‘Lost Weekend’ In Space: How Artists Like Phoebe Bridgers Turn Planetariums Into Music Venues
Behind the scenes with astronomy experts from the Liberty Science Center, where Bridgers showed up on the eve of her acclaimed new album's release.
Andrew Bundas, a planetarium educator at the Liberty Science Center in Jersey City, N.J., likens creating a music experience within a planetarium to making a music video. Planetariums offer a unique visual medium for musicians to promote their work, with no one standardized approach. As the educator for the Liberty Science Center, Bundas has worked on two high-profile planetarium show events: Lil Yachty's album release for his Let’s Start Here in 2023 and a listening experience celebrating Phoebe Bridgers' Lost Weekend release.
Bridgers visited the Liberty Science Center’s Jennifer Chalsty Planetarium the night before the album's release to perform three tracks in the planetarium space alongside Christian Lee Hutson, demonstrating her commitment to the event.
Bridgers' event took place at the Liberty Science Center’s Jennifer Chalsty Planetarium, described by the center's president and CEO as the largest and most technologically advanced planetarium in the Western Hemisphere. This technologically advanced environment provides an excellent canvas for musicians to realize their vision, with the ability to project 88 million pixels on the dome using 8K resolution powered by powerful graphics-generating computers.
Bundas emphasizes the potential of planetarium technology to accommodate various artistic expressions, from existing images to original content. The artists themselves decide how they want to work with the software, whether by using pre-existing images or creating new visuals.
The planetarium's immersive environment allows for a fresh take on live performances, adding a unique dimension to artists' practices. Artists can take advantage of the immersive experience by creating custom visuals that surround the audience, drawing their eyes around the front, back, and sides of the room. This approach provides musicians an opportunity to create a truly memorable experience for their listeners, making planetarium shows an ideal music venue for artists of all genres.
Written by urgent.news from Billboard's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
