(Bostonherald) Today through next Sunday, the Together Festival will pack Boston and Cambridge with electronic dance music acts from around the world — London’s Duke Dumont, Montreal’s Tiga, Munich’s Zombie Nation and Paris’ Popof, to name a few.
But Together creative director David Day insists it’s not an EDM fest.
“We emphasize that this is a music, arts and technology event,” Day said. “Everything we’re putting on ties in with all three of those things.”
A quick look at the schedule for the fourth annual event proves... his point. There are as many dance parties as there are panel discussions, art installations and production tutorials.
Expanding into new territory, Together hosts films and talks at the Museum of Fine Arts and a multimedia exhibition, “A New Cosmic Mix,” at the Museum of Science’s planetarium.
“Each year we grow, but we never know which way we’re going to grow,” Day said. “We even have a kids’ area (as part of Saturday’s Central Square World’s Fair) we helped put together this year.”
Together grew out of Day and his team’s dream of creating a South By Southwest conference for the electro world. Since the February 2010 launch, it has expanded its scope, adding more genres (rapper Biz Markie is here this year) and partnering with Central Square’s tech community and Cambridge City Hall.
Producer/promoter Eli Goldstein of Boston’s Soul Clap helped organize the first fest and returned to put on events this year.
“The first one was a learning experience,” Goldstein said. “Now it’s a full-scale festival supported by the city. It’s taken a step up, and people are flying in from New York and Montreal to go to these events. Word is starting to get out worldwide about Together.”
But the fest has obstacles to overcome before it becomes a global sensation.
While the art and technology components make it unique, the dance parties drive its success. Compared with EDM scenes in bigger, brighter cities, the Hub isn’t hip.
“World-class party scenes, the kind you find in Berlin and Brooklyn and London, get going when we’re shutting down for the night,” local producer and DJ John Barera said. “Together has done a great job of getting around this by starting stuff early and putting on stuff in the day, but I’d like to see events that can go all night and still serve alcohol.”
Cambridge has embraced the scene, but 5 a.m. service at clubs seems a long way off.
Until then, Day will push Together in every other direction.
But Together creative director David Day insists it’s not an EDM fest.
“We emphasize that this is a music, arts and technology event,” Day said. “Everything we’re putting on ties in with all three of those things.”
A quick look at the schedule for the fourth annual event proves... his point. There are as many dance parties as there are panel discussions, art installations and production tutorials.
Expanding into new territory, Together hosts films and talks at the Museum of Fine Arts and a multimedia exhibition, “A New Cosmic Mix,” at the Museum of Science’s planetarium.
“Each year we grow, but we never know which way we’re going to grow,” Day said. “We even have a kids’ area (as part of Saturday’s Central Square World’s Fair) we helped put together this year.”
Together grew out of Day and his team’s dream of creating a South By Southwest conference for the electro world. Since the February 2010 launch, it has expanded its scope, adding more genres (rapper Biz Markie is here this year) and partnering with Central Square’s tech community and Cambridge City Hall.
Producer/promoter Eli Goldstein of Boston’s Soul Clap helped organize the first fest and returned to put on events this year.
“The first one was a learning experience,” Goldstein said. “Now it’s a full-scale festival supported by the city. It’s taken a step up, and people are flying in from New York and Montreal to go to these events. Word is starting to get out worldwide about Together.”
But the fest has obstacles to overcome before it becomes a global sensation.
While the art and technology components make it unique, the dance parties drive its success. Compared with EDM scenes in bigger, brighter cities, the Hub isn’t hip.
“World-class party scenes, the kind you find in Berlin and Brooklyn and London, get going when we’re shutting down for the night,” local producer and DJ John Barera said. “Together has done a great job of getting around this by starting stuff early and putting on stuff in the day, but I’d like to see events that can go all night and still serve alcohol.”
Cambridge has embraced the scene, but 5 a.m. service at clubs seems a long way off.
Until then, Day will push Together in every other direction.
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