimmer probably is the most in-demand film composer in the world. He’s clearly very gifted and works very hard.”

His films have made more than £15.5bn around the world. Steve McQueen, who directed 12 Years a Slave, said Zimmer “is quite simply the contemporary composer to work with when it comes to translating a visual narrative into sound”.

“People have realised Zimmer has incredible cultural cache,” Mr Brown said. “He will have many fans based upon the popularity of the films he’s written scores for. This is a testament to his body of work and its range.” It comes after two shows at London’s Hammersmith Apollo last year called Hans Zimmer Revealed.

The 58-year-old composer’s relationship with British director Christopher Nolan has proved particularly fruitful, as he has scored the Dark Knight trilogy, Inception and Interstellar.

Mr Brown said: “Sometimes somebody does work that sets the zeitgeist; his collaboration with Nolan is probably the thing that put him right on the top of the wanted list.

“The score to Inception seemed to come out of a new place and sparked a lot of copycats. He’s someone who sets the agenda.”