THE DETAILS

form of the way pieces are put together because we worked at learning it in many different ways.’’

The project also uses words from the poet Ovid. While Ovid’s tales of astronomy were far from our modern understanding of science – a chariot of sun riding into the sky each day, for example – they were underpinned with accurate scientific observation about the movement of the heavens.

‘‘I wanted to have a section from the lore of the ancient world and then we get into the meat and potatoes of the scientific world of Galileo.’’

For Mackay and the orchestra the process has opened up a ‘‘wonderful new world’’ of astronomy and its worldwide community.

‘‘I have always loved to look at the night sky but I have been very ignorant about it. I could find Orion and the Big Dipper but that was about it.’’

In the southern hemisphere tour, projections of the Southern Cross, and Venus and the Moon from our part of the Earth have been thrown in.

Prior to 2009, when the project opened, the orchestra rehearsed as they travelled, learning the music in down time in hotel ballrooms or on ‘‘play dates’’ with other orchestra members.

‘‘We have done it so much now it’s kind of embedded. We have since done another memorised programme and we were wondering if we would be able to come back to Galileo all right. It seems to be hard-wired in.’’ The Galileo Project: Music of the Spheres, Wellington Town Hall, tonight, 8pm