It was announced in July that a special flight over Bristol would be taking place that month, called Sky Orchestra. 7 balloons would play out music while flying above the city, waking up people to a soundtrack commissioned by Bristol Old Vic and members of Massive Attack and Portishead. Despite a number of good opportunities during mid-July, the flight was delayed.
It wasn’t the first time this had happened; a sky orchestra flight took place from the 2003 Bristol Balloon Fiesta and over London in 2011.
On the evening of 1st September, 7 balloon teams gathered at Ashton Court fiesta field. Although it was meant to be a morning flight, this was the last opportunity where everyone was available. The date and location were kept secret to avoid attracting a crowd. We were surprised to learn it had been called on as the winds were extremely light, in fact the lightest we’ve ever seen on an evening slot, so the balloons took off and landed straight after, slightly defeating the point. However, people at Ashton Court had a nice surprise whilst walking the dog or on a cycle ride!
Balloons that took part included the well-known Ultramagic panther add-on shape, Taittinger, David Hathaway, ABC Flights Viva G-BTHF, Sport-70 G-CKXA, G-CKAD and old Expedia 120 G-XPDA. Music was played from 2 speakers attached to either side of the basket.
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