Join us for a special talk on Opera and Opera Houses with Alessandro Galleni organised in conjunction with Members' Week.

Since its birth in Florence at the end of the sixteenth century, opera has attracted an ever-widening audience, from the nobility to the bourgeoisie, becoming the most popular form of musical art in the nineteenth century. Despite the fact that today opera is once again in danger of becoming an elite art form, new opera houses are still being built in large numbers by the most famous architects as the ultimate prestige project. This talk will take the audience through the history of opera and the relative evolution of opera house architecture, together with the latest breakthroughs in the use of AI in the design, redesign and acoustics of opera houses.

Alessandro Galleni holds a degree in software engineering from the University of Pisa and a PhD in software fault tolerance from the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) in Toulouse. He has worked in various tech roles, including as a software engineer at the Istituto di Guerra Marittima and IBM’s DeltaPhi lab in Milan. Currently, he is Managing Director at LIST, part of the ION Group, where he leads the development of FinTech solutions for global financial institutions. In addition to his professional expertise, Alessandro has a deep passion for opera and opera house architecture, which further enriches his diverse interests.

18.00 Doors open
18.30 Conversation starts

Standard £15
Estorick Collection Member £12 £5 Special Price for Members' Week
Students £12
Pay It Forward £20
Open Door £5


Pay It Forward Ticket: Pay a little extra and help us make our events more inclusive. The aim of this scheme is to provide tickets at a lower price for people for whom price may be a barrier to participation.
Open Door Ticket: A more affordable ticket for those whom price might be a barrier to participation.

Advance booking is required.

This special event is part of Members’ Week, with tickets for Members available at the reduced price of just £5.

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T&Cs

The event is on the ground floor of the building and it is fully accessible.

To find out more about our accessibility statement please visit our Visitor information page and our Museum accessibility guide.

Conditions of sale

Please give your name or show your ticket in the shop upon arrival. If you have booked a concessionary, please have your membership card, ID, or other proof of concession ready to show in the shop upon arrival.

Tickets for events are non-refundable.