The University of Queensland's 2026 Music by the Lakes festival will premiere Symphony for the History of Time, a new orchestral and choral work interpreting modern cosmology.
A Fusion of Art and Science
The symphony was created by composer Eve Klein in collaboration with astrophysicist Tamara Davis. The work is directly based on Davis’s cosmology research, with images from the Dark Energy Survey incorporated into the performance as visual projections.
Performance Details
- Location: St John’s Cathedral in Brisbane.
- Performers: UQ Symphony Orchestra, UQ Chorale, and UQ Chamber Singers.
- Visuals: Projections displayed on the cathedral’s stone-vaulted ceilings.
- Scale: Approximately 200 staff and students from the university are involved in the production.
The CREATE Lab
The symphony was developed in the UQ CREATE Lab, an interdisciplinary facility designed for large-scale art and research projects. The lab is equipped with high-resolution motion graphics projection, 360-degree spatial audio, and high-powered workstations for rendering and editing. It is used for testing and experiencing projects including video games, immersive media, and gallery exhibitions.