The University of Salford has signed an agreement with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra allowing students to become the first to use cutting edge musical technology.

The innovation which is being trialed at the Red Brick Sessions at the University's Peel Hall, aims to turn classical concerts into immersive musical experiences by enabling people to enjoy the renowned orchestra in a completely new way.

Live video stream

The concert series features a live video stream enabling the audience to delve closer into the BBC Philharmonic as they perform — and even 'zoom in' on specific sections such as strings, brass or percussion. The online audience also receives synced information about the music they are listening to and can even view a live orchestral score.

The new agreement means a wide range of University of Salford students will be some of the first people in the country to use this technology by recording the sessions as they are streamed online.

Change of landscape

Alan Williams, Professor of Collaborative Composition at the University of Salford told 4BR: "This partnership shows what can be achieved when a university gets together with an organisation like the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra to change the cultural landscape of Salford and beyond.

This really puts us at the forefront of digital innovation and our tech-savvy students have taken to the new technology like ducks to water."

Risk taking

Simon Webb, General Manager of BBC Philharmonic added: "The BBC Philharmonic Orchestra is a creative, risk-taking orchestra in our programming and in how we present concerts.

This new partnership enables us to develop our programming alongside new technologies whilst creating, and benefiting from, new and unique student opportunities."

This new partnership enables us to develop our programming alongside new technologies whilst creating, and benefiting from, new and unique student opportunitiesSimon Webb, General Manager, BBC Philharmonic

Free tickets

Following on from the well-attended Red Brick Sessions held in 2016, the concert series will return soprano Ruby Hughes with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra on 26th January.

The Red Brick Sessions are free, but anyone wanting to attend one of the events at Peel Hall on the University of Salford's Peel Park campus needs to apply for tickets in advance.