Festival Of The Ecstatic Announces SUPERDRONE

Supersense: Festival of the Ecstatic will present a grand, immersive nod to the timeless impact of drone music in SUPERDRONE, a free Supersense event as part of White Night Reimagined on Saturday 24 August. Set within the underground labyrinth of the breathtaking State Theatre complex, the supersensory event will feature a secret line-up of extraordinary artists performing a continuous concert of magnificent vibration that has to be experienced to be believed.

Drone, a musical technique based on sustaining notes and texture, stretches back to the earliest forms of human artistic expression, persisting as an infinite thread through musical history - from the digeridoos of Indigenous song lines, to the rituals of Southeast Asia, Europe, Africa and the Middle East. It has continued to thrive in every form of music since, refracted in the blinding revelations of The Velvet Underground, spiritual jazz, techno, ambient music and 20th century minimalism.

Created by musician and Supersense curator Sophia Brous, the event features an extraordinary line-up of musical innovators from across Australia and around the world.

"SUPERDRONE is a total environment that explores the beauty, power and transcendence of the drone tradition. It will unify the senses and intensify a collective experience of sound and time. It's a space to lie down inside and stay a minute or an eternity," says curator Sophia Brous.

SUPERDRONE can be experienced from 7pm - midnight on Saturday 24 August as part of the Supersense festival and provides an opportunity for as many people as possible to experience the wonder and ecstatic joy of Supersense. Visitors who would like to extend their experience can visit the Australian Music Vault which will remain open until 2am or attend one of the ticketed Supersense programs on this date including Supersense MINIMAL, Robert Wilson performing John Cage's Lecture on Nothing and Medium by Rianto or check out the full three-day festival program online.

Supersense: Festival of the Ecstatic, created by Arts Centre Melbourne, with Australian New York-based performer and curator Sophia Brous is a hypnotic collision of music, performance, dance and theatre from 23 - 25 August, 2019. The third iteration of the intoxicating exploration of ecstatic performance is the most bold, distinctive and cross-disciplinary yet. Featuring icons of music, theatre, dance and performance ritual from five continents, Supersense is presented over three days in the underground labyrinth of Arts Centre Melbourne.

Ticketed performances include groundbreaking jazz group The Art Ensemble of Chicago in their 50th Anniversary tour (USA) sublime NZ songwriter Aldous Harding, Californian music enigma John Maus (USA), prophetic electronic and R&B artist Moor Mother (USA), the Merce Cunningham Centennial Solo performances (USA), divine troubadour Marlon Williams (NZ) with The Impossible Orchestra (AUS), mind-blowing Indonesian ritual trio Setabuhan (INDONESIA), Tasmania's post-punk duo The Native Cats (AUS), and many more.

Arts Centre Melbourne, in association with Curator Sophia Brous, presents
SUPERDRONE
As part of Supersense: Festival of the Ecstatic
Saturday 24 August
7pm - midnight
FREE
Visit artscentremelbourne.com.au/supersense
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