| AVA Festival | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | audio and visual arts festival |
| Location(s) | Belfast, Northern Ireland |
| Years active | 2015 - |
| Founded by | Sarah McBriar |
| Attendance | 16,000 (2022) [1] |
| Website | avafestival |
The AVA Festival is a Belfast-based recurring event for the audio and visual arts, founded in 2015. AVA events have also been held in Holland, Great Britain, and India.
The festival was founded in 2015 by Sarah McBriar, brother of Matthew McBriar of Bicep, who following attending the Glastonbury Festival had wanted to bring a similar event to Belfast. The name AVA was derived as an acronym for Audio, Visual, and Arts. [2] [3] [4] While the inaugural event was in Belfast in 2015, the festival has also been held in Mumbai, Amsterdam, Glasgow and London. [2] The initial event had c. 1,500 attendees for a one-day event, which by 2022 had increased in time-span to be a weekend event with c. 16,000 attendees. [1] [5] In 2018 the event was held in an "old B&Q warehouse", the 2020 event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, in 2021 the event was held at the Boucher Road Playing Fields in Belfast, and in 2022 AVA was held at the Titanic Slipway also in Belfast. [2] [3] [5] [6]
The event typically has performances from electronic dance music acts, which include both local "homegrown" and more internationally recognised musicians. Artists that have played at AVA include Holly Lester, Larry Heard, LSDXOXO, Orbital, and Bicep. [2] [3] [5] [7] The festival also includes talk and lectures. [3] AVA has been described in the music press as "one of the world's most exciting electronic festivals", and has been credited as creating a "second age of rave" in Northern Ireland. [1] [6]
Orbital are an English electronic music duo from Otford, Kent, England, consisting of brothers Phil and Paul Hartnoll. The band's name is taken from Greater London's orbital motorway, the M25, which was central to the early rave scene during the early days of acid house. Additionally, the cover art on three of their albums showcase stylised atomic orbitals. Orbital have been critically and commercially successful, known particularly for their live improvisation during shows. They were initially influenced by early electro and punk rock.
Carl Cox is a British house and techno club DJ, as well as radio DJ and record producer. He is based in Frankston, Victoria, Australia.
DJ Magazine is a British monthly magazine dedicated to electronic dance music and DJs. Founded in 1991, the magazine is adapted for distribution in the United Kingdom, the United States, Spain, France, Italy, Latin America, China, South Korea, Brunei, Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Oman, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Germany, Canada, Russia, Belarus, and the Netherlands.
Electronic dance music (EDM) is a broad range of percussive electronic music genres originally made for nightclubs, raves, and festivals. It is generally produced for playback by DJs who create seamless selections of tracks, called a DJ mix, by segueing from one recording to another. EDM producers also perform their music live in a concert or festival setting in what is sometimes called a live PA. Since its inception EDM has expanded to include a wide range of subgenres.
Robert Ferguson, known professionally as Fergie, is a Northern Irish DJ and electronic music artist from Larne. He has been an internationally touring DJ and a music producer for over 20 years. He presented a radio show on BBC Radio 1 for over four years while recording 13 Essential Mixes for the station. He was featured in the DJ Mag Top 100 DJs poll seven years in a row and currently holds the record for the highest new entry since the poll began, achieved when he was voted 8th in 2000.
Bang Face is an electronic dance music event that has been taking place at various venues across the UK and Europe since 2003. Starting as a monthly club night in London, it has grown to include an annual four-day weekender, a boat party on the River Thames, as well as guest shows at festivals such as Glastonbury. In 2013 Bang Face celebrated its 10th birthday with DJ Mag stating Bang Face [maintains] "the perfect blend of old skool rave and the finest contemporary leftfield sounds". In March 2015 Bang Face reached the milestone of 100 events by hosting the Weekender at Southport Holiday Park. Resident Advisor asked the question "Is Bangface the most unique rave out there?" and described it as a "Neo-rave utopia". In 2023 Bang Face celebrated 20 years of events with the 2023 Weekender headlined by Orbital.
The DMC World DJ Championships is an annual DJ competition founded by the Disco Mix Club (DMC) which began in 1985. It has been described as a "pre-eminent competitive DJ event".
Parklife is an annual two-day music festival in Manchester, England and takes place in June each year. The festival predominantly features dance and electronic music, as well as pop and hip-hop artists.
Bicep are an electronic music production and DJ duo from Belfast, Northern Ireland, consisting of Andrew Ferguson and Matthew McBriar.
Samuel Shepherd, known professionally as Floating Points, is a British electronic music producer, DJ, and musician. He is the founder of Pluto Records, co-founder of Eglo Records and leader of a 16-piece group called Floating Points Ensemble.
Hannah Alicia Smith is a British house music DJ and producer better known by her stage name Hannah Wants, and a former professional footballer.
Bicep is the self-titled debut album by electronic music duo Bicep, released on Ninja Tune on 1 September 2017.
Frederick John Philip Gibson, known professionally as Fred Again or simply Fred, is an English record producer, singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and DJ. He frequently collaborates with other artists and in 2024 was nominated for Best New Artist at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards and won Best Dance/Electronic Album for Actual Life 3 and Best Dance/Electronic Recording for "Rumble".
Alice Moxom in London, England, known professionally as Moxie, is a London based DJ, music publisher and event promoter.
Charlotte de Witte is a Belgian DJ and record producer, best known for her "dark and stripped-back" brand of acid techno and minimal techno. She has previously performed under the alias Raving George. She is the founder of the labels KNTXT and Époque.
Emma Kirby, known as Elkka, is a British producer, vocalist, and DJ. With a background of songwriter and vocalist for Elkka is best known for winning the Essential Mix of the Year (BBC1) in 2021. She is also known as the co-founder of femme culture, which she founded with her partner Alex Lambert, an inclusive queer platform. The label organizes the annual HeForShe compilation, and all profits go to the charity U.N. Women.
Ben Hemsley is an electronic dance music disc jockey and record producer from Newcastle upon Tyne, UK. He won the DJ Mag Best Producer award in 2023, and has performed at events such as Creamfields and for the BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix show.
Meg Ward is a British electronic dance music disc jockey and record producer from Pontefract, England. She is known for her live performances, with music that combines multiple genres including house, techno, disco and garage.
Holly Lester is an electronic dance music disc jockey from County Armagh, Northern Ireland, who performs techno live sets. Lester is co-founder of the Free The Night advocacy organisation aimed at boosting the night-time economy in Northern Ireland.
Since 2015, AVA has hosted over 100 events and festivals
