Erika Grant and her sonic medicine kit. Photo: Holly Fenwick / Supplied
It was burnout that lead to the gongs. Burnout, and a bit of luck.
Erika Grant is a 'gong bath' practitioner, playing the percussion instruments in a way that washes over the listener and helps to ease a fractured mind.
Her gongs will form part of a Listening Occasion in this year's Lōemis midwinter festival in Wellington with Berlin-based performer Lou Drago.
Speaking to RNZ Concert, Grant said she turned to the gongs after suffering burnout after touring overseas with the music group, Orchestra of Spheres.
She'd heard about using the sound of softly played gongs to reduce stress, and came across a beautiful set of the instruments which belonged to the Wellington percussionist Simon O'Rorke.
"I asked if I could borrow them, and he said 'no'."
But several years later, when O'Rorke decided to sell them, Grant was the first person he contacted.
Ready to wash over you. Photo: Erika Grant
Grant is passionate about the healing potential of gong sound, which she believes relaxes the mind because a typical gong beat creates lots of harmonics.
Harmonics are the sound waves that vibrate above the basic tone of any instrument, or voice. Every voice or instrument has different harmonics - it's how we're able to tell an oboe and a flute apart even if they're playing the same note.
But Grant also says it's important to be careful when dispensing gong therapy.
It's easy for a gong bath to be too loud, which can have the opposite effect on a listener to the relaxation they were hoping for.
A little bit of gong can go a long way.
