You’ve got hip DJs blasting out some beats. And a sea of partygoers swaying to the tunes. But hold the speakers, please, for it’s a hushed-down outdoor dance party.
This trendy Silent Party, with two DJs simultaneously playing different styles of music through a special set of color-coded headphones, will be part of this weekend’s Compass Taichung International DJ and Food Festival.
“Taichung is known as the city of perennial noise complaints,” said Douglas Habecker, co-publisher of Compass Magazine, which is hosting the event. “So the Silent Party helps.”
Photo courtesy of Compass Magazine
The two-day festival will take place on the pedestrian-friendly Calligraphy Greenway from noon to 9pm Saturday and noon to 8pm Sunday, with the Silent Party portion held in the evenings. In addition to Compass, the event is put on by La Bocca Studio and Silent Party Taiwan.
Organizers hope the first-time festival will attract a broad audience, including families and older adults, and not just fans of DJ house music. During the daytime DJs will be playing a range of music from hip-hop to funk, with even some country line dancing to get the crowd moving.
“We want music that is accessible, fun to listen to and enjoyable to everyone,” Habecker said.
In addition to music, the festival will feature around 30 vendors selling both Taiwanese and western food and beverages.
With the city’s jazz festival and Compass’s live music festival occurring in the fall, organizers saw an opportunity to offer up something in the spring, which can be a quiet time of year for outdoor music events.
“Why not have something early in the year and later in the year?” said Habecker, adding that he hopes this weekend’s festival focusing on DJs will become an annual event that will grow larger in coming years.
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