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What Music Is
Harmony’s Role in an Evolving Universe
By Bill Barclay
Full orchestra
Narrator
Piano
Projections
80 minutes
3 travelling artists
Original animations by Shawn Feeney
Grapple with life’s greatest mysteries in concert with some of classical music’s most enduring works. Together we’ll take a journey from quantum physics to our solar system and beyond, exploring the music of the spheres from Plato to today.
What Music Is reveals music’s expansive role in our collective well-being. Every human culture ever studied makes music, but its role in human evolution remains a mystery, until now. In this show, we propose music’s purpose in human life, the critical role live music plays in civic wellness, and how we can leverage music’s powers for human flourishing.
Featuring:
Debussy Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun
Holst Jupiter, from The Planets
Elgar Nimrod, from Enigma Variations
Montgomery Starburst
Saariaho Asteroid 4179: Toutatis
Beethoven Symphony No. 5 (short selection)
Prokofiev Classical Symphony (first movement
World Premiere with The San Juan Symphony, February, 2025
Next up: Wichita Symphony Orchestra, November, 2025
Thomas Heuser, conductor
Shawn Feeney, animations
“In what can only be called a high-voltage, creative partnership, Heuser and Bill Barclay have cooked up a fresh approach to orchestral programming…an audience-friendly exploration of science and art. The new form merges storytelling with concert fare.
Barclay’s amiable, favorite-uncle style managed to deliver the connections between music and physics, math and astronomy with easy warmth. His occasional asides brought humor into the equation, and inviting the audience to sing Happy Birthday to Bill, himself, illustrated a point about synchronicity and added fun to the friendly, family-table atmosphere.
Thereafter, Barclay unspooled his thesis: Music and science have a deep and universal connection, illuminated by performances of works by Elgar, Prokofiev, a bit of Beethoven, and contemporary pieces by Holst, Saariaho and Montgomery.
Afterward, the audience buzzed about the program and the innovative concept. I have it on good authority that Barclay got the science right. Among others, two friends who are scientists, biology and astronomy, said Barclay got the science right. Music lovers said Heuser and company got the music right.”
-Durango Herald
Developed through special engagements at:
King’s College, London
La Universita de Santiago, Chile
Tanglewood Music Festival, MA
Shakespeare’s Globe, London
The Public Theater, Boston
The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, Stratford-upon-Avon
The Royal Anthropological Society, London
St. Botolph’s Club, Boston
Now available on SOUNDWORKS is a new exploration of Barclay’s groundbreaking material.
Framed as a 7-day sound meditation course, the listener is guided into a deep communion with sound, and what music means for our consciousness.
“I have tried to create a tool that I would like to have had starting out as a musician. Why does the logic of music have to feel exclusive? It doesn’t operate that way. Getting the richness of music philosophy out of its academic armour and into accessible terms is one of my life goals.
I’m very grateful that my friends at Soundworks have built a platform that so elegantly can support this kind of material. And I’m so eager to know what you think. So please enjoy, share, and let me know how you get on.”
-Bill Barclay
