Queen legend Brian May and prog icon Rick Wakeman have been confirmed as performers at this year’s Starmus conference in the Canary Islands.
Starmus VIII – The Search For Truth promises to bring together “Nobel laureates, legendary astronauts, pioneering scientists, technology leaders, and world-renowned artists”, and will take place on the islands of Tenerife and LaPalma from October 17-26.
Joining May onstage will be Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli, with whom he performed a version of Queen’s Who Wants To Live Forever in Lajatico, Tuscany, in 2024, plus soprano Sarah Brightman, the Las Palmas Symphony Orchestra, and the Starmus All Stars Band. Wakeman will be performing with Moldovan violinist and composer Rusanda Panfili. Further artists will be announced.
Starmus VIII will also celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Starmus Stephen Hawking Medal for Science Communication, which has previously been awarded to May, Hans Zimmer, Jean Michel Jarre, Brian Eno and Laurie Anderson, and see the introduction of a new award, the Starmus Jane Goodall Earth Medal, named in honour of the late primatologist and anthropologist. Goodhall was a speaker at Starmus in 2025.
“Jane Goodall and Stephen Hawking are two human spirits who changed the way we see the world,” says May. “One by looking to the stars, the other by reminding us of the urgent need to protect the life beneath our feet, and the need for true humanity in science. Bringing their legacies together at Starmus is something profoundly moving and deeply necessary for our time.”
Brian May founded Starmus with astronomer/musician Garik Israelian in 2011. Tickets for this year’s event are available from the Starmus website.
