Nine musicians from the Australian World Orchestra (AWO) performed a surprise pop-up concert at 36,000 ft for passengers on the Qantas QF81 flight from Sydney to Singapore.
The ensemble included a French horn, snare drum, cello, flute, trumpets, and saxophone and the musicians serenaded passengers with Ravel's famous composition Bolero.
This was in celebration of the orchestra's first concert in Singapore over weekend (October 1st to 2nd) and the performance - which has been dubbed Symphonic Serenade in the Sky - took place shortly after take-off for almost 300 passengers once the A330-300 aircraft had attained its cruising altitude of 36,000 ft.
Qantas transported close to 100 instruments to Singapore, such as seven double basses as freight and a several cellos that were given their own seats, in addition to members of the AWO.
Engineers, pilots, safety and crew from Qantas all worked together with the AWO in preparation of the inflight performance and to ensure any necessary inflight safety requirements were conformed to.
Mitch Clark, second officer on the Qantas A330, said the whole crew was pleased to work with the AWO to provide passengers with a memorable experience.
"Australia is lucky to have some of the best musicians in the world," he commented.
"For the AWO to share their talent with us was a treat not only for the passengers but also for our crew," Mr Clark added, going on to describe the experience as a high note in his time flying.
Alison Mitchell, flautist with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, explained that the performance held a special significance for several reasons.
"As a flautist I have played this famous tune all over the world - but I never thought I'd get to play it in the sky."
SMATS Group was a proud sponsor of the inaugural Concert in Singapore.
