Together Boston is an annual electronic music and arts festival based in the Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts area. It was first held in 2010. Through a week-long series of educational and professional discussions, demonstrations, installations, screenings and performances at venues around the Boston/Cambridge area, Together Boston attracts thousands of people every year and has increased its attendance every year as a primary New England area music festival. Originally based in Boston proper, Together's office and primary venue locations lie across the Charles River in Central Square, Cambridge, Massachusetts,[1] frequenting locations such as The Sinclair, The Middle East (nightclub)
2016
For its seventh year, the festival honed in on its more technological side. Three different installations were included at the Middlesex Lounge, including the incredible Lumen Octangula[2] programmed by Theresa Silver. Downstairs in the Middle East, meanwhile, featured an LED wall behind the stage for the first time. Other outstanding technologists participated all week long. Finally, the riveting and electric performance of the Floating Points live show at The Sinclair for the launch party was a perfect set-up for the coming week.
2015
The first-ever official Resident Advisor event was a highlight, featuring Mano LeTough and Bob Moses, while Andy Stott played the opening night party. Dirtybird Records' Justin Martin brought the house down, Sango visited to represent the Soulection movement, and the Middlesex Lounge in Cambridge was turned into a dark black box of flashing lights. While the number of events declined, the quality of the experience was heightened. Art installations like a human-sized Lite Brite and the world premiere of the Gif Dance Party[3] left quite an impression on attendees.
2014
This year saw some special musical events including Bob Mould playing in Cambridge to celebrate the 10th anniversary of gay marriage, Chicago soul champions The Numero Group visiting Boston's legendary Soulelujah team and the debut of an experimental live lab in Inman Square's LilyPad featuring leading lights of Massachusetts' psychedelic rock community such as Major Stars, Sunburned Hand of the Man and internationally recognized sound designer Keith Fullerton Whitman. Other guests from 2014 included Detroit techno legend Robert Hood, Brooklyn's Mos Def, Germany's Tensnake and Norway's Cashmere Cat, most recently responsible for producing a single for Ariana Grande.
The festival's motto, "Music, Art, Technology," underlies its efforts to link new music with all aspects of modern and forward-thinking culture via an intellectual slant. The festival seeks to provide more than just a week of music, educating attendees through daytime panels, art exhibitions, and film screenings.[4]
Music
The music component also focuses on showcasing any number of local musicians from the Boston area (Horse Jumper of Love, André Obin, Blue Boy Productions, Guillermo Sexo, John Barera, Mean Creek, Ricardo Donoso), and pairing them up with international stars. In addition, the festival spotlights key visual artists and technologists from the city's burgeoning innovation and art community: past artists have included First Night honoree Zebbler, Brian Kane (formerly of Emergency Broadcast Network) and Beyoncé-video director Julian Wadsworth. 2013 film screenings included Style Wars and We Are Modeselektor at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. In 2014, they screened I Dream of Wires, a documentary about the modular synthesizer at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston.
Acclaim
Together Boston has been gathering acclaim since its inception. In its first year, Metro Boston reported that "reaction is positive from the community and business groups involved."[5] In 2011, the Boston Globe reported that "with an increased focus on a slate of daytime panels, discussions, and technology demonstrations, the organizers want to engender a dialogue about music."[6] 2012 saw Red Bull Music Academy documentation with future Best Album Grammy-winner Todd Edwards[7] and Chicago Juke legend DJ Rashad.,[8] while music website Earmilk said: "Together creates a nightlife with smart undertones for people to gather around to try to find something a bit more transcendent, surrounded by cool, interesting people."[9]
In 2013, Together received a lengthy, well-written review from tastemaking music magazine XLR8R: "Together remains a festival by Bostonians for Bostonians, a fitting labor of love for a city in need of as much love as it can get."[10] And also from the Boston Globe: "This year’s programming further emphasizes the art and technology aspects of Together’s larger mission."[11] The following year, the Globe said: "The focus of the week is not just music, but also the art and technology that makes Boston such a thriving, creative place to live at the moment."[12] The same year, Fact Magazine said "Together Boston is rapidly positioning itself as one of the United States’ best events for forward-thinking music."[13]
In 2014, new Boston Mayor Marty Walsh chimed in on the festival before dropping the ceremonial "first beat." "Lineups like these garner national and international attention," the Mayor said, "which helps us strengthen Boston's reputation as a cultural destination."[14] And the reputable international music magazine Resident Advisor gave the festival a 4.5 out of 5-star review in 2014. "Together showed what a dedicated community can accomplish even with factors like that stacked against it, and it made the city seem vibrant, fun, and hungry for good music."[15]
In November 2014, Together Boston was awarded "Best Festival" in Boston by The Boston Calendar.[16] The Boston Calendar organizers called the event "ahead of its time."
Thump, Vice Magazine's dance music channel, reviewed the festival[17] at its sixth iteration. "The sixth edition of Together ... was a reminder of how much Boston still has to offer for the tribes of dance music fans who live here." And: "Despite its size, Together pulled off an impressive range of sounds from across the electronic spectrum."
Resident Advisor again visited to review the event.[18] "With consistent sound, good crowds, solid venues, and a great lineup, I still can't quite narrow down exactly what made Together 2015 feel as great as it did. Maybe it's just a matter of getting all the little things right."
Previewing the festival, Resident Advisor called Together 2016 a global destination in their "Top 10 Music Festivals[19]" feature.
In 2016, The Boston Globe wrote of the event:[20] "The core notion of the festival ... isn’t just to provide a good time, but to illustrate the fertile mix of art and technology intrinsic to current-day Boston, a city that celebrates its visual artists and musicians even as it cultivates a fresh identity as a hub for technological advancement."
After that year, Resident Advisor said:[21] "The festival's seventh year was its best yet, primarily through refinement: rather than growing larger and more sprawling, Together has narrowed its focus. Every day of the week, there was at least one—and often several—things to look forward to."
Musical Performances
Together has held events at most Boston/Cambridge, MA area venues, such as The Sinclair, The Middle East, House of Blues Boston, Royale, Paradise, Great Scott, Middlesex Lounge, Goodlife, Phoenix Landing and more. As a festival that hosts "showcase" style events over a week, some artists appeared together for label showcases or as a part of a typical club night roster.[22]
Notable musical artists who have worked with Together Boston include:
For the first time in the festival's history, Together Boston launched an app[26] which helped to guide festival attendees all week long. Meetups for 2016 commenced with a discussion on [27] again in partnership with the Dutch Government. Tech huddles commented all week as well, again at the tech hub named Danger!Awesome. The talent behind the VJ Competition held a free tutorial on[28]Ableton and VJing. The record fair was once again a success, this time welcoming a guest host in accomplished producer Martyn.
Boston Mayor Marty Walsh "Dropping the beat" at District Hall
2015 Seminar highlights included visiting author Michaelangelo Matos discussing his book The Underground is Massive, an "RA Exchange" podcast with Martyn, and an official Ableton session with Ellie Herring. The Cambridge-based makerspace Danger Awesome held its concurring events, like the Cryptoparty with Massachusetts Pirate Party and a music hackathon. There was also a unique international component as the festival hosted many Dutch guests from Utrecht. The result was an official proclamation from Boston's Mayor Marty Walsh honoring the contributions the Dutch have made to international culture.[29]
2014 the daytime events transformed into two locations: The Mmmmaven Project educational program in Central Square and District Hall, Boston's brand-new home of innovation in Boston's Seaport District. The Recharge Lounge featured Integrating live performance in Ableton and demonstrations of creative collaboration with ToUch Performance Art.[30] Meanwhile, District Hall held the "Ableton Spaces," which included demonstrations of Ableton's popular push controller, vocal processing with Natasha Kmeto and How to Make Music with Plants featuring Data Garden from Philadelphia.[31]
Also at District Hall were the "Together Talks", featuring four themed days of discussion. Day 1, "Community Day" featured Boston Mayor Marty Walsh "dropping the ceremonial first beat"[14] and a discussion with Boston-raised superstars Soul Clap.[32] Friday was Technology Day which featured VSnap, Cadenza and Groupmuse.[33] Saturday then became "Music Day" with presentations from Harvard University, MassArt and famed "technomusicologist" Wayne Marshall.[34] Finally, art had its place on Sunday May 18 with multiple presentations from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a segment on augmented wearable fashions from the Rhode Island School of Design[35]
2013's panels included a discussion on artist representation in the digital age with Josh Bhatti of Bowery Boston, Carter Adams of the Windish Agency and Michael Walsh of XLR8R,[36] a panel on copyright law in the modern era moderate by Andy Sellars of Harvard University's Berkman Center for Internet & Society[37] and a Q&A with meme celebrity Scumbag Steve.
Demonstrations from 2012 included a Drum Production workshop hosted by iZotope and a panel called "Needles vs Buttons," discussing the differences between vinyl DJing and Digital DJing. As well as more general music and creative industry panels such as "Beyond Ramen: Surviving as an Artist" and "War Stories from the Start-Up Front".[38]
Film Screenings
Together Festival also focuses on screening films that relate to music and aspects of new music cultures throughout the week of each festival.[39] The screenings typically take place at Boston and Cambridge, MA's independently owned cinemas. However, screenings have occurred at the area's largest cinema, Boston Common Lowes 19. A few films focusing on German artists were screened at Boston's Goethe Institute.
Every year, the festival hosts a daytime farmers market-style trade show where local enthusiasts and music product retailers display and sell many different products relating to music culture. In previous years, music products retailers Music Studio Direct and representatives from several software developers such as Ableton have had booths with a wide array of local vendors. It is particularly popular for its wide assortment of second-hand dance music vinyl records sold and traded by local DJs throughout the day.
In 2013, Get Together moved outdoors to the become the World's Fair.[40] The event featured live music, DJ stages and food from local restaurants and food trucks as well as the traditional trade show.
2014 saw the debut of the Soul Clap Record Fair, a tradition that has turned into a seasonal event in Cambridge, MA.[41] The record fair continues to this day.
Competitions
For the first three years, Together ran an amateur remix, DJ and VJ[42] competition, open to all USA residents which, in 2013, awarded prizes including festival passes, an opening slot for Tiga, courses at the MMMMaven DJ school and a wide assortment of production software and software plug-ins. Production competitions in recent years have allowed entrants to remix Boston-based artists Bad Rabbits, Win Win, Tiga and Cambridge's own Soul Clap, who have become one of the world's most prominent DJ and Production groups.
Annual Compilations
Together releases an official free annual compilation of tracks composed, mixed, and mastered by Boston-based musicians, including both individual tracks and a master mix of all tracks.
Moduloktopus - All That Ever Mattered Was How Well You Lived The Present Moment
Tone Ra & Jon Pon (d) Scum - Prophets
Vaepors - 911 Emergency
Antonious Mong - Titanium Girlscout
KiA MAZZi: The City On The Hill
Noms X CHLO - Kuma Hugz
Nu.F.O - Rise up
ShaR4 - Bring Us Together
2014
In 2014, Together Boston partnered with Boston label Zakim Recordings to produce a vinyl edition of the compilation, with 6 of the tracks featured on a special-edition 12" release.[44] All six could be found on the Zakim Bandcamp page, the rest were released digitally via SoundCloud. Those on the special Zakim edition are indicated by a *.
