Porotiti Mindfulness Meditation & Taonga Pūoro Workshop

Southland District Libraries Matariki 2021 Event in association with Creative Communities and Yellow Eye Ltd.

Rob Thorne is a Taonga Puoro composer, performer and anthropologist.

The porotiti is a traditional Māori musical instrument known to also be used in traditional healing.
Suspended by a cord, and spun with both hands in front of the body, while known as a children’s toy, it is also renowned as medicine for the respiratory system, the chest and spine, the spirit and the mind. In this workshop the participants learn and achieve both a moving and a breathing meditation that also incorporates a sonic meditation made by the instrument. Participants also learn about traditional Māori musical instruments (taonga pūoro), and how to play an instrument (the porotiti). Each workshop participant receives their own porotiti to take home at the end of the session.

Family-friendly event for ages five and upward. KOHA entry. Bookings essential due to limited numbers.

Rob, Ngāti Tumutumu, was the recent Creative NZ / Jack C. Richards Composer-In-Residence at the New Zealand School of Music, Victoria University, Wellington. He has travelled, performed and presented at a number of overseas events and gatherings including Womex on a number of occasions.

Rob is a profoundly original voice in the evolving journey of Taonga Puoro. His inaugural solo album on Rattle Records, "Whāia Te Māramatanga" (2013) is a deeply felt and highly concentrated conversation between the past and the present - a musical passage of identity and connection. Using modern loop technology and traditional Māori flutes and horns made from stone, bone, shell and wood, Rob creates a transcendent aural experience that touches the soul with timeless beauty. Every performance is a stunning and very personal exploration of the spiritual and healing qualities of an ancient practice.