The Beastie Boys have been rocking crowds the world over for more than 25 years; they are the undeniable innovators of both hip hop and rock and roll.  Known for looking forward and backward, the Beastie Boys were among the first to embrace the phat analog Moog sound in the late 80s and early 90s at a point when the world of synthesis had gone largely digital.

How fitting it was to have the Beastie Boys swing through town and perform a ribbon cutting ceremony on the Foundation’s MiniMoogseum installation in the Orange Peel, once again championing the Bob Moog and his legacy of pioneering synthesis. Check out  the Beastie Boys performing the ribbon cutting ceremony here:

Here’s the embed code to share this video via Youtube:
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Dubbed the “MiniMoogseum,” the eight foot high showcase serves as the first permanent installation of Bob Moog’s archives, including one of his Grammy awards and relics from the early development of Moog synthesizers. Michelle Moog-Koussa, who serves as the Executive Director of the Foundation named after her father, explained that “Over the decades to come, hundreds of thousands of people will see the installation as they visit the Orange Peel…” which was recently voted in the top five in the country by Rolling Stone magazine.  The “MiniMoogseum” can be thought of as a small scale version of the future “Moogseum“, coming soon to the Asheville area.

Beastie Boys join a growing group of celebrity musicians, including Stevie Wonder, Keith Emerson, and Billy Corgan who have all voiced their support of the Foundation’s mission to teach science to children using musical instruments. In the video the band expresses that they are “…proud and happy to be here at the beginning of this beautiful thing…..the Moogseum.” They continue by saying “There should be a Moog synthesizer in every classroom.”

This video marks the first in a new series of videos and blogs that the Foundation is calling “Voices” — reflections and ideas from the wider Moog community, focused on how Bob Moog inspired their creativity.

Making the MiniMoogseum a Reality: Volunteers and Sponsors

The MiniMoogseum was designed and built by a team of  volunteers and sponsors—the foundation playfully refers to them as “Rockstars”–including Gene Felice, Chris Perryman, Steve Dunnington and Mike Pieo.

Materials for the project were donated by Cormark International, Speed Graphics, Moog Music, Asheville Hardware and Henco Reprographics. This project is the first step in an iterative process for the Foundation. The full-sized Moogseum, scheduled to open in four years, will feature interactive and experiential exhibits that inspire the next generation of “Bob Moog” like innovators, as well as an intimate performance area, where musicians from around the world can participate in the Foundation’s programming.

Special thanks to Meg Lauzon, Rhino & Jon Leidel for capturing this even on both video and photo! And a special thanks to the Orange Peel for hosting this amazing event.

An artists visualization of the future Moogseum. by, Genefelice.com

Those of you who were at Winter NAMM ’09 were lucky enough to see the sneak preview of our planned Bob Moog Museum, or Moogseum. We are immensely proud of this project, as it represents the culmination of over three years of energy, focus and vision — and ongoing support from all of you. The Moogseum will be the convergence of the Foundation’s goals of educating and inspiring people through electronic music, just as Bob did himself. It will serve as a educational, historical and cultural resource to Western North Carolina and the worldwide electronic music community through the following exhibits and facilities:

• An interactive timeline of the life and work of Bob Moog and the many people with whom he collaborated
• An archival center where rare documents, including project notes, articles, photos and schematics from Bob Moog’s archives, can be viewed on an interactive LED screen
• Several interactive instrument-based exhibits that will allow people the ability to experience the science behind the sound of electfonic music. We envision bays of Theremins hooked up to Moogerfoogers and rows of synthesizers hooked up to oscilloscopes filling our interactive area. A modular synthesis wall is planned as well.
• A Young Inventors Lab where children will be inspired to explore electronic music and create their own prototype through our Youth Outreach programs, afterschool workshops and summer camps.
• A rotating exhibit space which highlights new innovations in musical instrument interface as well as shared exhibits from other museums.
• A 200 seat performance space that will host concerts, lectures, festivals and sound exhibits

Gene Felice (www.genefelice.com) created an amazing artist’s conceptualization of the Moogseum, seen above & below. To download the full proposal in PDF format, including these conceptualizations and many more, click here.

The Foundation is in the initial planning stages for the Moogseum, and projects the facility to open in the next three to five years. Premliminary costs for Phase One of the facilty are estimated to be $3 million, which will be raised from granting organizations, corporate sponsors and private donors.

Please keep checking this blog for updates regarding the Moogseum.

If you’d like to support the planning phase of our efforts, please donate via our website or send a donation to: The Bob Moog Foundation, P.O. Box 8136, Asheville, NC 28814. All donations are tax-deductible.

Moogseum Sonic Exploratorium Image by genefelice.com

Moogseum Digital Archive Image by Gene Felice

Wood Craftsman Chris Perryman with the beautiful frame of the OP Installation

The Bob Moog Foundation, and Bob Moog himself, have had a long and supportive relationship with Asheville’s premiere music club, the Orange Peel Social Aid and Pleasure Club. The Orange Peel, which was recently voted one of the top five clubs in the country by Rolling Stone Magazine, hosted Bob Moog’s memorial on August 24, 2005. Since that time, the Foundation has had two fundraisers at the Peel, and has collaborated on other projects as well. Recently, Pat Whalen, General Manager at the Peel, asked the Foundation to create a permanent installation for the club that would honor Bob Moog, his impact on the world of music and his connection to the Asheville area.

With the help of Gene Felice, the multi-media artist who designed our fantastic Moogseum conceptualizations, the creation of the “Mini-Moogseum” is well under way. When asked if he could help with the graphics on this project, Gene went well beyond the call of duty and became the project manager. He designed the structure and worked with our Executive Director to bring the project to fruition. You can download Gene’s initial designs of the project here.

The creation of the Mini-Moogseum has been the result of the amazing support of many craftsmen and local businesses. Cormark International generously donated all of the beautiful african mohagany that forms the exterior of the showcase, and Asheville Hardware donated the hardware to complete it. We had the incredibly good fortune of finding Chris Perryman of Domus Aurea Woodworking Studio, who donated over 70 hours of his time to building the structure. Chris is a highly skilled, wood craftsman whose artful, fun and eclectic designs are featured in some of the leading crafts galleries in the country.

The showcase, which stands 7 feet high and 5 feet wide, will house a small rotating exhibit from Bob Moog’s archives, as well as information about Bob Moog, his impact on the world of music and his connection to the Asheville area, where he lived and worked for 25 years. At it’s base, the showcase will feature a custom designed Theremin interface created by Moog Music engineer (and former student of Bob Moog) Steve Dunnington. The Theremin will add an interactive sound-based component to the exhibit.

Woodcraftsman Chris Perryman working on the Mini-Moogseum

Project designer, manager and multi-media artist Gene Felice chips in to help with the sanding

Creators of the Mini-Moogseum Chris Perryman, Gene Felice, Steve Dunnington

As you can see from these photos, the frame for the Mini-Moogseum is complete (thanks a million, Chris!). We are working on the electronics for the Theremin, the interior lighting, the printed graphics and content display for the interior. We’re aiming to have the showcase installed within the next month or two.

Please continue to check back, as we’ll be blogging about the progress of this project as it unfolds. If you’d like to make a donation to the project, please visit the Moog Foundation Website and click on “Online Donation” at the bottom of the page.