A musical TARDIS - the Dr. Who Fan Orchestra brings fans together in one musical collaboration after another!

The Internet has made it easy for people across the globe to communicate, but it's the people themselves who come up with the ideas and make the connections.Enter Stephen Willis, a young composer from the UK who describes himself on Twitter as "Aspiring director & composer. Trainee teacher of Speech and Drama. Doctor Who fan. Founder of the Doctor Who Fan Orchestra."

Visting Stephen's website, you get a flavor for his talent and composition skills. Just a couple of years ago, he decided to share these abilities with the world in a unique way. As a fan of Dr. Who, Stephen was inspired by the music written for the T.V. series by Murray Gold. Combining the concepts of the YouTube Symphony and Eric Whitacre's virtual choir, Stephen came up with an idea:

"One gloomy evening in early 2011, in Surrey, England, I was tinkering away in Sibelius on an arrangement of “I Am The Doctor”, the Eleventh Doctor’s theme, when a particularly crazy idea struck me. I knew that Murray’s music meant an awful lot to an awful lot of people, and I reasoned that, probably, among those fans, a lot would be musicians themselves. And that they’d give anything to be able to play music from Doctor Who. Wouldn’t it be great, I thought, if we could somehow play the music all together."

Communicating through social media, Stephen's brought together musically-inclined Dr. Who fans from around the world, working closely with assistants Robin LaPasha and Heather Ackroyd. The geographically diverse crew communicates with musicians via Facebook and email, distributing scores and recordings that the players and singers use to practice and perform, and providing a forum for them to communicate with one another throughout the process. Recordings include a tuning note and a "click track" that help ensure the group stays in tune and together, in the absence of each other's company, and that of a conductor.

The results are amazing, oftentimes moving. The seventh DWFO collaboration, "Amy's Suite" appears below. It was released last week, after hours of intense work by Stephen and crew, piecing together 400 audio recordings of voices and instruments along with 290 video files of the performers in action. (When you watch, you might catch me playing the flute and piccolo. I'm the one wearing hot pink headphones :).

The performers come from all types of musical backgrounds ranging from school-aged students through senior citizens. Some get together to practice in groups at localized MeetUps, and many dress as chraracters from the show for their recording sessions, adding fun and whimsy for our viewers. 

This was only my second time playing in the DWFO, but I plan to keep on doing it! I really enjoy the music and getting to know the other participants from around the world, and the final product is always a remarkable surprise.

Many thanks to Stephen and crew for your dedication and tireless hours to produce a wonderful performance every time!!

Note: If you're interested in signing up for the DWFO, follow the official Facebook page for information.

James Cameron Speaks About His Historic Solo Dive to the Lowest Point on Earth

Until recently, when I heard the name “James Cameron,” I only thought of blockbuster movies like “Avatar” and “Titanic.” But there’s another fascinating side to this man, one that embraces the spirit of curiosity and exploration.

Cameron has a great curiosity about the sea and what lies below. His deep sea expeditions include 33 trips to the Titanic wreck, and most recently, a solo dive to the lowest point on earth, the Mariana Trench. Don Walsh, a retired U.S. Navy Captain, and the late Jacques Piccard, a Swiss engineer, were the first men to successfully reach the bottom of the Mariana Trench aboard the bathyscaphe Trieste in 1960. James Cameron’s successful solo attempt last year was the first manned trip to the spot since then.

Award-winning filmmaker and deep sea diver James Cameron at The Explorers Club in NYC.
(photo by Elliot Severn)

Cameron, who studied physics in college, had a team design a high-tech vehicle for the dive, made of newly-developed materials and equipped with lighting outside the craft that would illuminate the surrounding area. His last words before taking the seven-mile plunge were “See you in the sunshine,” and after spending 3 hours exploring and filming on the ocean floor, he resurfaced successfully. Don Walsh was waiting for him above, and greeted him as he emerged from his submersible.

DeepSea Challenger, built in Sydney, Australia for James Cameron's dive to the Mariana Trench in 2012  (National Geographic image)

Cameron took with him an Explorers Club flag (No. 161) that had been carried to the top of Mount Everest, a flag that has now been to both the highest and lowest points on Earth. He was recently honored by The Explorers Club for his achievement, and was interviewed by Adventurer Jim Clash as part of his “Exploring Legends” series. In this up-close-and-personal session, we got an inside look at Cameron’s experience. 

Clash’s questions covered the historic dive and more, and here are some highlights from that conversation:

Cameron was inspired by science fiction as a kid, and started scuba diving as a teen. He chose the sea because he was riveted to the pictures of subs and underwater expeditions in National Geographic, and it was something he could actually do, where he thought the chances of becoming an astronaut were very small.

James Cameron (L) and interviewer Jim Clash (R) at The Explorers Club
(photo by Elliot Severn)

“We went to the deepest place, and the only place to go deeper was to take a backhoe.” From his vehicle, Cameron noticed skid mark at the bottom of the sea, thought to be from the unmanned Japanese survey vessel  Keiko.

He saw tiny anthropods down there, but “didn’t see any animal tracks on the ground.” In addition to film and images, Cameron gathered science data, including a small sediment sample which contained a large number of bacteria genomes.

Talking about the safety of the craft, he said “You may implode, but you’re not gonna leak.” The possibility of imploding due to pressure is described by filmmaker Cameron as “cut to black.” The audience roared.

Going down, Cameron’s extensive checklist was finished with last 9,000 slow feet of descent left to go, leaving time for solitude. Asked what he was thinking, Cameron’s response was, “It seemed like a good idea at the time.” The audience again burst out into laughter.

James Cameron having a comic moment during his interview at The Explorers  Club
(photo by Elliot Severn)

The conversation also covered space and the night sky:

In response to astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson’s letter about the appearance of the incorrect stars in the sky in a scene from “Titanic” Cameron stated, for the record, that he has replaced the sky in that scene with the correct stars. I’m sure this will make a lot of our fans happy!

Something I didn’t know was that Cameron was supposed to travel to the ISS to do 3D imaging of the Earth, but after 9-11 and then the Columbia disaster, his training was delayed, and his trip never took place.

Asked by Clash (who has a ticket for a suborbital flight on Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo) if he’d be interested in coming along, Cameron said he’s not interested in suborbital flight. He wants the Full Monty of orbital flight.

On the Apollo landing hoax theory, Cameron quipped, “ ‘Cuz I know the state of technical/visual effects at the time, versus what they are now, we COULDN’T have faked it, we couldn’t have.  Now we could.”

The interview ended with a great non-exploration question:

“What is your favorite movie that’s not yours?”

Cameron’s answer – “The Wizard of Oz.”

After the session, Clash opened the floor to questions from the audience. Asked by Mercury Astronaut Scott Carpenter how he handles fear, Cameron said that in addition to extensive training and testing, he invokes the Astronaut’s prayer, “Please God, don’t let me f*ck up!”

I think we can all relate to that in some way or another.

Explorers Club Vice President Constance Difede holding Flag  No. 161, which has traveled to the highest and lowest points on Earth, at The Explorers Club Annual Dinner (photo by Stacey Severn)

For more information about The Explorers Club, visit:
www.explorers.org