ROB THORNE ~ Taongo Puoro in Otepoti (Dunedin)

Friday 11 July @ Dunedin Public Art Gallery

"... a gentle evocation of the lapping tides, the furrows carved out of the wind, the nocturnal stirrings, the whirrings of wind-propelled wooden chimes, the gentle siren-call of cooing voices, hints of bird song too. It all makes for a soothing – though sometimes beautifully alarming, almost wonderfully unsettling – record of ambient soundscapes. It is Thorne’s through-composed actualisation of identity, a journey that goes deep, is sometimes dark, offering moodiness and a brooding beauty...

I’ve said many times before in reviewing Maori language albums that I’m lost when it comes to a translation but lost in the sound of it, swept up and moved by the beauty of the language; translation – ultimately – is irrelevant. And so it is with this album built with traditional Maori instruments, a different kind of voice, the voice of Taonga Puoro."

Simon Sweetman - Off The Tracks review

Opportunities to hear traditional Maori instruments are a rare occurrence, add to that the beauty of Rob Thorne's compositions, and this concert will be an experience you will not forget.

Prepare to be moved and soothed, his live performances are an intimate and magical experience.