HK Phil Presents The First-Ever Metaverse Symphony, Performed Both In A Concert Hall and The Sandbox

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.

Today, Elliot Leung said at the press conference that, "From court chambers, to concert halls, and now into the Metaverse, classical music remains relevant to every age and every setting. I am beyond excited to share with the world what my mind hears as the zeitgeist of this Digital Age, through the virtuosity of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and baton of Maestro Salonga. While my symphony pushes the bounds of composition into modernity - exploring new sounds, instruments, and technologies, it remains faithful to the discipline and rigor of my heroes such as Bartók and Stravinsky. I hope digital natives like myself can find familiarity and fascination in this work."

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.

Henry Chu said that, "I'm delighted to be involved in this groundbreaking cultural project with Elliot Leung and the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra. It's a landmark collaboration in which my real time visuals aim to form unique interactions with each musical movement. That the spectacle takes place in front of a live audience and in the metaverse adds welcome symbiosis and completeness. Participating in the Metaverse Symphony marks a fresh waypoint in my journey across the audiovisual frontier of humanity and technology."

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.

As the Education Partner, the Asia Society Hong Kong Center will host a series of education programmes about the metaverse, digital art and symphonic music, including a talk with Elliot Leung, studio visits with Elliot Leung and Henry Chu, as well as a symposium to engage with a new generation of art and cultural supporters and the community at large.

Co-presented by the HK Phil and Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) Academy of Music, a lecture demonstration will be held on 18 April 2023 (Tue) at 3:30PM, in which Elliot Leung will discuss his role as a composer when developing an open-world game. It will be simultaneously live streamed on the HK Phil Facebook page, YouTube channel, Twitch platform, as well as the YouTube channel of HKBU Academy of Music. The public is welcome to join the talk online.

"Chow Sang Sang Jewellery Proudly Sponsors: Metaverse Symphony" will be held on 5 May 2023 (Fri) at 9PM and 6 May 2023 (Sat) at 5PM & 7:30PM in the Hong Kong Cultural Centre Concert Hall. Tickets priced at HK$320 are available at URBTIX and POPTICKET. For enquiries, please call +852 2721 2332 or visit hkphil.org.

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