Brigitta Muntendorf: Orbit
Space oratorio for AI language clones and 3D sound – Hamburg International Music Festival
Immortal fighters, techno-futuristic
A concert without a stage or visible musicians: the audience sits dispersed about the room for »Orbit – A War Series«, the sound appears to come from everywhere. The magazine Groove describes its premiere at the Venice Biennale in 2023 as an »impressive synthesis of the arts« – and it revolves around a serious subject. At the centre: immortal warriors in a post-human, techno-futuristic choir.
Please note that strobe lights, fog and high volume will be used at times during the concert. The production addresses sexualised violence.
Using electronic music between techno and a celestial expansive sound, composer Brigitta Muntendorf places alienated voices cloned by AI. They tell of structural sexualised violence against women as a weapon of war. Detached from their individual fate and from any physicality due to their alienation, the voices encircle the audience with haunting testimonies of wars and power struggles as conducted against the female body for millennia.
»I wanted to create a space where we can approach these themes and ›embrace‹ them, where the violence is not passed on to the audience or reproduced in the concert hall«, the composer says. Here, space is literally meant as »sound space«. The sound comes from loudspeakers, arranged around the audience – sometimes, it seems to circle like a helicopter; then, to come from a specific direction or from everywhere. The latest 3D-sound technology, recently obscured in the Recital Hall of the Elbphilharmonie, enables this.
Programme
Brigitta Muntendorf
Orbit – A War Series / Space Oratorio for AI-Voice Clones and 3D Soundscape
Supporting programme
Sat, 17 May 2025 17:00
KI in der Musik,
Elbphilharmonie, Kaistudio 1
Promoter: HamburgMusik
Location
:
Elbphilharmonie
Kleiner Saal
The Recital Hall, designed in contrast to the Grand Hall in the classic »shoebox« style, offers seating for up to 550 people.
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Arrival time
The Elbphilharmonie is a special building situated in a special place. Allow for plenty of time for getting to the Elbphilharmonie and the way to the concert area. We suggest visitors arrive at the Elbphilharmonie Plaza not later than 30 minutes before the start of the concert or event. Late seating is not guaranteed and latecomers may not be admitted to the concert hall.
Concert tickets for the Grand and Recital Halls authorise a visit to the Plaza from two hours before the start of the concert or event. Visitors to the Kaistudios require a separate Plaza ticket to visit the Plaza.
Admission times:
Events without pre-concert talk:
Recital Hall Foyer: 60 minutes before the start of the event
Recital Hall: 30 minutes before the start of the eventEvents with pre-concert talk:
Recital Hall Foyer: 90 minutes before the start of the event
Recital Hall: 15 minutes before the start of the talkIf a pre-concert talk is offered for this event, it is noted above under PROGRAMME.
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Getting here
Elbphilharmonie Hamburg
Platz der Deutschen Einheit
20457 HamburgThe Elbphilharmonie can be easily reached by bus, underground, bicycle and ferry.
The nearest stops include:
Underground line U3: Baumwall
Underground line U4: Überseequartier
Bus 2, 111: Am Kaiserkai (Elbphilharmonie)
Bus 6: Auf dem Sande (Speicherstadt)
Ferry 72 (from Landungsbrücken pier): »Elbphilharmonie« pier
StadtRAD (bicycle sharing system) stations: U Baumwall (Elbphilharmonie) and Am Kaiserkai / Großer GrasbrookMultistorey car park in the Elbphilharmonie (open 24/7, 435 parking spaces):
Please note that visitors to the Elbphilharmonie should use the entrance marked »Elbphilharmonie«. The entrance »Elbphilharmonie Hotel« is reserved for »The Westin Hamburg« hotel guests.Please find more information about prices and advance booking of the discounted flat rate on this page: arrival by car
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Finding your seat
All visitors enter the building via the main entrance; access to the concert hall is via the Plaza, the public viewing platform on the 8th floor of the Elbphilharmonie. The Plaza can be reached from the entrance area via the Tube (long escalator) or lifts. Your tickets will be checked twice: at admissions in the main entrance area and on the Plaza in front of the staircase to the Grand or Rcital Hall. Stairs and lifts lead from the Plaza to the concert hall foyers.
The Recital Hall is situated on the 10th floor and can be accessed via a stairway or lift.
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Cloakroom
The cloakrooms are located in the foyer (fee: € 2). Jackets and handbags may be taken into the hall.
Walking-stick umbrellas, bags sized A3 (42 x 30 cm) or above, luggage and other bulky items must be stored in the lockers (largest size 27 x 87 x 47 cm) located in the corridor leading to the ticket shop on the ground floor (on the right-hand side of the entrance area).
Strollers and prams can be left with the admissions personnel on the Plaza. Wheeled walkers can be handed in at the hall entrances.
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Toilet Facilities
Facilities for guests of the Recital Hall are located in the Recital Hall Foyer.
An accessible toilet is located in the foyer.
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Photography and video recordings
It is forbidden to take photographs or record videos during a concert or event. Video recordings and photography are permitted for private purposes only on the Plaza and in the foyers as well as before the start or following an event in the concert hall, provided that you respect the privacy of other visitors and do not interfere with regular business operations. Employees may not be photographed or filmed.
Photography, audio or video recordings of concerts and events are strictly prohibited.
Event-related video recordings or photographs for editorial or commercial purposes must be authorised by the Press Office of the Elbphilharmonie.
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Accessibility
All halls and spaces are accessible for visitors with disabilities. More information at www.elbphilharmonie.de/en/accessibility.
Lifts to the Plaza are located in the tunnel on the right-hand side of the Tube (long escalator). From the Plaza, access to the Grand and Recital Hall foyers is via lifts, also located to the right. Please note: cloakrooms for visitors to the Grand Hall are only located on the 11th floor. From there, the upper floors can be accessed via further lifts.
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Coughing, clapping, chatting – Tips for your concert visit
A concert at the Elbphilharmonie is a unique experience for both audience and artists. Guests and musicians alike rave about the precise acoustics in the Grand Hall. You can hear every note, even from the highest balcony.
Unfortunately, the opposite is also true: even presumably quiet noises from the audience are clearly audible in the entire hall. We therefore ask our visitors to take the following recommendations into consideration: Tips for your concert visit

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