Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Symphony Orchestra (VSO) partners with BETA Technologies (BETA) and Champlain College’s Emergent Media Center (CCEMC) to create Flight Test, a new live concert experience of music, projections, and innovation on March 1, 2025 in South Burlington, Vermont.
Flight Test features VSO’s 40-voice chorus, pianist Mary Jane Austin, violinist Brooke Quiggins, and cellist John Dunlop in an immersive soundscape curated and led by Matt LaRocca, VSO’s Artistic Advisor and Project Conductor. The concerts include video projections by CCEMC, concluding a three year educational partnership between the two organizations, and take place inside BETA’s original airplane hangar with the audience surrounded by BETA’s electric airplanes and equipment.
The CCEMC student team includes Annie Granger (VFX Artist/Producer), Logan Allen (Environmental Artist/Video rendering), Gus Goucher (Graphics Programmer/Technical Artist FA24/SP25), and Joey Clemente (Graphics Programmer/Technical Artist SU24). The student team is guided by CCEMC’s Rachel Hooper, Sarah Jerger, and Felipe Lega.
“Collaborating with the Vermont Symphony Orchestra on this project has been an incredible journey for our team at the Emergent Media Center," said the CCEMC student team. "Bringing music to life through immersive projections has pushed us to combine our technical skills, artistic creativity, and passion for storytelling. Applying our skills using real-time game engine software in this project has been a valuable and rewarding challenge, allowing us to create visuals that amplify the audience's connection to the music.”
Flight Test is a one-hour concert with two performances (6:00 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.) on March 1, 2025, featuring compositions by Arvo Pärt, Frederic Chopin, Jennifer Higdon, Elaine Hagenberg and more. Parking is available at the Patrick Leahy Burlington Airport general parking garage. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit vso.org/events.
Flight Test is generously sponsored by Northfield Savings Bank Innovation Fund, Choral Arts New England, and private donors.
About the Vermont Symphony Orchestra:
Celebrating its 90th anniversary with the 2024/25 season, the Vermont Symphony Orchestra is a cultural cornerstone in the region, enriching communities and the lives of Vermonters statewide. With a commitment to artistic excellence, innovative programming, and community engagement, the VSO has established itself as one of the country’s premier state orchestras. For more information about the Vermont Symphony Orchestra please visit VSO.org.
About BETA Technologies:
Founded in 2017 by Kyle Clark, BETA Technologies is a South Burlington, Vermont-based aerospace manufacturer developing electric vertical take off and landing (eVTOL) and electric conventional take-off and landing (eCTOL) aircraft for the cargo, medical passenger, and military aviation industries.
About Champlain College Emergent Media Center:
Champlain College’s Emergent Media Center is an interactive media studio for conceptualizing, prototyping, and producing a wide range of media to solve challenges with community partners. From mobile apps to wearable technology, students focus on applied research and experimentation working with a variety of emerging technologies, immersive media, and human-centered design processes to design creative solutions.
Burlington, Vermont – December 20, 2024. VSO
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