The virtual orchestra: the Philharmonia's new VR game allows participants to join the orchestra in a live performance of Rossini's William Tell

Philharmonia Orchestra's Virtual Orchestra: Play Along (Photo: Marc Gascoigne)

The Southbank Centre's Creative Intelligence festival (11 to 13 September 2026) takes its inspiration from the Festival of Britain 75 years ago by exploring how artists, digital innovation and AI are reshaping the world we live in as part of a celebration of art, imagination and technology.

The Philharmonia's contribution to the festival will build on the orchestra's digital innovation to present Virtual Orchestra: Play Along, a virtual game which allows users to pick up a virtual instrument, learn through guided tutorials, and perform as part of the orchestra. Designed with children and young people in mind, participants can choose percussion instruments including cymbals, timpani and triangle, building skills before joining a full orchestral performance in a packed concert hall setting.

Through a series of interactive challenges and tutorials led by Philharmonia musicians, participants wearing VR headsets learn to read their part in the score, rehearse, and then “join the orchestra” in a live concert for the exhilarating finale of Rossini’s William Tell Overture.

The live performance in the experience was filmed at the Royal Festival Hall in April 2025 and conducted by Principal Conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali, using an array of 3D 360 cameras for ultra-high 12.5k resolution and cinematic quality. Live audio was recorded and mixed using object-based spatial audio techniques and converted to higher-order Ambisonics, to render the full acoustic depth and geometry of the performance space. Every instrument occupies its true position in three-dimensional space, captured at the highest spatial resolution currently possible.

The Philharmonia Orchestra was among 272 recipients to benefit from the Innovate UK/ DCMS Create Growth Programme in 2025. The £99,284 grant enabled research and development and the pilot programme with a Year Seven cohort from 11 schools from Leicestershire, Derbyshire and Lincolnshire. Alongside the VR experience, the Philharmonia has developed a curriculum-linked programme for Key Stage 3, with resources and CPD support for teachers. The project responds to growing concerns around declining music participation in schools, with GCSE Music entries falling significantly in recent years.

Marta Génova, the Philharmonia Orchestra’s Head of Digital Product and Experience, says, "For over a decade, the Philharmonia Orchestra has pioneered immersive musical experiences, and Virtual Orchestra: Play Along takes that work into a new phase where we ask audiences to participate rather than observe. For the first time in our VR work, users can take up a virtual instrument, develop skills through guided practice, and perform with the orchestra onstage, among the musicians, in concert. Through R&D collaboration with percussionist Tom Edwards, Meta Camera and Schallgeber, we have developed new ways to connect artists and audiences, reducing barriers to engagement and making cultural spaces more welcoming to participants."