After its Tuesday, July 14 announcement that Moogfest is moving to Durham, Moog Music released a statement on Friday, clarifying its position to locals (and, likely, detractors). The statement, met with mixed reaction, does offer some insight (“The $1.5 million dollar loss was shouldered by Moog Music alone”). And to its credit, the instrument manufacturer has been replying to comments on post via its Facebook page.
From Moog Music’s website:
Dear Asheville,
This week’s announcement that Moogfest is moving to Durham in 2016 was bittersweet for all of us here at Moog Music. We know there are many people in Asheville who are disappointed by the news. We hear you, and we appreciate your passion and your loyalty. … To be clear, Moog Music invested $3 million of our own money to put on Moogfest 2014. No money was lost by the City or County. In fact, Moogfest injected $14 million into our local economy — that’s a 7,700% return on Buncombe County and Asheville City’s $180,000 investment. … Asheville is our hometown and it was always our intention for our city to be the forever home of Moogfest. Unfortunately, it’s just not possible to sustain the festival here, and Moogfest isn’t the only festival to learn this lesson.
Local musician and busker Andrew Fletcher penned a response that raises some interesting points, beginning with a quote about the event’s original intent: “Beyond a traditional music festival, Moogfest aims to be an engine for driving economic development in Western North Carolina … the long-term goal say Moogfest organizers, ‘is to inspire big thinking start-ups, entrepreneurs, and innovators to consider Asheville as a community to relocate their forward thinking businesses, just as Bob Moog did in 1978…’”
Fletcher also recently posted a link, via twitter, to a Reddit conversation on the topic.
From Fletcher’s website:
Dear Moogfest,
Thanks for the $14 million in economic activity, Moogfest. But, maybe Asheville would be even more thankful if Moog would have planned for the future and created an Asheville-appropriate event that could have been successful year after year. That could have brought in a lot more than $14 million over the years. And maybe Moog could have brought in some profit that to be shared with their new employee owners too. That would have been pro-Asheville for sure. …The truth is, Moog couldn’t figure out how to get $3 million of revenue out of 6,090 ticket buyers. Because that’s ridiculous! Tickets would have had to have cost $492 each to break even. A smaller, cheaper, yet more horizontal, more diverse lineup (I’m not talking banjos + beards, more like adding some electropop-hipster bait like Beach House) could possibly have brought more ticket buyers and appealed to corporate sponsors as perhaps, more realistic.
Again, the “$14 million” figure is from a press release by Moog, about a study funded by Moog, under parameters set by Moog, and based on data supplied by Moog. They keep touting it as a “fact”, but the people whose reputations were at stake issued a rare disclaimer after people questioned the methodology:
“The Economic Development Coalition and Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce have relied on attendance figures, as well as figures for other related economic activity, provided by Moog Music Inc. and may not be held responsible for any discrepancy.”
http://mountainx.com/news/economic-impact-study-moogfest-generated-14-million/
Grain of salt.
As for the “engine for driving economic development in Western North Carolina”, that was quietly scrapped when Moog announced that they had given the place of honor at the opening panel to Gov. Pat McCrory. It went from “Wiring Silicon Mountain: Nurturing Innovation Through Technology in Western North Carolina” to “Wiring Silicon Mountain: Technology & Innovation As A Tool For Economic Development”. The locals can get in line behind the rest of the State, apparently. If the Guv attends, it’s not going to be about bringing these jobs and investment to WNC anymore. And the majority of panelists were from… Raleigh-Durham.
A tone-deaf political move at best, cynical manipulation of the local rubes at worst. This change happened after City & County agreed to chip in upwards of $200,000.
I always saw it for the music. Most people don’t give a **** about the politics and who paid for it. There are massive music fests all over the world, a lot of them are backed by cities who see their value. Tiny little city, tiny minds, tiny ideas.
Hey Asheville, you have a chance to show that you ACTUALLY like electronic music tomorrow when two of the most forward looking artists in that genre perform. Stop pretending that it’s for any reason other than the fact that you simply don’t have to progressive mindset to go beyond your safe zone. Open your ears, you might grow a little.
http://www.metroasheville.com/featured/techno-musicologist-mas-ysa-brings-folk-to-the-dancefloor/
Wow, an invitation wrapped in an insult. Who can say no to that?
No, it’s actually not an insult. It’s a challenge to get out of one’s comfort zone and support music one might not normally listen to. I’ll leave the insults to you.
“Stop pretending that it’s for any reason other than the fact that you simply don’t have to progressive mindset to go beyond your safe zone. Open your ears, you might grow a little. ”
Reads more like an insult.
I grew up on Walter (Wendy) Carlos recordings. One of my earliest memories is of my mother & siblings marveling over Switched On Bach, the most daring Moog-related project attempted as of 1968.
I dare to say that I was into electronic music long before you, thank you very much. My comfort zone is way too big for you to fill, is my guess.
He hurt my widdle feewings.