Classical music fans are in for a treat as Johann Strauss II’s iconic piece, “Blue Danube,” is set to blast off into space on May 31. The Vienna Symphony Orchestra will perform the waltz live, accompanied by pre-recorded radio signals that will be sent towards Voyager 1, the most distant human-made object in space.
The event marks the 200th anniversary of Strauss’ birth and celebrates the European Space Agency’s founding 50 years ago. A free public screening will be held in Vienna, Madrid, and New York, allowing people to experience the celestial performance online.
When sent into space, “Blue Danube” will travel at an incredible speed of 670 million mph (1 billion kph), passing by several planets in a matter of minutes. It will reach the moon in just over a second, Mars in four and a half minutes, Jupiter in nearly 37 minutes, and Neptune in four hours.
This marks the first time Strauss’ music has been sent into space. The composer was initially overlooked for inclusion on the Voyager Golden Records, which were launched by NASA in 1977. However, this latest attempt aims to set things right, with the European Space Agency using its deep-space network to relay the performance.
The event is part of the ESA’s “Sonic Heritage” project, which uses music to connect people across time and space. The agency’s director general, Josef Aschbacher, said: “Music connects us all through time and space in a very particular way.”
Source: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/this-waltz-is-the-unofficial-soundtrack-of-floating-through-space-soon-it-will-beam-through-the-cosmos