Visions of Vienna: Memorializing in pixels that Dance and Glow Over Sydney’s Harbor

Sounds and Visions of Vienna on the Sails of the Sydney Opera House

On February 4, 2015 the world-famous Sydney Opera House will be the venue for a unique multimedia spectacle. For the first time in history, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra will be broadcast live in concert onto the sails of the building. A series of 3D animations celebrating Vienna’s musical and artistic heritage will complete the experience, which the Vienna Tourist Board will open up to Sydney residents with a special free event for the public.

Simulation of projection inspired by Klimt’s ‘The Tree of Life’ for Visions of Vienna with the SSO.    Ample Projects photo

While visitors inside the Sydney Opera House can enjoy the Greatest Hits from Vienna, including famous works by Mozart, Strauss, Beethoven and Schubert, in time-honored fashion, the second half of the concert will be projected onto the sails of the Sydney Opera House. A live-stream of the projection on the sails will allow music lovers all over the world to share in the experience.

Managing Director of the Vienna Tourist Board Norbert Kettner shared his thoughts on this unusual spectacle: “In Vienna, we are very aware of our enormous musical heritage and constantly develop new forms of presenting and celebrating it. With this world premiere of “Visions of Vienna”, we managed to find a completely new and highly innovative way of doing so.”

Sydney Symphony Orchestra Managing Director Rory Jeffes said the event would be a chance for the world to see an orchestra like never before and learn more about the “City of Music”. “We’re immensely proud to be joining the Vienna Tourist Board in what will be a celebration of classical music, Viennese art and multi-media excellence,” Mr Jeffes said. “As the world tunes in to watch our players live-in-action for the first time on the sails of the Sydney Opera House, we will be acknowledging Vienna’s rich artistic heritage, and giving a friendly wave to our musical counterparts at the many institutions in the Austrian capital.”

The project was organised in Australia on behalf of the Vienna Tourist Board by Astrid Mulholland-Licht, the Director of the Austrian National Tourist Office in Sydney, who envisioned the concept and coordinated the collaboration.

Grammy award-winning audio engineer/producer Tony David Cray, Head of Recording and Broadcast at the Sydney Opera House, is directing the broadcast. The performance will be captured at various angles by 14 cameras in the Concert Hall and projected live on to the sails. A series of animated 3D images celebrating the rich artistic and musical heritage of Vienna, created by multiple award-winning designers Ample Projects, will complement the orchestra and the music in transforming the cultural icon’s western exterior into a moving artwork.

A public viewing area with comfortable seating will be set up for the countless visitors expected to attend the free open-air event at Campbells Cove, Western Circular Quay, with uninterrupted views onto the sails.

Vienna – where free concerts in public places are a key component of the capital’s identity as a city of music – is staging the event as an invitation for Sydneysiders to enjoy a uniquely Viennese concert night.

For anyone not able to experience the concert live in Sydney, the unique images will be streamed live worldwide via visions.vienna.info, a website set up especially for the occasion. This unprecedented project will also be flanked by a social media campaign entitled #VisionsOfVienna featuring an interactive competition to win a week-long trip to Vienna including flights, courtesy of Emirates.