Moogfest 2016 today unveiled the full schedule for the expansive four-day festival. Exploring the future of technology, art, and music, the festival includes more than 300 musical performances, daytime workshops, conversations, masterclasses, film screenings, live scores, durational sound installations, and multiple interactive art experiences.

Moogfest is the synthesis of music, art, and technology. Since 2004, Moogfest has brought together artists, futurist thinkers, inventors, entrepreneurs, designers, engineers, scientists, and musicians. By day, Moogfest is a platform for conversation and experimentation. By night, Moogfest presents cutting-edge music in venues throughout the city. This mind-expanding conference attracts creative and technology enthusiasts for three days of participatory programming in Durham, North Carolina. Performing artists include early pioneers in electronic music, alongside pop and avant-garde experimentalists of today.

Moogfest celebrates the legacy of Bob Moog, a visionary engineer who pioneered the analog synthesizer and other technology tools used by artists like Stevie Wonder, David Bowie, and Kraftwerk. This year’s program will feature over 250 innovators in music, art, and technology — from Gary Numan (3 nights), GZA (2 nights), Grimes and Laurie Anderson, to virtual reality pioneer Jaron Lanier and transhumanist visionary Dr. Martine Rothblatt. For the first time, Moogfest takes place in Durham, North Carolina, a fast-growing capital of technology, culture and entrepreneurship.

From Thursday, May 19 – Sunday, May 22, Moogfest unfolds in venues throughout downtown Durham in spaces that range from intimate galleries to grand theaters. Special care has been taken to pair nighttime performances with spaces that have unique acoustics and style. Art Installations are site-specific and scattered throughout the city.

Carolina Theatre: Future Sound

The historic Carolina Theatre will showcase architects of sound and many avant-garde artists whose production is as radical as their compositions, including sunn O))), Explosions in the Sky, Oneohtrix Point Never, Laurie Anderson (special matinee show), Alessandro Cortini, Daniel Lanois, Tim Hecker, Arthur Russell Instrumentals, Rival Consoles, and Dawn of Midi.

Carolina Theatre: Future Thought

Transhumanist thought-leader Dr. Martine Rothblatt and virtual reality pioneer Jaron Lanier will both deliver daytime keynotes on ‘The Future of Creativity’ in the theater’s largest space, Fletcher Hall.

Other tone-setting conversations include Laurie Anderson interviewed by Jana Hunter of Lower Dens; ‘Future Cities’, a Research Triangle Park-hosted town hall style conversation exploring the tomorrowlands that are being built today; ‘Time Traveling with Hip Hop’, a conversation between GZA and Duke Professor Mark Anthony Neal; ‘The Future of our Species’ panel discussion hosted by cyborg artist and activist Neil Harbisson; and ‘Hidden Figures: Women and Afrofuturism’ co-presented by Chuck Lightning of Wondaland with guests including Janelle Monae and Rachel Kaadzi Ghansah.

The Moogfest film program will also be presented at the Carolina Theatre including an experimental shorts program, live film scores and conversations with artists and composers working in film.

The Armory: Future Sound

Durham’s historic Armory is transformed into a dark and body-thumping dance club to host the best of electronica, house, disco and techno. Godfathers of the genre include The Orb, DJ Harvey, and Robert Hood alongside inspiring new acts such as Bicep (debuting their live show), The Black Madonna and a Ryan Hemsworth curated night including Jlin, Qrion and UVBoi.

The Armory: Future Thought

By day, this expansive venue hosts Moogfest’s masterclasses including Ben Frost & Tim Hecker, Daniel Lanois & The Orb, and a Daniel Lanois solo in-the-round performance, as well as conversations on ‘Reggae Soundsystem and Dub Production’ and Chuck Lightning’s Afrofuturism program, ‘Can You Remember the Future’?

Pinhook: Future Sound

Local favorite Pinhook features a wide range of experimental sounds: heavy techno from Kyle Hall, Paula Temple and Karen Gwyer, live experimentation from Via App, Patricia, M. Geddes Gengras and Julia Holter, jaggedly rhythmic futurists Rabit and Lotic, and the avante-garde doom metal of The Body.

Motorco Amphitheatre: Future Sound

Moogfest’s largest venue, Motorco Park, is a mix of future-forward electro-pop and R&B with performances by ODESZA, Blood Orange, critically- acclaimed emerging artist DAWN (Dawn Richard) playing her first NC show, and the kick off of Miike Snow’s US Tour.

21c: Future Thought

The gallery floor of 21c Museum Hotel is a central hub for workshops. Blurring the lines between audio-visual installation and immersive experience, Moogfest 2016’s interactive workshops include North American Legends’ Unholy Matrimony and Church of Space’s self-hypnotism ‘Hypnotique Scéance’, plus youth theremin curriculum KidSchoolThereminSchool, generative music device Patter with Adam Florin, IBM Watson’s ‘Cognitive Tech for Developers’ and sonifying plants with Data Garden. Office Hours give festival attendees the opportunity to have one-on-one conversations with program presenters and participants.

21c’s main ballroom is home to the daily durational performance series (long-form musical artworks) that include Greg Fox, EMA and Jana Hunter, Richard Devine, and Suzanne Ciani, all co-presented by visual collective Undervolt & Co, along with a remarkable 8-hour Robert Rich sleep concert presented by 21c.

Durham Arts Council: Future Thought

The Durham Arts Council’s immaculately appointed black box PSI Theatre hosts innovative talks that combine performance and presentation, exhibiting music and visuals alongside conversation. Especially explorative sessions and performances include Onyx Ashanti’s ‘Musical Brains’, Georgia Tech’s musical improvising robot Shimon, ‘Arts & Smarts’ with Google Doodle’s Ryan Germick, Michael Garfield’s ‘Technoshamanism: A Very Psychedelic Century’, and Ben Knapp of Virginia Tech ICAT on virtual reality.

Durham Arts Council: Future Sound

Daytime performances at PSI Theater include human cyborg Neil Harbisson’s synaesthetic pedicure, Moon Ribas’ seismic performance, plus a very special concert in celebration of synthesizer design pioneer Don Buchla, with Alessandro Cortini, Morton Subotnik, Sarah Davachi and Suzanne Ciani.

A classroom style workshop space features 3-hour coding sessions with Undervolt & Co, Gray Area, EyeO, NEW INC series with Volvox Labs, Gabe & Dave, Luisa Pereira, and hands-on sequencer or synthesizer building workshops with littleBits and Dr. Blankenstein.

The American Underground: Future Thought

Home to a large percentage of Durham’s startup community, this location serves as a hub for pioneering conversations and panel discussion from presenters including Kickstarter, NEW INC, Megapolis Audio Festival, Gray Area’s creative code meetup, and IBM Watson’s ‘Design Ideation Sessions’.

The Durham Hotel: Future Sound

The Durham Hotel plays host to daily morning yoga set to Moog music on its open rooftop, and a Sunday Moogfest Disco Brunch with a four-hour long DJ set from Hieroglyphic Being

Full Frame Theater: Future Thought

Situated within Moogfest’s Modular Marketplace, Full Frame is home to music and technology-based programming like the daily ‘Synth Design Icon’ series with presentations by Cyril Lance (Moog), David Friend (ARP), Tatsuya Takahashi (KORG), David Van Koevering (the Van Koevering piano). Performance-based programming from artists such as Sam Conran’s kabbalistic synth, Pierce Freelon’s youth beat demo, Ian Chang of Son Lux with Sunhouse, as well as demos and demonstrations from eurorack synth manufacturers whose modules are featured in the Modular Marketplace.

The full schedule can be found online at: https://moogfest.sched.org/.
*Please note, the full schedule can be viewed on Sched, however, registration and adding sessions to your personal schedule won’t be available until sign up opens in the coming weeks.

Day Passes Announced!
A limited number of Single Day Passes will go on sale Friday, April 15 starting at 12pm EST
Passes for Thursday, Friday or Saturday are $129
Passes for Sunday are $69