City of Floating Sounds

6.21.25 | 6pm–9pm

Presented by New Haven Symphony Orchestra, International Festival of Arts & Ideas, and Yale Schwarzman Center

June 21, 2025 | 6pm–9pm |
New Haven Green

Instructions

Free and open to the public. 

6pm: Walks require download of a free application to a smartphone. Application will be released June 19. 

7pm: Concert on the New Haven Green, located at 250 Temple Street, New Haven CT 06511. 

Check the event listing HERE for the most up to date information. 

Experience a magical summer evening on the New Haven Green with the International Festival of Arts & Ideas, as the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, in partnership with Yale Schwarzman Center, presents City of Floating Sounds, a free, open-air concert that celebrates New Haven’s rich history and culture.

The evening begins at 6pm with an immersive journey through New Haven, where participants playing Huang Ruo’s City of Floating Sounds on their phones will converge at the Green, creating a unique tapestry of sound. As the sun sets, the New Haven Symphony will take the stage at 7pm to perform a vibrant program that honors the voices and stories of our community.

About the Exploration Paths:

6pm• Starting Locations TBA 

Check the event listing HERE for the most up to date information. 

Participants who wish to join the exploration path walks will need to download a free application to a smart phone. The application will be released June 19, two days in advance of the event. 

City of Floating Sounds is an invitation to connect with our surroundings and each other. Experience a shifting soundscape as you journey through the city. Can you find other audience members to create a richer sound?

Pushing the boundaries of classical music performance, City of Floating Sounds uses cutting-edge creative technology to take music out into the city. Guided by a bespoke mobile app, starting at 6PM you make your way through the streets of New Haven listening to fragments of Huang Ruo’s meditative new work.

As you get closer to the Green – and other audience members – the sound will expand, revealing more parts of the work. An opportunity to explore New Haven in a new light – the path you take and who you meet on your journey can all change what you hear.

City of Floating Sounds asks you to open your senses to the city. What will you hear and who might you meet?

Commissioned by Factory International, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, National Taichung Theater, Taiwan and West Kowloon Cultural District.

 

Check the event listing HERE for the most up to date information. 

Orchestra performing

City of Floating Sounds

READ a review of City of Floating Sounds by Martin Thomasson for Quays Life. 

Digital collage of floating shapes in a sky.