Page 48 - Demo

Among the curatorial team, NUNO, Ta-Chien Hsiao, and Kuo are all founders of some of Taiwan%u2019s most recognized music festivals. NUNO began his career running a record label and live house, cultivating Taichung%u2019s music scene for years. In 2019, he launched Emerge Festival in his hometown of Qingshui, Taichung. Blending music with a spirit of adventure, the festival invites fans to enjoy performances by both local and international bands while wandering the small town, exploring temple squares, weaving through alleyways, and sampling local cuisine. The festival becomes a cultural gateway into the city itself.Also using music as a cultural medium, Ta-Chien Hsiao%u2019s Vagabond Festival offers a different model of curatorial imagination. Committed to sustainability, he relocated the festival from New Taipei City to Tainan in 2020, creating a local experiment that fuses land, history, and environmental awareness. With %u201cMiss Su-Lan Is Getting Married,%u201d he connected local temple parade troupes; with %u201cLove Hunt in Kunshen,%u201d he reimagined the century-old love story from %u201cA Memorable Melody of Anping,%u201d weaving Tainan%u2019s local narratives into the festival beyond just music and visuals. Coupled with the city%u2019s culinary and travel appeal, the Vagabond Festival has gradually become an annual celebration that music lovers return to year after year.Kuo is a trailblazer in the realm of virtual music festivals. Since 2021, he has collaborated with the tech collective NAXS FUTURE on a two-and-a-half-year endeavor to develop the Sunset Town brand. The project invited artists to film performances at Zepp New Taipei, gradually building the fictional town. By late April 2025, the second edition of Sunset Town Festival: Burnout premiered with expanded features, blending video game-style map exploration and missions, multiplayer racing games, NPC interactions, and performances across four virtual stages. While continuing the spirit of %u201cadventure%u201d at its core, the festival also pushed the boundaries of what a music event could be.What Makes Music Festivals So Captivating?A music festival is never just about the music. %u201cTo me, it%u2019s more like a ritual,%u201d says Ta-Chien Hsiao. %u201cIt brings together all kinds of people in the same space to experience a wide range of sensations.%u201dHsiao points out, %u201cWithin a set timeframe, from afternoon into the evening, everyone can experience different music programs. What makes the setting special is that there%u2019s a constant variety of music and activities happening all around.%u201dA music festival is like the gateway to a nation%u2019s export trade. When not only the audience but also the crew and international artists feel good about the experience, the performances become all the more sincere, and we feel a real sense of fulfillment.%u2014Ta-Chien Hsiao048049