Sun 7 Apr
Tender · luminous
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
Elgar’s Cello Concerto
Elgar · Anna Clyne
“Grief, tenderness, and one long exhale.”
01 / Principles
One stage.
Three rules.
The strongest ideas in the explorations become a disciplined system: darkness as a calm stage, serif typography as the emotional voice, and the aurora gradient as a precise signal—not decoration everywhere.
Let the art sing
The interface stays nocturnal and quiet so concert photography, campaign art, and artists’ faces provide the colour and immediate emotional charge.
Build a rhythm
Every card follows the same score: image, emotional title, practical detail, social context, action. Familiar structure makes the feed feel fast.
Use colour as a cue
Colour is borrowed from the performance itself. Extracted tones tint edges, chips, glows and selected states; the fixed Aurora remains a tiny Maestro signature for global navigation and focus.
02 / Foundations
A nocturne
with warmth.
Deep blue-black replaces flat black; ivory replaces sterile white. The result feels cinematic at night and gentle enough for long browsing sessions.
Colour
Click any token to copy its value. Core surfaces remain neutral; accent colour is earned.
Typography
Newsreader carries feeling. Manrope carries decisions, metadata and navigation.
The room holds its breath.
Title / 24Mahler’s Resurrection
Body / 16Friends, memories and music worth leaving the house for.
Meta / 11Sat 18 Oct · Usher Hall
Geometry & rhythm
Generous touch targets, repeatable spacing and soft edges create a composed, unhurried cadence.
Base space4px
Card gap16px
Card radius28px
Touch target48px
1px aurora edge · 30px radius
Living colour
Every concert brings
its own atmosphere.
Maestro should not impose one brand gradient on every performance. We sample a small, usable palette from each hero image and let that colour quietly spill into the card edge, paper tint, date chip, glow and active state.
Extracted from artworkElgar · Cello
Extracted from artworkWagner · Ring
Extracted from artworkShostakovich · Five
Extracted from artworkChamber · Clarinet
Extracted from artworkPiano · Recital
01 · SampleFind 3–5 dominant colours, ignoring near-black and near-white pixels.
02 · CurateKeep one anchor, one expressive accent and one supporting tone.
03 · SoftenMix into ivory/nocturne at low strength. The artwork stays louder than the UI.
04 · ApplyEdge, glow, chip, tint and selected state. Never body copy or critical meaning.
03 / Components
Quiet controls.
Clear intent.
Components are tactile without looking toy-like. Primary actions feel luminous; secondary actions recede. Everything remains legible at a glance and easy to hit.
On nocturne
Discovery, feed, concert detail and social surfaces.
Actions
Mood filters
Social response
Aurora means active
Not every surface needs a gradient.
On paper
Forms, ticketing moments, programme notes and calm utility layers.
Email input
Segmented control
Location filters
Button hierarchy
05 / Voice
Poetry at the
right moment.
Maestro speaks emotionally in discovery and reflection, then becomes crisp and practical around dates, tickets, navigation and trust-sensitive actions.
The emotional register
A night of restless beauty. Not “Concert details”.
PracticalExpressivePoetic
Write like a trusted musical friend
Discovery
“A journey from darkness to radiance.” One emotional idea, not a review.
Social
“Three people you follow will be there.” Human context before metrics.
Utility
“Doors 18:45 · Starts 19:30.” No flourish where precision matters.
Memory
“A year ago, this was the concert that changed everything.” Personal, warm, never syrupy.
Empty state
“Your next unforgettable night is still out there.” Hopeful, then offer a useful next step.