Steps to widen the appeal of physics are happening on a European level as well as nationally. A European-wide programme, called the Physics on Stage Festival, was held In Geneva last week as part of the European Week of Science and Technology. The programme was held in a bid to raise public awareness about physics, especially among school children. More than 20 European countries participated.

As well as a national stand for each country, a number of special performances were presented at the festival. The Irish proposal, Physics and Music, was one of these, featuring the Plumbers Sinfonia Band who gave a performance mainly on instruments made from Wavin piping by Gordon Douglas. The members of the band are mostly postgraduate students, and Douglas is a music teacher and a musical instrument maker from Killiney, Co Dublin.

The programme from Ireland lasted approximately half an hour and consisted of short pieces with interludes for demonstrations.