#BACHTOBERFEST
A month long celebration of Bach.
#Bachtoberfest is an online music festival. It is open to all and uses social media to connect musicians and enthusiasts to each other. All participants will be recognized on the Bachtoberfest.org website (relaunching Oct. 1) and by @teamclassical. The festival lasts through Oct. 31, 2014. New submissions will be automatically updated to the site via computer magic.
Submissions are open starting now and run until the last day, Oct. 31, 2014.
Three ways to participate:
1. #ListeningToBach
Snap a selfie while listening to Bach in an unusual setting and use #bachtoberfest, #Bachshot or #Listeningtobach and we’ll include you on the website.
2. Tell us your #BachStory
Make a video of you talking about a moment when something just clicked with you and Bach — your personal #bachstory — a moment when Bach’s work seemed to unlock something profound hidden in plain sight. Show us your marked-up score. Show us your battle scars. Reveal why you care. Do anything, just give a damn about awesome music and share your love. If a video is too hard, send in a Tweet. Just don’t forget to use #bachtoberfest or #BachStory.
3. #BachChannel
Film yourself performing J.S. Bach in an unusual place. Tweet your video tagged with #bachtoberfest and your work will be automatically included in the festival website.
Ideas: Team up with a friend and make it a party. Sneak your instrument into an art museum and record a guerrilla masterwork. Bang out a BWV on a bar piano. Go to an old folks home, they’ll have a clavichord. Extra points for looking super stylish while filming. Reference @barihunks. Remember, Twerk comes from Gesamtkunstwerk.
Prizes: This event is by us, for us, so there are no corporate sponsors or cash prizes, but every participant who sends in a video earns a #Bachtoberfest temporary tattoo (sweet!) and social media fame. This is an official music festival, so you can legitimately put it on your C.V. and rewrite your bio as “…has performed at music festivals around the world” and not be lying. And we’ll do our best as marketers and social media people to connect you directly to your audience and community.
But mainly, it’s a lot of fun. Stooopid fun. So start thinking of what you want to do! What’s your BWV of choice? Make some new friends and have a blast, it will be just like college/conservatory — it’ll be real fun — like beer with friends pounding out cantatas and motets fun. This isn’t a competition, it’s a celebration.
If you run an arts org…
This year we are hosting a few IRL #Bachtoberfest parties with beer, snacks and lots of Bach. Mention @teamclassical for a #Bachtoberfest party-starter pack if your org is interested.
Also if your group has performed any Bach in the last year, please consider uploading it to YouTube and Tweeting with #bachtoberfest.
More events and surprises will be revealed each week, included Classical Music LARPing, facetime duets, interviews, and more (actually I just made up that part about LARPing, but it’s not an awful idea…).
Stay tuned. And happy #Bachtoberfest
Get inspired from a few favorite #Bachtoberfest videos from years past:
