Description:

The Brief
The Auckland Philharmonia, Auckland’s professional orchestra, developed a new brand promise "Moving Music". This positioning reflects the immersive power of an Philharmonia performance, taking audiences on an emotional storytelling journey. We were asked to design a contemporary and visually engaging website that expressed this promise in new ways to engage new audiences.

We recommended adding a multi-sensory, interactive experience that would move audiences in the same way as attending an Auckland Philharmonia performance. This meant visual drama, audio immersion and audience participation.

The solution
Moving Music was the inspiration for our work. Our vision was to virtually transport visitors to a performance providing a new perspective for those who hadn’t engaged with Auckland Philharmonia before and a new experience for seasoned concertgoers.

The experience begins on the website’s home page with a 3D view of the Auckland Town Hall: the performance is about to begin. As you zoom in, you see and hear the orchestra getting ready. Your next interaction initiates a series of Auckland Philharmonia performances. Each performance sees the animated sound wave logo dance across the screen in perfect harmony with the music, creating a mesmerising blend of sight and sound. As you immerse yourself further, you find yourself on the stage amongst the players, with options to dive deeper into the website.

The website also features two other immersive experiences. The first is a virtual tour of the historic Auckland Town Hall, highlighting key features and locations, taking away uncertainty for those who haven’t been before. The second experience provides an engaging way to understand the various players, sections of the orchestra and instruments involved in a performance.
This experience was generated using cutting-edge 3D spatial scanning (photogrammetry). Each of the 70+ players on stage are designed to carefully represent where each player sits, the instrument they play and how they perform during a live concert.

A stylised ‘shadow-figure’ approach was adopted to reinforce a 3D virtual world, allowing visitors to engage with the overall experience rather than being distracted by real world details. While the experience represents the dark immersive setting of an actual concert, key aspects of Auckland Philharmonia’s brand palette come through in the colours and in the movement.

Testing with concert-goers, and orchestra newbies, allowed ongoing refinement of the UX and UI elements, and to achieve higher levels of engagement.

The result
Keep existing audiences attending and attracting younger audiences is a challenge all orchestras face. This experience is thought to be the first of its kind offered by any orchestra anywhere in the world, delivering a surprising way for audiences to engage, connect and be immersed. Auckland Philharmonia’s CEO said, “We’re delighted with the end result and the window it opens for audiences to connect with us. Whether it’s regular concertgoers, or those considering attending one of our concerts for the first time, this interactive experience had delivered an amazing new way to engage with Auckland’s orchestra.”