Hong Kong Philharmonic Will Perform Metaverse Symphony Concert in May

The Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra will present the first-ever symphonic work to be performed both in a concert hall and the metaverse. Featuring groundbreaking music composed by Hollywood film composer Elliot Leung and an immersive art experience created by award-winning Hong Kong-based new media artist Henry Chu, "Chow Sang Sang Jewellery Proudly Sponsors: Metaverse Symphony" will be held on 5 & 6 May 2023 at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre Concert Hall with three performances, followed by a virtual debut in The Sandbox metaverse. The world premiere of The Metaverse Symphony, which serves as the inaugural programme of the HK Phil's Arts Tech programme, will be conducted by Gerard Salonga.

Co-commissioned by the HK Phil and Asia Society Hong Kong Center, Symphony no. 1, The Metaverse, represents Elliot Leung's personal experience of what it means to be alive in Hong Kong in the currents of the data-driven 21st century. Each of the four movements celebrates and captures the experience of progressive milestones regarding the advancements of the Internet. Designed to be musically palpable, textural stabs reflect the injection of energy we feel when our phones buzz. Everchanging tonal centres keep pace with the rapidly evolving technological modalities in our lives. To engage the community, the HK Phil will perform alongside bite-sized sound recordings submitted by the public in the third movement. The concert will open with Through the Fog, Into the Darkness, another new work by Leung.

With the support of Ora-Ora, Henry Chu will create an epoch-making, immersive experience using generative art and transmedia at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre Concert Hall, with an aim to explore the intersections of symphonic music, digital fine art, and technology. Live data and pre-recorded footage will be delivered to real-time software custom made by the artist to generate visuals that are unique in every concert.

In partnership with Artifact Labs, The Metaverse Symphony will make its virtual debut in The Sandbox metaverse in the summer this year as a fully immersive Web3 experience. The multiplayer interactive experience will take place in a re-creation of Hong Kong's iconic Statue Square built on a 2 x 2 plot of land on The Sandbox, showcasing the unlimited possibilities of music in cyberspace, and blending technology and music in unprecedented ways. Throughout the metaverse experience, the audience will have the opportunity to engage in deeper ways with a number of quests and time trials, which help them learn about the composer, the music, and the transformation of technology in the 21st century. Besides, The Metaverse Symphony will be released by Sony Classical in July 2023.

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