MoogFest 2010: If You Build A Synth Fest, They Will Come

By Less Lee Moore

MoogFest 2010 is an extraordinary three-day festival which takes place Halloween weekend (October 29-31) in Asheville, NC. MoogFest will celebrate the innovative spirit of sonic pioneer Robert Moog, who developed the Moog synthesizer in the 1960s.

A Moog (pronounced “mohg”) is actually a series of “modular voltage-controlled analog synthesizer systems,” which has been utilized to create a lot of awesome music by the likes of Perrey & Kingsley, Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream, Hot Butter (of “Popcorn” fame), Giorgio Moroder, Gary Numan, Roger Joseph Manning Jr. and Brian Kehew of The Moog Cookbook, and way more musicians than can be listed in this article.

The lineup for this festival is impressive indeed, featuring DEVO, MGMT, Big Boi, Girl Talk, Van Dyke Parks, Massive Attack, Thievery Corporation, Matmos, Cee Lo Green, Pretty Lights, Hot Chip, and MANY more.

If that wasn’t enticing enough, the organizers of MoogFest have just announced a wide range of panel discussions and workshops. Topics and panels include:

Synth History Panel: The Birth of the MiniMoog; Exploration of the Bob Moog Archives; Examining the Legacy of Mini Synths; (featuring Herb Deutsch, Dave Van Koevering, Tom Rhea, Brian Kehew, Michelle Moog-Kousa, Seva David Ball, Craig Anderton, and others)

Tara Busch: Artist Performance & Discussion about Remixing with Moogerfoogers

Tech Panel: Advance Application & Synthesis; The Power of Modular Synthesis (featuring Cyril Lance, Head Engineer at Moog Music; Erik Norlander; and others)

Theremin Performance & Lesson with Dorit Chrysler

Moog Guitar Sound Sculpting with Saul Zonana

Richard Devine: Abominatron Performance

According to the most recent press release from the festival, all panels, demonstrations, and workshops will take place at the Moogaplex, located at the Haywood Park complex. While the specific dates and times will be announced in the coming weeks, they will all take place between 12 noon and 6:30 p.m. EST.

If you can attend MoogFest, you should. And then tell us about it!

Tickets are on sale now. To purchase weekend passes or single day tickets and for more information about the festival visit the MoogFest 2010 website.

MoogFest supports the Bob Moog Foundation and encourages you to do the same! For more information about Moog Music and its founder, Bob Moog, visit MoogMusic.com.