Bach in Space | London

A live piano concert pairing works by Johann Sebastian Bach with NASA and ESA imagery of space, performed by pianist Xiaowen Shang at the Shaw Theatre on Kings Road.

Bach in Space combines keyboard music by Johann Sebastian Bach with real astronomical imagery. Images of galaxies, nebulae and planets, taken from NASA and ESA archives and shown without renderings or special effects, fill a large screen while the music is played live. The programme includes the Goldberg Variations, the Well-Tempered Clavier and the Italian Concerto, and each work is matched with its own celestial imagery. The sequence moves between passages of intensity and calm as the images travel deeper into space.

The performer is the pianist Xiaowen Shang, who plays on a concert grand piano. Shang is described as an emerging figure in British classical music and studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London.

The production is aimed at every listener, whether a devoted music lover or someone drawn to astronomy. It takes place at the Shaw Theatre, a venue on Kings Road that hosts concerts and shows.