“Monsieur, your song is worth an extra thousand men in battle!” once said a French general of Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle’s ‘La Marseilles’. For those of us pushing for a human future in space, an inspiring tune could motivate millions and convince governments that we need to get to Mars, and we need to get there now!
Ladies and gentlemen, we have a tune!
“Rise to Mars!”, an inspirational melody composed by Mumbai-born opera singer Oscar Dom Victor Castellino, will be performed during the 20th Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled for September 7-10 at the University of California Irvine. The official world premiere of the anthem will take place at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama in Cardiff, United Kingdom on June 5, 2017 at 7:30 pm. Castellino will be singing it together with the Royal Welsh RepCo Sinfonia.
Thirty-one year old Castellino, a physicist and software programmer turned opera singer, was in his apartment room in Mumbai on an evening in December 2016 ruminating on world events. He decided he needed to act. Music was his tool, and Mars was his inspiration! This gave birth to “Rise to Mars!”, his first composition, and a story that draws parallels with de Lisle’s composition of the ‘La Marseilles’ at the same age. The words were written by Castellino and Mars Society President Dr. Robert Zubrin, while the tune was arranged for orchestra by Cambridge composer James Welland.
“Rise to Mars celebrates the power of human enterprise and hope. It emphasizes the need to rise above petty struggles and spreads the message that Mars can be a home for future generations. Not only that, we found the anthem to be very singable with a memorable and motivational tune. It’s truly a “Marseilles” for Mars! I would not at all be surprised if it someday became the national anthem of the Free Martian Republic. It certainly is going to be a favorite among all those pushing for a human future in space now and for years to come,” said Dr. Zubrin.
Tickets for the world premiere in Cardiff are available here: https://tinyurl.com/RiseToMars. Also please stay tuned for details on the YouTube release and the official U.S. premiere.