Singapore Airlines takes classical music to the skies

Collaboration with Unitel Classica provides passengers opportunity to watch premium classical concerts in HD.

In keeping with its constant drive to enhance the entertainment offerings for its customers, Singapore Airlines has embarked on an exclusive partnership programme with Unitel Classica, a leading producer and distributor of classical music based in Munich, according to a Singapore Airlines report.

Beginning from October 2010, the classical music selection on KrisWorld, Singapore Airlines’ award-winning inflight entertainment system, will feature content exclusive to the Airline. Flights equipped with the latest Panasonic eX2™ system will offer twelve exceptional classical concerts from Unitel Classica. Of these, eight will be new releases with six shown only on SIA flights, whereas the others will be picked from Unitel’s library of evergreen compositions. Featured under KrisWorld’s Stage Performances category, the twelve concerts and theatre performances will be refreshed with a new selection every four months.

“This exclusive collaboration with Unitel Classica is introduced because of the increasingly sophisticated preferences of our customers and, as always, we will continue our search for content that adds value to our inflight entertainment system for the benefit of our customers,” said Mr Yap Kim Wah, Senior Vice President Product and Services.

Acclaimed works in the debut collection from Unitel Classica include:

1. The celebrated Salzburg Festival Opening Concert 2010 by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra - conducted by Daniel Barenboim, one of today's leading pianists and conductors
2. Lucrezia Borgia, an Italian opera performed by Edita Gruberova, the world's undisputed Queen of bel canto, as her concert debut
3. Così Fan Tutte – Director Claus Guth's concluding production of Mozart's da Ponte trilogy for the Salzburg Festival
4. Dudamel and The Simon Boliver Youth Orchestra, declared ‘the biggest audience hit of the summer’ at the Salzburg Festival by Munich daily Münchner Merkur
5. La Traviata by Anna Netrebko, the acclaimed Russian soprano, and the Wiener Philharmoniker.

All programmes are presented on high-resolution wide-screen LCD TVs with crystal-clear audio across all classes in the Airline’s new Airbus A380, Airbus A330, Airbus A340-500 and Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. The extensive selection includes more movies, TV programmes, interactive games, audio CDs and hosted radio programming, as well as a variety of learning applications. With an enhanced new graphical user interface, navigating through programmes and menus is a breeze.

Customers can play, pause, rewind and resume at their convenience at any point of a video or audio programme.