Drones!

Drones play music.

Drones playing music. This is not strictly animation, so if anyone wants to get upset about that, so be it. However, this is in, shall we say, the tradition of animation, and if it isn't animation, it's all the freakier for that reason alone.

In a nutshell, a formation of flying drones plays several tunes, including the classic "Also Sprach Zarathustra" from "2001: A Space Odyssey," "Carol of the Bells aka Shchedryk (Bountiful Evening)," and a slow tempo version of "The Star-Spangled Banner."

Yes, flying drones. Real drones. Really flying. Really playing instruments.

To get technical, there are six quadrotors and some improvised musical instruments. No humans involved. Somehow, they muffled the rotor noise, and there must have been some. One assumes.

This is cutting edge stuff and currently is making the round of science fiction festivals. This will likely be the only time that Lockheed Martin and Intel get a credit on here, so enjoy it, boys!

From the Youtube page:

KMel Robotics presents a team of flying robots that have taken up new instruments to play some fresh songs. The hexrotors create music in ways never seen before, like playing a custom single string guitar hooked up to an electric guitar amp. Drums are hit using a deconstructed piano action. And there are bells. Lots of bells.
Many thanks to Lockheed Martin and Intel Corporation for their support.
See this show and more live at the USA Science & Engineering Festival on April 26 & 27 in Washington, D.C.
http://www.usasciencefestival.org/
Lockheed Martin in the founding and presenting sponsor of the festival.
KMel Robotics (www.kmelrobotics.com)
Video Produced and Directed by Kurtis Sensenig (www.kurtisfilms.com)
Music Arrangement and Sound Design by Dan Paul (www.danpaulmusic.com)

It seems all right to me.

2020