Resident Composer at the Center for Astrophysics at Harvard & Smithsonian, David Ibbett will share movements from his symphonies and create live pieces inspired by the cultural galaxy of Yerkes on Thursday, October 16 at 7:30pm. With audience help, David will build an immersive sonic black hole with his keyboard and laptop. He will musically explore black holes, the microscopic world of cells, exoplanets, and the distant universe for this immersive performance.

David is the composer of Black Hole Symphony from 2022 and Mars Symphony from 2024. He will share his process for translating science into music and discuss with us how he composes electrosymphonic music which he describes as “a fusion of classical and electronic styles interweaving influences from symphonies, pop, rock, and electronica. Musical strands are met with inspiration from the work of scientists: sonified data, musical metaphors for scientific theories, and experimental sound and images from cutting edge research.”

David Ibbett, Ph.D. is a composer, educator and musical advocate for science. Based in Boston, he is a Professor at Worcester Polytechnic Institute and directs the Multiverse Concert Series, a project that integrates music and science in live performance. In 2023, David was named the first Resident Composer at the Center for Astrophysics at Harvard & Smithsonian.