Supermassive Black Hole Symphony At Worcester Planetarium

WORCESTER, MA — What does it feel like to experience a gravitational force so strong that not even light can escape its grasp? We'll never know for sure, but the Alden Planetarium at Worcester's EcoTarium museum will host a symphony performance that will attempt to approximate the power and mystery of black holes.

Here's more from an EcoTarium news release:

Art, science and music converge at the EcoTarium to create a multi-sensory experience fitting for the holidays. This dynamic presentation uses exquisite visuals and symphonic music to portray supermassive black holes as engines of gravity, light and creation. There can be no better time to lose oneself in the wonders of the universe than mere days before the darkest time of the year.

On Saturday, December 17, at 6 and at 8 p.m., the EcoTarium Museum of Science and Nature will host two Black Hole Symphony performances by Multiverse Concert Series and the Museum of Science, Boston. Those attending the 6 p.m. presentation may select VIP tickets that offer an open bar and opportunities to meet composer/conductor David Ibbett.

These thrilling compositions employ a scientific understanding of black holes, stunning 3D visuals projected onto the EcoTarium’s Alden Planetarium dome and Ibbett’s music to convey a sense of the monumental dramas occurring within the universe we inhabit.

“Music can take you places,” says Ibbett, who will conduct both performances featuring the virtuosity of Sarah Coffman, soprano, Sarah Ibbett, violin, and Jessica Smith, flute and piccolo.

The immersive experience has been called revolutionary for its unique collaboration between astrophysicists of the Harvard-Smithsonian FCA and Black Hole Initiative with the Multiverse Concert Series musicians. In a short video, Ibbett demonstrates how sets of light frequencies can be compared with sets of notes. The portrayal of the relationship between music and light is both novel and electrifying.

Ibbett’s composition allows listeners to audibly interpret black hole activities. He says we see only a narrow range of light — the equivalent of, perhaps, one octave, whereas we can hear a relative 10 octaves of sound. Using sound to represent light gives those attending the performances new insights into black holes.

Audiences can expect to be plunged into deep space riding relativistic jets of plasma, guided through the dense dust torus, broad-line clouds, and ultimately reach the blazing accretion disk on the event horizon of a supermassive black hole. Such an immersive experience is made real because of a unique collaboration between scientists and musicians.