Join us for the release of the double album 'Aurongo' by Phil Dadson and Rob Thorne.
AURONGO—INNER LISTENING is an innovative sonic journey by taonga pūoro exponent Rob Thorne and maverick musical instrument inventor Phil Dadson.
Rattle proudly presents an unparalleled auditory adventure, a collaborative work that seeks to immerse listeners in a musical landscape rich in imaginative possibilities, a mesmerising album in which indigenous tradition and contemporary innovation converge.
Phil is renowned for crafting innovative, highly expressive, texturally unique instruments, and Rob's mastery of taonga pūoro evokes the rich tapestry of Māori culture, hauntingly beautiful ancestral voices and stories that resonate through time.
AURONGO celebrates the dynamic interplay between ancient traditions and contemporary improvisation, a sound world unique to Aotearoa that invites listeners to engage with these evocative musical spaces in a way that is potentially transformative.
Featuring performances by Phil Dadson & Rob Thorne, plus a quadraphonic remix of the album performed by John Kim & Steve Garden.
Two albums cut from the same cloth. The first presents the original, improvised recordings of Phil (playing a multi-voiced bespoke instrument called the “gloop”) and Rob (playing his arsenal of evocative taonga pūoro) mixed with clarity and precision by Colleen Brennan. Steve Garden takes a more improvised approach for the second album, reshaping the material into three suites that traverse very different aural environments.
Currently, I favour improvising over composing as a way of being and responding in the moment, unfettered by the conscious mind. When performers are on a similar wavelength, as in this recording with Rob, the clarity of transmission and communication gives rise to unexpected magic. — Phil Dadson
The purpose is the journey and not the destination. All decisions in my creative practice dwell within the now, suspended in a state of deep listening, made effective immediately and then renounced the moment they are activated. — Rob Thorne
When Phil and Rob sent me their recorded improvisations, I was immediately struck by the opportunity the recordings offered to do as Phil and Rob had done and take an improvisatory approach to mixing, a departure point for further intuitive creativity. — Steve Garden
