With a communal spirit, 'Of Resonant Presences' makes space to gather and celebrate Indigenous sonic and performance practices anchored by five sound artists and two supporting visual artists. This program considers the possibility of these artists' sensate creations as Indigenous epistemic, archival, and sovereign intermediaries. Moreover, this occasion seeks to encourage experimentation, dialogue, and moments of intersection through each artist's nuanced vantage point. Ranging from the trumpet, violin, guitar effects, hand drum, voice, projected animation, each of their sensorial works come together to reverberate Indigenous presences (past and current) as a decolonial act and a  forward continuity of Indigeneity.

 

This program is a single-night event FREE and open to the public. However, it has a limited admission capacity and admittance is by email RSVP. Documentation will be captured for those unable to attend. Each artist will perform a set they designed for this occasion with room for improvisation. 

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Curated by Luther Konadu

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Participating artists include: 

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Zoon

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Zoon, short for “zoongide’ewin,” an Ojibway term signifying bravery, is the sound project helmed by Daniel Monkman based between Winnipeg and Toronto. They are also a  concurrent  member of the band Ombiigizi with fellow Indigenous musician Adam Sturgeon. Zoon recently release their second studio record titled 'Bekka Ma'iingan'. In a Pitchfork review, they describe Monkman's album as an example of the implicit radicalism of shoegaze. They write further,  "after all, more than any other subgenre, it has always been about blurring binaries, by dissolving the distinctions between the male and female voice, between rock formalism and avant-garde experimentation, between noise and tranquility." The New York Times also recently described their work as "amorphous gusts of sound[...]that make every perception sound fragile and precious.” Monkman is ​a member of​ Brokenhead Ojibway Nation reservation near Winnipeg, Manitoba. We are very honoured to have their performance as part of this program. 

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Melody McKiver

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Melody Mckiver is a violist and drummer/percussionist currently based in Winnipeg, MB (Treaty One). They are an Assistant Professor of Indigenous Music in the Desaultels Faculty of Music and the University of Manitoba, and a member of Obishikokaang First Nation in neighbouring Treaty Three.

Chuck Copenace

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Chuck Copenace is a trumpet player, arranger, and composer based in Winnipeg, originally from Kenora with ancestral roots in Animakee Wazhing 37.  Copenace has performed widely across Canada, the USA, and internationally. He’s also played session gigs with a wide range of Winnipeg artists. His own work fuses contemporary interpretations of sweat-lodge melodies with jazz and elements of dance and electronica.

lawerence teeth + Rain from Heaven 

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lawrence teeth is a music project by multidisciplinary artist, seth cardinal dodginghorse, who is a member of Tsuut’ina/Amskapi Piikani/Saddle Lake Cree Nation. They've recorded records under this moniker with a new release set to arrive next year. Their practice honours their connection to land and explores the effects of environmental /psychological damage. They are currently based in guts’ists’i / mohkinstsis (Calgary).

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Rain from Heaven is the genre-defying project of vocalist/producer/multimedia artist Isabel Vazquez. Driven by dynamic vocals, gritty guitars, and “big drums” her songs weave together elements of grunge, trip-hop, and folk-pop. Rain from Heaven’s upcoming self-titled debut record explores the landscapes of her lived experiences. She is based nomadically between Western Canada, New York, and her ancestral homelands in Southern California and Europe. Together with seth, they'll be performing each other's work for this program. 

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Casey Koyczan

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Casey Koyczan is a Dene interdisciplinary artist from Yellowknife, NT currently based in Winnipeg MB. He uses various mediums to communicate how culture and technology can grow together in order for us to develop a better understanding of who we are, where we come from, and what we will be. He creates with whatever tools necessary to bring an idea to fruition, and specializes in sculpture, installation, 3D/VR/AR/360, video, and audio works such as music, soundscapes and film scores.

Taylor McArthur

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Taylor McArthur (Nakota of Pheasant Rump Nakota First Nation, Saskatchewan) is a digital artist working with 3D animation, video game design, and video. Her practice is informed by Indigenous Futurisms and seeks to situate her Indigenous culture within both the modern and a potential future vision. McArthur is currently pursuing graduate studies at Concordia University.