Up Here 9

In Waves

The theme for Up Here 9 is all about the power and beauty of movement and change. From the patterns of the ocean's waves to the way new ideas and movements emerge, this year’s theme looks at navigating the ebb and flow of life and the way we can ride the wave to achieve progress and growth.

Light. Heat. Seismic. Gravitational. Radio. Wifi. Sonic. Surf. Hell, even COVID-19. Waves are all around us, they are in us, and they are us.

Up Here 9 will explore the concept of "new wave" in art and music, showcasing emerging talent and new ideas that are pushing the boundaries of what is possible. The theme of frequency and vibrations will also be present, highlighting the ways sound and movement create patterns and shapes that can be seen and felt.

The festival will also navigate the idea of making waves and the ripple effect one person or action can have on the world around them. Attendees will be encouraged to think about the impact they can have and the ways they can make a difference.

Overall, "In Waves" is all about embracing change and movement and recognizing the beauty and power that can be found in the flux of life. Up Here encourages artists and festival goers to go with the flow, be open to new ideas and experiences, and find relief and release in the cyclical nature of the world around them.

Up Here festival, a laboratory of possibilities

Up Here is a multi-venue music and urban art festival with a focus on exciting and provocative emerging artists. We are dedicated to the presentation of underrepresented genres, and to the curation of pieces of contemporary public art. We are looking for musical projects, muralists and installation artists to help shape the festival experience.

Up Here stands in solidarity with the Indigenous Peoples of Turtle Island. We encourage all our settler friends to join us in the continuous learning, adapting, sharing, supporting, and fighting required to end systemic racism in this country and move toward true reconciliation.

Up Here takes place on the traditional lands of the Atikameksheng Anishnawbek and that Sudbury also includes the traditional lands of the Wahnapitae First Nation. We pay tribute to all First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples who we see as stewards of the past, present and future of this land.

Submit before 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, March 19, 2023.

All submissions are reviewed by artistic discipline by the Up Here Programming Committees. The evaluation process is based on artistic merit, the timing of latest releases, the pertinence of the project with this year's theme (less relevant for musical projects) and pairing with other artists in the lineup.

We receive over 500 artist submissions every year. All submissions will be reviewed thoroughly but due to the high volume of submissions, only successful applicants will be contacted.

“At this very minute, with almost absolute certainty, radio waves sent forth by other intelligent civilizations are falling on the earth. A telescope can be built that, pointed in the right place, and tuned to the right frequency, could discover these waves. Someday, from somewhere out among the stars, will come the answers to many of the oldest, most important, and most exciting questions mankind has asked.”
— Frank Drake

Inspiration

 
 

CYMATICS: Science Vs. Music - Nigel Stanford

Kaleomanuiwa Wong on Hawaiian people reclaiming traditional knowledge like wayfinding, navigating the ocean by stars and waves, and travelling around the world in a traditional canoe.

Breaking Wave, an anamorphic kinetic sculpture

Rainbow pendulum with audio. Two hours of patterns. Like, c’mon.

 
“An ocean traveller has even more vividly the impression that the ocean is made of waves than that it is made of water.”
— Sir Arthur Stanley Eddington
 

Bill Nye the Science Guy - Waves

 
“It’s very dangerous to wave to people you don’t know because what if they don’t have hands? They’ll think you’re cocky.”
— Mitch Hedberg
 

A lecture Corey Grey, a rad Blackfoot scientist whose groundbreaking work studies gravitational waves.

The Sound of Pendulum Waves

What the discovery of gravitational waves means

 
“The sensation of colour cannot be accounted for by the physicist’s objective picture of light-waves.”
— Erwin Schrödinger
 

Before Hendrix, before Elvis, before rock music was even a thing, there was Link Wray, whose song Rumble sold more than a million copies and was the starter's pistol for the entire pop music era.

Sudbury and the Mysteries of the Universe

A speaker is attached to a metal plate and covered in sand. Cue: sound.

Waves are cool. The more we learn about waves, the more we learn about a lot of things in physics. Everything from earthquakes to music.

 
“As in nature, all is ebb and tide, all is wave motion, so it seems that in all branches of industry, alternating currents - electric wave motion - will have the sway.”
— Nikola Tesla
 
 
 

Potential Presentation Spaces for Art Installations

Up Here makes use of specific venues and temporary infrastructure on the street.

We work with installation artists to find interesting and fitting spaces to showcase their work. Although it is not a requirement for submitting a project, installation artists are invited to think about how their project could be integrated within specific festival infrastructure.

The Dome prior to a pop-up show during the festival

The Dome

Up Here’s signature geodesic dome is a central piece of the festival experience. A freestanding 35-foot tall structure, the Dome is used as a venue to present pop-up shows, dance parties and all-around good times.

Since 2016, it has been used as a canvas for digital projections, for hung installations and for some of the festival’s most memorable musical performances.

Artists are invited to consult the Dome Construction Manual and submit projects that can be installed in the Dome.

 

The shipping container during the festival setup on Durham Street.

The Shipping Container

This large metal 20 ft rectangle sits on Durham Street during the event. It’s a party in a box that acts as storage for the festival throughout the year and is moved to the street during the festival setup. The standard container is 20 ft long by 8 ft wide by 8 ft 6 in tall.

Artists are invited to submit projects that play with and integrate the container.

 

Stunning immersive installation by Kristina Rolander at the Townehouse Tavern during Up Here 4.

Late-Night Stages

Late-night venues are smaller than our main venues and space on stage is often limited but if you’ve got a project in mind that can work with these constraints, we want to hear from you. We love allowing visual artists to turn our stages into immersive experiences for both artists and festival-goers.