Sarah Gillis – Rey’s Theme
An evening pause: The music is by John Williams. The lead violinist is space-walking Sarah Gillis, playing from the Resilience capsule in orbit right now.
Hat tip Gary.
HARMONY OF RESILIENCE: Recorded in space and sent to Earth via @SpaceX’s @Starlink constellation, Polaris Dawn crewmember and violinist @Gillis_SarahE invites you to enjoy this music moment in support of @StJude & @ElSistemaUSA → https://t.co/My8cUwAWzg pic.twitter.com/OoxTllCZNP
— Polaris (@PolarisProgram) September 13, 2024
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Video is here:
Sarah Gillis
https://youtu.be/lD1ixTr4JWY
(4:34)
I’m guessing this distributed orchestra performance was also one of the tests of Starlink connectivity Polaris Dawn was tasked to conduct. A very impressive result.
I notice that some of the participants were physically located in nation-states decidedly not friendly to the U.S., Elon Musk or both. Interesting. Nice that 92 year-old composer John Williams could see and hear this performance of his work in real-time too.
A very tight and classy production all the way around.
“At SpaceX we specialize in converting things from impossible to late.” — Elon Musk
Hello Dick,
John Kraus clarified the logistics of just how all this was done:
The Polaris Program team is incredibly honored to share this global music moment with the world! @Gillis_SarahE played a space-qualified violin on board the Dragon spacecraft and sent us the footage and audio back via Starlink. We mixed this footage alongside a set of beautiful orchestra performances, both from a dedicated assembly of professional performers in the United States — as well as youth players from around the world.
Joining us in this moment is John Williams, the legendary composer who is responsible for some of the most iconic scores in the history of film and music. I had the honor of photographing him alongside the crew in Los Angeles. His soft and gentle presence is unlike that of anyone I’ve ever met, and it was a unique privilege to watch him share this moment with Sarah and the entire crew.
In addition to being an engineer at SpaceX, Sarah is a remarkably talented classically-trained violinist who has been playing since a young age. As access to space continues to expand through commercial missions like Polaris Dawn, it is high time that we send more and more artists, poets, and creative individuals to space. This is one big step toward that future. Enjoy the music from space and around the world!
https://x.com/johnkrausphotos/status/1834563970021179665?s=46&t=HTzlpa7RYXtyIMbQX7Ou8g
So, it sounds like the performances were not all simultaneous. We’re not quite there yet. But it sounds like something that could be achievable before too long, at least from Earth orbit. (The lag time in a performance even from the Moon would be prohibitive.)
P.S. What is a “space-qualified” violin, you ask? I believe I heard Gillis mention in an interview that she had had her violin “baked” to prevent any outgassing from the wood. (Unclear to me what this might do to its sound, but it sounded all right in the audio file.) It could be in the future that an alternative could be to simply ship this kind of instrument in a hermetically sealed case.
Richard M wrote: “I believe I heard Gillis mention in an interview that she had had her violin “baked” to prevent any outgassing from the wood. (Unclear to me what this might do to its sound, but it sounded all right in the audio file.) It could be in the future that an alternative could be to simply ship this kind of instrument in a hermetically sealed case.”
Aboard spacecraft, there isn’t the possibility for bad chemicals to dissipate to the great outdoors, so there is a lot of care taken to assure that the wrong chemicals (smells) are not introduced into the cabin of the spacecraft or space station. Not just anything can be taken to space, as any hazardous chemicals can build up and harm the astronauts or even the equipment. Some chemicals can condense on surfaces, including windows.
I am a bit curious about the bow rosin. Did they have to outgas/bake the bow with it pre-rosined, or did she have to play an un-rosined bow?
A hermetically sealed case would not help much, because if it is not prepared beforehand, then when she opens the case then the outgassing would escape and wreak the havoc they were preventing with the pre-baking.
It was an impressive international performance. Thank you, Gary, for finding it, and thank you, Robert, for posting it.
It would have been nice to hear the violin played solo, acoustic, with the minimum of processing.
Very cursory search of “musical instruments in space,” doesn’t yield much on physical prep of the instrument.
This article does have a chronology of sorts; a lot of guitars, wind instruments, and electronics.
(You have to wade through some mumbo-jumbo, relevant part is in the middle.)
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S009457652400273X
Walter Schirra- mini harmonica, 1965, 1 day in space.
1978 a Russian Acoustic Guitar spent 140 days on Salyut-6, etc.,etc.
Outgassing–I would assume…if we don’t subject the wood instruments to Space, and keep them inside, we’d be ok?
Chris Hadfield and one of the Bare Naked Ladies did a better song, ISS Is Anyone Listening, with a choir, a few years ago.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvAnfi8WpVE
Canadians, so probably don’t count…
So, is NO ONE willing to say Gillis’ performance was . . .
“Out of this world”??
Wayne asked: “Outgassing–I would assume…if we don’t subject the wood instruments to Space, and keep them inside, we’d be ok?”
You have invented a new industry: space-hardening for musical instruments. At this stage, you can make up your own (based on available data) standards. Going to be more people going Up; not everyone plays keyboard. In fact, I’m a little surprised wind instruments are allowed, what with the sludge buildup, and, spit valves, anyone? Yes, the field is ripe for profit, and regulation.
An un-rosined bow makes essentially no sound—certainly, no tone.
Blair–
No need to harden the Instruments.
Using new techniques from JPL, they will magically heal themselves while in space.