moranga project

The powerful sound of Bull Roarers – reminiscent of roaring Thunder – was associated with the voice of the gods and the ancestors in many archaic cultures. Bull Roarers served as a central element in many initiation rites. Through their deep disturbing roar, their role was to penetrate the trusted communal atmosphere and create “sacred space” for the extraneous and mysterious to occur.
Traditionally, in most cases, by swinging the Bull Roares, the beginning of the Initiation Ceremonies was announced. Also, the first track of the “Moranga Project” CD “Strawberry Kisses” begins with the sound of the Australian Bull Roarers.

In choosing the instruments for his Solo-Project, percussionist Micha Schwarz did not limit himself to traditional instruments only. For recordings of his CD, Micha also utilized such modern instruments as Hang and the Wavedrum, a Percussion-Synthesizer that is futuristically alluring both from an audible and optical perspective!

It was intentionally planned that work in the recording studio would be completely free of time-pressure, thereby allowing plenty of room for musical experimentation. Often, the ideas which stemmed from spontaneous impulse attained their final form during the very process of recording itself. Thus – in a relaxed, creative atmosphere – out of careful interwoven sounds and rhythms appeared a multi-layered, trance-inducing Percussion-music, which could be placed somewhere between World Music, Ambient, and Urban Music.

With “Strawberry Kisses”, Micha Schwarz comes closer to mythological and spiritual themes without suffering the usual cliché of the esoteric music-style. Some pieces of the CD unfold very slowly, and, at the beginning, require from the listener a readiness to submit to the experience and wait – in similar fashion, the initiates were confronted with the challenge of enduring patience in order to pass the tests of the initiation rites.

Here, you may listen to the currently compiled trailer of recordings.

Publishing of “Strawberry Kisses” is tentatively planned for May 2010. Due to extensive instrumentation and the experiential nature of work in the recording studio, “Strawberry Kisses” is a financially costly project. With your participation in the program “Share The Music”, you can render your tangible support!