Photo of MoogFest Monument by John Grabowski (CC BY-SA 3.0)
The organizers of Moogfest 2020 have announced that the electronic music festival, which was scheduled to take place next year in Durham, North Carolina from April 16 to April 19, has been cancelled “for logistical reasons.”
The festival began in 2004 and has been held annually in North Carolina since 2010, with the exception of 2015, in which there was no event. In 2016, the festival moved from Asheville to Durham.
Moogfest, which has billed itself as a “multi-day music, art and technology festival,” has been focused squarely on electronic music. It is named after the late Robert Arthur “Bob” Moog, who invented the Moog synthesizer and who is considered by many the founding father of electronic music. It was actually held in Asheville because Moog lived the last 30 years of his life in the city, and it usually took place near Moog’s birthday.
Among the artists who have played at the festival include:
- Devo
- Laurie Anderson
- Gary Numan
- Kraftwerk
- Suzanne Ciani
- Keith Emerson
- Brian Eno
- Giorgio Moroder
While the organizers of the festival did not categorically state that the festival would return next year (or ever), they did indicate that it was their intention to bring the event back in the future, or start something similar to it.
Anyone who purchased tickets for the 2020 event can receive a refund by emailing the festival at its website.
The organizers of the festival issued a statement in conjunction with the announcement. They said:
“To all attendees, artists, sponsors, presenters, and volunteers: thank you for your support, understanding, and patience as the Moogfest experience continues to evolve.”
They added:
“We will continue to support emerging artists, celebrate the musicians who helped shape electronic music as we hear it today, and work diligently to design an event that honors the spirit of Bob Moog and the Moogfest community.”
One of my old bands spent weeks rehearsing for a festival in Europe, then took a whole week off to play there. And how much did they get for this show? Nothing, nada, zilch! Musicians now working for free making new music and playing festivals for no payment as well. Then the guys went back to work, one at Home Depot, another as a Pool man! Welcome to the new and wonderful music business! Everybody in the music business now making money except the people who make the music! You will see more and more festivals being cancelled in the years to come
Nothing “new” about what you’ve said. This has always been the case for upincoming artists.