If you walked downtown over the last month, you’ve surely seen — and likely wondered about — the Maine Center for Electronic Music. It might have looked like anything from a thrilling dance club or studious vinyl library (depending on the hour) curiously tucked into a prominent, carpeted white-walled office space in the center of town. Likely, you have questions. Here are answers.
The MCEM is a “temporary institution.” It was designed through a collaboration with Zero Station (an art hub and frame shop in Bayside), local artist group A.D. vs. F.X., and Hi Tiger, the latter an ongoing, evolving art and performance vehicle that’s had Portland artist Derek Jackson at its helm since 2009. With a number of volunteers, co-collaborators, contributing artists and educators, the Maine Center for Electronic Music’s mission is to explore the production and performance of dance music culture as a means to build community.
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Nyanen Deng rehearses at the Maine Center for Electronic Music in May, 2018. [photo by Francis Flisiuk; art direction and lighting by Hi Tiger]
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