If you missed your chance at the super-budget locals-only Moogfest tickets earlier this fall (possibly because you were holding out make sure the lineup would entail more than, say, keyboard-playing cats), your moment has (re)arrived. Phase 1 tickets to the festival go on sale today at 11 a.m. and are promised to be “offered at an exceptionally low price for a limited time.”
That price is $199.
And you don’t have to buy blind — the lineup of “luminaries, pioneers, and visionaries that will constitute its daytime programming” has arrived as well. Okay, so now musicians named yet, but the roster of speakers and presenters is staggering. It’s a who’s who of the brightest and most envelope-pushing inventors, innovators and creative thinkers. (It’s almost as if WNC’s hallowed Black Mountain College — that gone-but-not-forgotten institution of experimental art and forward thinking — was recast for 2014. Like, the future is now. And it starts in Asheville.)
Topping the list is multimedia artist Laurie Anderson (who, let’s face it, we’re all pretty much even more in awe of since her stunning tribute to the late Lou Reed).
There’s the the artistic-meets-business-smart Claire Evans (of the band/belief system YACHT). There’s Keith Emerson of Emerson Lake and Palmer — “the first musician to tour with the Moog analog synthesizer,” according to Moog Music. And, because Moogfest is shaping up to be about so much more than just bands on stages, there’s Dr. Nick Bostrom,“an expert in cloning, artificial intelligence, superintelligence, mind uploading, cryonics, and nanotechnology.”
Here’s the rest of the daytime innovation conference list for the Wednesday-Sunday, April 23-27 event, from a press release:
• Giorgio Moroder: Record producer, songwriter, film score composer and pioneer of disco and electronic music. Winner of three Academy Awards and three Grammy Awards.
• Cliff Martinez: Composer best known for his epic and haunting film scores, which include ‘Drive’, ‘Only God Forgives’, ‘Contagion’, ‘Solaris’ and ‘Traffic,’ plus a collaborative score with Skrillex for ‘Spring Breakers.’ Pictured below, left, in a Getty Images photo from his days with The Red Hot Chili Peppers.
• Jerome C. Glenn: Co-founder and Director of The Millennium Project, a renowned expert on Future Studies.
• George Dvorsky: Futurist concerned with the ethical and sociological impacts of emerging technologies.
• Dr. Joseph Paradiso: Associate Professor at MIT Media Lab’s Media Arts and Sciences program and Co-Director of the Things That Think Consortium, which examines the extreme future of embedded computation and sensing.
• Bruce Walker: Associate Professor at the Schools of Psychology and Interactive Computing at the Georgia Institute of Technology.
• Mark Frauenfelder: Founding Editor-In-Chief of MAKE magazine, founder and Co-Editor of the weblog/print zine Boing Boing and Editor-In-Chief of Cool-Tools.org.
• Forrest M. Mims III: Author, researcher, lecturer and columnist. Written more than 60 books about science, lasers, computers and electronics.
• Charles Lindsay: Photographer and artist, is the first of its kind, Artist in Residence at the SETI (Search of Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Institute.
• Hans Fjellestad: Director, producer, writer and editor of the 2004 documentary ‘Moog’ and producer and writer of 2009’s ‘The Heart Is A Drum Machine.’
• Herbert Deutsch: Composer, educator and inventor. Professor Emeritus of Electronic Music and Composition at Hofstra University. Collaborated with Bob Moog in the development of the Moog Synthesizer in 1964. Pictured above with Bob Moog.
• Roger Linn: Industrial designer of electronic drum machines and guitar effects pedals. His products are used on countless famous recordings.
• Don Buchla: Synthesizer pioneer and founder of electronic music equipment company Buchla and Associates.
• Tom Oberheim: Audio engineer and maker of analogue synthesizers, effects processors, sequencers and drum machines.
• Malcolm Cecil: Creator of TONTO, the world’s first multi-timbral, polyphonic analog audio synthesizer.
• Dave Smith: Engineer and musician. Known as the Father of MIDI for his role in the development of MIDI. Pictured below, with Bob Moog.
Music showcases will be announced on Thursday, Nov. 21; the music lineup announced comes on Thursday, Dec. 19. Moogfest will also include free events open to the public, such as a four-day street festival including new media art installations and live music; a two-day North Carolina Tech Expo & Interactive Job Fair; a five-day new electronic instrument pop-up shop.
TICKET INFO:
Moogfest 2014 will attract 50,000 people (10,000 per day) from a cross-section of creative professionals, hackers, influencers and trendsetters, circuit benders, designers, programmers, entrepreneurs, audio engineers, new media artists, coders, and bedroom producers, seeking to be inspired in their work.
General Admission and VIP tickets for Moogfest are available now at Moogfest.com. Phase 1 tickets start at $199 for 5-Day General Admission plus a limited number of $499 5-Day VIP Admission while supplies last through December 19 when Phase 2 GA go up to $299. All ticket prices are exclusive of applicable fees.
Moogfest VIP Package – $499*
VIP’s Get in First EVERYWHERE
Priority Festival Check In
VIP Entrance at Each Venue
VIP lounge at US Cellular Center with Private Bar and WiFi
Reserved Seating and Areas for VIPs
Moogfest 2014 Program
Moogfest T-Shirt
Moogfest Gift Bag
Exclusive Invitations to VIP Only Events
Plus Much More To Be Announced…
*Plus Applicable fees
Some info about the electronic music festival: “Since 2004, Moogfest has been a gathering for the musicians that worked closely with Bob and his instruments. When Moog Music brought the festival home to Asheville in 2008, it adopted a three-day multi-stage format to include contemporary bands and producers that exemplify the innovative spirit of electronic music. This year, Moogfest is amplifying its vision to include a conference of conversations and creative collaborations that eclipse any typical festival. Moogfest is charting the course for a future of unknown sight and sound.”
Laurie Anderson got an honorary degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago when I graduated. There was graffiti all over the basement studio areas:
“Dimples To Die For”.
Not so cute, now that I remember Lou Reed… OK, nevermind.