Torben Ulrich, the father of Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich, has died at age 95. The retired tennis pro is remembered as a tireless supporter of his son's musical pursuits who wasn't afraid to provide constructive criticism.
Lars broke the news in an Instagram post on Wednesday, Dec. 20. "Torben Ulrich: 1928-2023. 95 years of adventures, unique experiences, curiosity, pushing boundaries, challenging the status quo, tennis, music, art, writing….and quite a bit of Danish contrarian attitude," he wrote. "Thank you endlessly! I love you dad."
Many Metallica fans remember Torben's appearance in the 2004 documentary Some Kind of Monster, which chronicled the production process for Metallica's much-maligned album St. Anger.
"I would say delete that," the father said after Lars showed him a new track. "For me that doesn't cut it."
Torben was a top-tier tennis player who won the Antwerp International singles title in 1951 and the Stuttgart Open tournament in 1953. But he was much more than a pro athlete.
The retired tennis pro was also an accomplished writer and jazz musician.
"Even though tennis was his main source of income, my dad was also writing about jazz in the papers in Copenhagen," Lars said in a 1995 interview obtained by Blabbermouth.
Torben also had stints as a filmmaker, poet, and a journalist with Reuters. His deep love for music led him to play clarinet in several jazz acts, including the improvisational group Instead Of, which he founded in 2005.
Many Metallica fans remember Torben for his appearance in the band's 2004 documentary 'Some Kind of Monster.'
Lars spent much of his youth training to become a tennis pro like his father and grandfather Einer Ulrich, who also won several titles. But Torben didn't let that get in the way of the young musician's love for heavy metal.
"I grew up in as open an upbringing as you can imagine. Americans would call it spoiled. But I was very independent. I had nothing tying me down," Lars said during the 1995 interview. "At the same time, anything I wanted I had to get it myself. It's 1975, and I want to go see Black Sabbath. As far as my parents were concerned, I could go see Black Sabbath 12 times a day. But I had to find my own means, carrying the paper or whatever, to get the money to buy the tickets. And I had to find my own way to the concert and back. From that point of view, I was left alone a lot. But in terms of culture, there was always shit going on around the house.
Lars announced the news in an Instagram post on Wednesday, Dec. 20.
Lars' Instagram post included several photos from of Torben. Many are shots of him hitting tennis balls, but there are also pictures of Torben playing the clarinet and hanging out with his son.
"Your relationship with your Dad was always inspiring to me, thank you for sharing him with the world," former Guns N' Roses drummer Matt Sorum posted to Lars on Instagram. "Condolences to the entire Ulrich family." Another commenter spoke about Torben's starpower. "Name another father of the drummer of a band who every diehard fan of that band knows. You can’t," they said. "What a true legend and undeniable badass. Only a guy like that could create the kid that changed the world of music forever. Cheers."
