TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Whales, music, and the magic of the ocean come together on Oct. 4 as National Geographic’s 'Secrets of the Whales' receives its first live orchestral presentation in Asia in Taichung.
Timed to coincide with World Animal Day, this 90-minute symphonic experience condenses three years of filming across 24 global locations into a cinematic journey. The National Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Cheng Li-pin (鄭立彬), brings Raphaelle Thibaut’s specially composed score to life, transforming each whale story into a musical tapestry of friendship, family, and even heartbreak.
The performance starts at 7 p.m. at Taichung Fulfillment Amphitheatre. Admission is free.
Documentary Executive Producer James Cameron, director of classics such as “Avatar” and “Titanic,” said the team gained invaluable insights from the footage, which captured moments never before recorded. He noted, according to organizer Management of New Arts, that whales, like us, form bonds, experience love, and endure grief.
Hsu Chun-lang (許峻郎), CEO of sponsor TSMC Education and Culture Foundation, said at a press conference Friday that the concert is more than a visual spectacle. “They live full, emotional lives,” he said of the whales.
Hsu said that experiencing the whales’ lives through music allows audiences to connect with their world.“Only by understanding can we appreciate the value of conservation,” he said.
NSO Executive Director Kuo Wen-chen (郭玟岑) commented: “It is the crystallization of hundreds of years of human experience, yet it adapts to the concerns of each era.”
National Museum of Natural Science whale expert Yao Chiu-ju (姚秋如) shared stories of marine intelligence and culture, from a clever orca in Hong Kong inventing a new feeding technique for dolphins. “These events are extraordinary, yet they happened right in our backyard,” she said, reminding audiences that the wonders of the ocean exist close to Taiwan.
Although Taiwan is an island nation and hosts stable populations of sperm whales and orcas along its eastern coast, Hsu noted that many people still approach the ocean with fear. Events like this concert offer a rare opportunity to demystify marine life, inviting the public to connect emotionally with the sea.
