David Ibbett, Resident Composer at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, takes an audience on a musical journey through worlds of science and art. David will reveal his techniques for connecting music with science, including sonification - where data and images are directly transformed into musical notes in order to reveal their hidden beauty. Interspersed through the evening are songs performed live by "Voice of the Universe" Janet Stone, touring galaxies, interstellar objects and cosmic cliffs of the Carina Nebula. Join us for an exploration of the creation of science symphonies - Black Hole Symphony and Mars Symphony - made with cutting edge data and immersive visuals. David will be livestreamed in from his studio in Boston.
David Ibbett, Ph.D. is a composer, educator and musical advocate for science. Based in Boston, he is Assistant Professor at WPI, directs the Multiverse Concert Series and is Resident Composer at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian. He is the first composer to drive a Mars Rover at NASA JPL.
David composes electrosymphonic music: a fusion of classical and electronic styles that interweaves influences from songs, symphonies, pop, rock and electronica. Musical strands are met with inspiration from the work of scientists: sonified data, musical metaphors for scientific concepts, and experimental sound and images from contemporary research.
He has performed science symphonies at science museums nationwide, the National Academy of Sciences, Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory and the NASA Jet Propulsion Lab.
This program will last for approximately 80 minutes. Please remember to arrive at the planetarium at least 10 minutes prior to the showtime indicated on your ticket. For more information, please visit our Frequently Asked Questions page.