UO students are invited to the Erb Memorial Union during their lunch hour for a midday music festival that will run once a week through the month of October.

Octo-Fest, sponsored by the cultural forum, will feature a weekly musician at the EMU amphitheater. Musical performances by a Spanish guitarist, a marimba ensemble and a digeridoo player are scheduled, and free doughnuts are available to students in the Fishbowl when they present their UO identification.  

Concerts will be held Oct. 7, 14 and 21 from noon to 1:30 p.m.

The purpose of Octo-Fest is to provide musical entertainment and treats to students, said Cultural Forum Program Coordinator Laura Morris. It is designed for people on campus to sit and enjoy the music or just listen as they pass through.

“This is the first year for Octo-Fest, and we want to liven up campus and expose students to music that they may not have heard before,” Morris said.

Morris said Octo-Fest takes its name from two seasonal events: the giant Pacific octopus tally that takes place in October when divers study the mysterious giants and the fall Oktoberfest celebrations.

Octo-Fest musicians are local to Eugene.

“One of the great things about Eugene is that we get to highlight music that is here,” Morris said. “People may not know there are Spanish guitar lessons available in the area.”

The schedule of musicians is listed here.

The cultural forum also is inviting UO staff and students who play music to be part of an informal outdoor series that is currently being planned.

“We’re hoping to produce a series like NPR’s tiny desk concerts,” Morris said.

―By Corinne Boyer, Public Affairs Communications intern