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[ ] [ ] [ ] is a sonic meditation on listening to the breath, and crucially, to the spaces in-between sound. Invoking the Japanese concept of Ma, which is about leaving space, or opening space to let the gods in, this piece summons the more-than-human in the interstices between gong strikes which come on every third exhalation. Taking cue from the breath as opposed to from the gong or more traditional or ‘musical’ timing, Drago attempts as John Cage phrases it, ‘to sober and quiet the mind thus making it susceptible to divine influences.’ Taking musical cues from the breath can also be seen as a method of anchoring oneself to the present moment, to the body, and to the wind element itself, something the artist sees as an important tool for facing the sixth mass extinction with courage and curiosity.

In [ ] [ ] [ ] a deep listener may notice in which ways the sound of the gong, occurrences in the physical space and in the artist’s body-mind alter the breath and thus the pace and/or nature of the gong striking. Two loudspeakers project record- ings from two previous iterations, ghosts of the past, evoking both a sense of continuation and of multiplicity, as the live and recorded gong strikes fall in and out of phase.
The distinct iconography of the extinction rebellion logo on the gong and the wearing of a keffiyeh hints at what or who this devotional ritual might be for, and its begs the question, how many more lives must be martyred before humanity wakes up to the multiple crises it faces?

[ ] [ ] [ ] was performed on the Taurus Full Moon, 15 November 2024, in a public space in Struer as part of the Sound Art Lab Residency that Drago participated in in November 2024.