The Bob Moog Foundation announced on Aug. 28 its fall raffle featuring a coveted, fully-restored vintage Memorymoog Plus synthesizer formerly owned, played and signed by Dr. Fink of The Revolution. The Memorymoog was part of The Revolution's touring rig on the Purple Rain, Around the World in a Day and Parade tours.
The raffle begins on Aug. 28 at 7 am ET and ends on Sept. 23, at 11:59 pm ET, or when all 4,500 tickets sell out, whichever comes first. Tickets are $25 each or five for $100 or 12 for $200 and can be purchased here.
Funds raised from the raffle will be used to expand the Foundation's hallmark educational project, Dr. Bob's SoundSchool, currently inspiring over 3,000 elementary school students per year through the science of sound. The raffle will also help support the Foundation's newest project, the Moogseum, an immersive, experiential facility that brings Bob Moog's legacy and the science of sound and synthesis alive for people of all ages. The newly opened Moogseum is located in downtown Asheville, NC.
"When the Memorymoog Plus was released with MIDI capability, a sequencer and the capability to hold 100 patches in its memory bank, I knew I had to have one in our touring rig," commented Matt Fink, keyboardist for The Revolution. "I have so many fond memories of using this Memorymoog on tour, and of the tours themselves. I've loved Moog synthesizers since I bought my first Minimoog at the age of 18 in 1976. It's gratifying to see this Memorymoog get new life through this raffle benefiting the excellent projects of the Bob Moog Foundation."
The featured Memorymoog Plus was built at Moog Music's Buffalo, NY factory, and has been fully restored by synthesizer technician Wes Taggart. It is in excellent technical condition. Its physical condition is generally excellent, but it does have flaws consistent with vintage instruments and consistent with touring, which remain to retain the unique provenance of the synthesizer. Particular to this instrument, the wooden end caps have been painted black to blend into the rest of Dr. Fink's stage rig during the tours, and there are three modifications in the back of the synthesizer, including an output port allowing Fink to use the Memorymoog as a trigger for an early Linn drum.
The fully-restored Memorymoog Plus, serial number 3527, has an estimated value of $8,000-$10,000. Given its provenance, it is truly priceless. It combines six voice polyphony to create a unique polysynth with three voltage controlled, articulated oscillators. Each voice has its own 24dB voltage-controlled filter. It is often referred to architecturally as six Minimoogs and is renowned for its rich sound. The Plus features a MIDI interface, making it among the very first electronic instruments to include a MIDI implementation and a polyphonic and monophonic sequencer.
"The Bob Moog Foundation makes every effort to offer something very special for our supporters with each raffle," remarked Michelle Moog-Koussa, executive director of the Bob Moog Foundation. "This one-of-a-kind Memorymoog Plus is no exception. We are honored and excited to offer this rare piece of musical history, and we are grateful to Reverb.com, Wes Taggart and Matt Fink for making it possible."
