Concert: The Private Life of Volcanoes — Tokyo, 10 Nov 2026

PhiloGaïa Orchestra is a music project active mainly in France, created to connect science and society. Founded in 2012, it has performed at PhD defenses and habilitation (HDR) juries at the Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris (IPGP), as well as at student parties. Starting from experiments blending Earth science and music, it explores original and unexpected ways to express a passion for geophysics and music.

It has premiered Pierre et la Terre (world premiere in 2016 at the French Embassy in Tokyo; performed again in 2019 at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris for the 100th anniversary of the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics — IUGG, conducted by Jordan Gudefin), the symphonic poem InSight (2019), Enigma of the Evolution of the Earth (2023), Clarinet on the Moon (2024), A Trip to the Moon (Méliès) (2024), and Hydrated Ariège (2025, with string players from the Orchestre national du Capitole de Toulouse).

For this Tokyo performance, conducted by composer-conductor Kenya Masakado, the Beethoven and Fuji works will be performed mainly by wind players from the Tomin Symphony Orchestra (2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 horns, 2 bassoons and 1 trumpet), together with a double bass player and a SoundCube performer, with commentary from volcanologist Yosuke Aoki (Earthquake Research Institute, The University of Tokyo).

Sismologie — la musique de la terre was written in 2024 for IPGP seismologist Jean-Paul Montagner, as an attempt to express in music his well-known work on seismic anisotropy, among other topics. The title is taken directly from a popular-science book he wrote.

La vie privée des volcans, premiering at this concert, grew out of discussions with IPGP volcanologist Fidel Costa. Volcanology outreach tends to be dominated by images of lava flows and volcanic gases; this piece instead focuses on the “private life” of a volcano — how an eruption is actually prepared. The artwork on this flyer is his own design.

By performing while projecting figures, footage and data drawn from our research, we hope to share the beauty and wonder of nature with as many people as possible. First, without any explanation — just listen to our music, and see if you can feel the science.