Credits: RaphPH / Wikimedia Commons — CC BY 2.0.
On Monday, December 25, 2023, the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles was the setting for an extraordinary musical event. The famous French composer and DJ Jean-Michel Jarre performed a concert to celebrate the 400th anniversary of France’s iconic monument.
The concert, lasting about fifty minutes, transformed the 73-meter-long Hall of Mirrors, adorned with 357 mirrors, into an enchanted space. The 800 attendees, including 700 who paid between €40 and €300 to attend the event, were dazzled by a display of lights and special effects that enhanced the walls of the room plunged into darkness.
Jean-Michel Jarre, wearing a mixed-reality mask, performed surrounded by his turntables and musical instruments. He explained that the concert took place across several dimensions: one in the real world at Versailles, another in a virtual world with his avatar, and a third combining the two that was broadcast on television screens.
Viewers could experience the concert in two different ways: live on the channel W9 and in virtual reality on the VRrOOm platform. The event began with a remix of Marche pour la cérémonie des Turcs by Jean-Baptiste Lully, in tribute to the Baroque composer from the time of Louis XIV.
Although the YouTube broadcast encountered difficulties, Jean-Michel Jarre stated that the live would soon be available for 24 hours and is already available on demand on the 6Play website.
The concert received a contribution of €110,000 from the CNC, where Jean-Michel Jarre chairs the Création immersive commission.