An immersive concert experience situated between analogue and virtual space makes up the Mahler Chamber Orchestra’s concert project “Between Realities” on Easter Monday. Together with violinist Pekka Kuusisto and sound specialist Henrik Oppermann/Schallgeber, the orchestra explores space and sound at the interface of different levels of reality, raising questions concerning the “realism” of performance as well as dreams, imagination and fantasy. A particular focus lies on Mendelssohn Bartholdy’s suite from “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”, which the Mahler Chamber Orchestra performs not only live but also for the first time in a virtual reality performance.

Over the course of a long concert night, the Mahler Chamber Orchestra presents works by composers including Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, Charles Ives and Nico Muhly. The analogue concerts are complemented by the VR installations “Future Presence I, II & III”, which invite audiences to draw closer to the music of Mozart, Ives and Mendelssohn Bartholdy than ever before: with the aid of VR glasses and headsets, audience members can freely move around (or through/over/under) the ensemble, thereby expanding and rediscovering the process of listening.