When I see that a thirty minute ‘experience’ at the fringe is the same price as a full hour show, you know that I want to witness it. The fringe has increased in price this year dramatically and when I saw this show I was curious to see if it would be worth the money of the customer and also intrigued to see what is on offer.

For anyone that reads this website will know that I have a strong interest in AI and new technology, so to find a show that was promoting a ‘cutting edge VR experience’ focussed on playing as part of an orchestra – you know it would be something that would catch my eye.

When you enter Summerhall you are asked to wait in the lobby, one of the reasons the experience is so short and some have sold out is that there are only five people allowed per time. The first part is you queue up and enter your details into an iPad and answer one question about a topic – this apparently helps the computer decide what ‘instrument’ that you are going to be assigned, you then sit in a hallway on a chair with the other four people taking part.

You are then welcomed into a room with a person who you end up finding out is a scientist and the whole point of this ‘experience’ is to help with research they are doing about music back in Australia. You then watch a video that is explaining the science behind what they have been doing coding wise and how this experience is helping push their research. In the same room you are then given your ‘new’ instruments – random shaped objects that have been clearly printed off a 3D printer that have a little electric screen attached at the bottom which monitors the movement. You then go around the room testing the objects and moving them to show how they work – usually up and down and side to side.

Once this is all explained you are then welcomed into the VR experience room – five chairs all with VR headsets on them and two scientists who founded the project standing at the end of the room. When you put on the headsets you are in the centre of the Australian Orchestra and the conductor starts telling you what you are performing today and then you go into the song and are on stage with the rest of the musicians.

All the 3D printed instruments are apparently coded to play the same pitches as the musicians playing and your aim is to play along with the band. You are in the centre of this orchestra and there is one musician that doesn’t stop staring at you which is a bit unnerving.

Sadly there were many issues with this ‘experience’ so let’s start with the actual VR itself – it was about five to ten minutes max. A person pays £11.50 for something promoted as thirty minutes. This is appalling and really unfair to those expecting more. Instead you are paying to fill in a survey and watch a video to understand the ‘science’ behind it.

The instruments do not work. I spent a lot of my time moving and shaking the circular thing (so much so apparently according to their ‘statistics’ I moved the most and 85% of the ‘show’) I was given and you cannot even hear the noises it is making and when I could it was not in tune and awful. If you promote an experience playing an instrument then allow the person to hear what they are playing. I have been to many augmented reality exhibitions and interactive experiences and I can name loads off the top of my head that make the audience feel more involved and part of it then this did.

I was in the experience with another member of the public who decided to make the whole event about them. This meant that the whole experience was tarnished as they took over everything wanted to film everyone (which I refused) and the leaders basically ignored the rest of us in the room and did not make us feel welcome. So if you do go, be warned if you have someone who is a very strong personality they will take over everything.

The fact the scientists whilst trying to be friendly, ‘laughed’ at the end saying thank you for helping us with our scientist research is shocking. There is no writing in the advert ( I have checked it more then once) saying that this was the aim of Concerts of the Future which again is misleading.

As a musician, I was really excited and looking forward to visiting this show and had it at the top of my list to go and see. I was intrigued to understand how you implement an audience member into an orchestra and the tech that was going to immerse you.

This show was such a huge disappointment and I feel deceiving in the way that it is advertised. I am genuinely concerned about audience members paying for this show and realising what they have signed up to. I have never done this before in the ten years I have covered the Fringe, but I cannot give this show a rating as I feel it is wrong to do so. Severely disappointed.

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