The Hubble Cantata fuses a major musical performance, featuring a 20-piece ensemble, a 100-person choir and two Metropolitan Opera stars, Nathan Gunn and Jessica Rivera, with a virtual reality experience amidst a 360-degree sound installation. A portion of the work composed by Paola Prestini, featured a virtual reality experience by Eliza McNitt, which took the audience on a journey inside of the Orion Nebula to reveal the cosmic connections between humans and the stars.
“The true stars of the show were the
d:dicate™ 4018s on low profile stands used for our soloists Nathan Gunn and Jessica Rivera,” says MacAleavey. “After sound checking the orchestra and chorus, they stepped up to the d:dicate™ 4018s and my jaw dropped. We barely touched an EQ knob and they sounded incredible. Their tight pattern was so perfect. I never struggled to keep the opera singers present in the mix, their diction was perfectly understood by the audience.”
Cardboard VR headsets were given out on-site. Audience members were encouraged to download the "Fistful of Stars" app by Wemersive Inc. to have the best viewing experience. The stunning visuals — combined with performances by Nathan Gunn, Jessica Rivera, the Norwegian string orchestra 1B1, NOVUS NY, The Washington Chorus and the Brooklyn Youth Chorus — made for an amazing event.