Mntra Instruments Oro

Description

Oro is a celebration of the transformative journeys of musical instruments through many different contexts and genres. The second installment in our location-based Portals series, Oro is the result of a creative exploration of the place that half of the MNTRA Team calls home, Bogotá, Colombia. The legend of El Dorado has been told about the territory of Abya Yala (the indigenous Kuna language name for present-day Colombia and Panama) for a long time. But this coveted kingdom of precious metals was much more than anyone could have imagined. This instrument is a reinterpretation of the meaning of precious metals in Colombia.

Many metal instruments arrived in Colombia through the Caribbean, were transformed, and became ubiquitous to many genres across the country. Now, as traditional rhythms are reinterpreted today in modern pop and dance music, instruments from neighbouring countries and musical traditions have also assumed the roles of more traditional Colombian instruments.

Within Oro we present a deep collection of metal percussion, modern valved brass instruments, and an architecturally acclaimed pipe organ, alongside analog and digitally processed versions of those source samples, and immersive nature ambiences. With this inspiring set of metal instruments and the transformative power of our acoustic synthesis engine, MNDALA 2, we offer you the next generation of tools for the transmutation of these musical traditions.

An Alchemical Transformation of Metal Instruments from Colombia

Stemming from the military band tradition, brass instruments now play a pivotal role in styles such as Chirimía from the Northern Pacific Region, Porro and Fandango in the Magdalena river basin, and in Salsa, a genre that found a cradle in the western branch of the Andes. This intersects with the history of church organs in the continent, whose repertoire was first played by brass ensembles before the organs were locally available.

The collect sounds within Oro have been expertly play by local artists who perform music styles from around the country. Each musician brought their unique perspectives, incorporating favourite techniques, arrangements, rhythms, and sounds, to create the unique fusion of Oro.

We introduce to you Oro, our token to a land where the music is as diverse as the natural landscape. We lovingly craft it as a revisionist take on the legend of the golden kingdom. Not a mythical land of riches to be exploit, but a dynamic, ever-changing, and generous hub of creativity and diversity. Oro is our invitation to keep creating and transforming music and tradition, rooted in the respect we extend to those who invest time in learning and sharing. The animated Perform View artwork, reflecting this, stems from the true appearance of what precious means in this land: woven textiles, bright colours, water, and syncretism.