Kraftwerk Tribute To Feature In ‘Moog 60: A Celebration’ In Liverpool
Liverpool’s Capstone Theatre will be hosting a series of concerts to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Moog synthesiser next month.
‘The Moog at 60: A Celebration’ will run from 21 November to 24 November and will include a sound installation and a show from Will Gregory Moog Ensemble. The events will conclude with a tribute to Kraftwerk in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the electronic pioneers’ classic album Autobahn, which was released on 1 November 1974, while there’s also an after show party on 23 November and a sound installation each day. Visit the event’s official website for further information.
The official anniversary of Robert Moog’s modular voltage-controlled synth is 12 October – 60 years to the day when the engineer first demonstrated it at the Audio Engineering Society’s New York convention.
The Moog was the first commercial synthesizer and hit the mainstream with ‘Switched-On Bach’, an album of Bach compositions arranged for the synth by Wendy Carlos in 1968. It was also used to soundtrack the Apollo 11 moonwalk the following year, while artists including The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Doors and the Grateful Dead were all early adopters of the instrument.
Earlier this year, Kraftwerk paid tribute to the late Ryuichi Sakamoto with a cover of Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence. The German electronic pioneers performed the track at Fuji Rock Festival in the renowned composer’s home country of Japan.
Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence derives from the 1983 war film of the same name, whose soundtrack was the first that Sakamoto created in his illustrious career. Indeed, his soundtrack has been credited as one of the key reasons the film went on to become a cult classic despite mixed reviews from critics.
‘The Moog at 60: A Celebration‘ dates at Liverpool’s Capstone Theatre are as follows:
NOVEMBER:
21 – Will Gregory Moog Ensemble
22 – Lydia Kavina and The Twelve Hour Foundation (double bill)
23 – Tension & Fusion: Exploring Synthesis In Modern Media (free admission)
23 – Dave Bessell and Polypores (double bill)
24 – A Tribute To Kraftwerk: 50 Years Of ‘Autobahn’ And Far Beyond