Biography

My name is Ronan Skillen. I was born in 1980 in N. Ireland and shortly after moved to Germany with my parents in 1982. I grew up in Bochum and lived there for 18 years. My school years were spent at the Rudolf Steiner Schule Bochum where I matriculated in 1999. As part of school I was a French horn player in 3 orchestras and studied classical music for about 7 years. 

I was then introduced to the Australian didgeridoo by master drummer, Emmanuel Gomado of Ghana.  This sparked many new avenues and collaborations and allowed me to explore my first improvisational experiences with music. No notes, no rules, no limits. At age fifteen I went on a nine-month school exchange to Cape Town, South Africa where I decided that music would always be a major part of my life. After school I traveled to the U.S., New Zealand and Australia but ended up in Cape Town, South Africa where I've been living ever since.

Having been passionate about percussion and always keen on the Tabla I was lucky enough to meet a great Tabla master who was touring South Africa at the time. I began playing Tabla in 2002 after being invited to study in Delhi. My teacher, Ustad Akram Khan is India’s master of a very rich and intricately technical North Indian style known as the Ajarara Gharana. It also happens to be the oldest style in the Tabla Gharana. As a disciple continuous learning is the focus so I regularly visit India to further my studies. I've been exploring combining Tabla with western jazz and world music and have invented a way of playing Didgeridoo and Tabla simultaneously along with a whole host of other percussion that I've picked up on my way.

I currently live in Cape Town where I teach and perform, write music for soundtracks and collaborate in various music projects ranging from jazz and world music right through to rock and pop. I've performed in Europe, India and southern Africa in theatre productions, dance companies and concert ensembles. My search for the magic we can access in music and the joy it translates across all cultural boundaries is an ever-evolving and exciting way of life for me.


Interview

1) How did you find NetworkM and what attracted you to join?

I was referred to NetworkM when I asked, “how do we keep in touch?” at this year's festival.forum in Dornach, Switzerland.

2) What deep or profound questions about life currently live within you and how are you working with them?

There are a few:

1. Why are we as people so fascinated by mystery; and will go to almost any length just to find out if what we think it is matches our analysis?

2. How do I decide, with all the thousands of possibilities available to me, what to really focus on? And out of all these options how do I balance myself with the world ethically, morally and spiritually? Is it a privilege for me as a 1st world citizen to have access to thousands of possibilities at the click of a button or is it more a distraction?  

3. Do people really only believe what they know?


3) How would you define social renewal and what role does it play in your life?

Getting used to the idea that meeting new people who share similar ideas and are open towards one another is normal.


4) Describe how you are striving to make the world a better place. Where is this striving leading you as your future unfolds? What impacts do you see it making in the world?

I believe that creating music is in itself a way of creating harmony in the world. For the bigger picture my hope is to reconnect people with themselves and with each other. There's a timelessness in music that is powerful enough to affect enough people to lead to positive change. You're working with actual energy that is absorbed and processed by people regardless of whether or not they are aware of it. With the right intention in music it is possibly the most powerful medium we can access.

5) How do you balance your ideals with the reality of your everyday life?

I try to find small details in every day situations that translate to my ideals and focus on positive real aspects that I can identify with. With this attitude there's always possibility for balance and adaptability. Human beings are the most adaptable creatures.


6) What organizations--if any--are you affiliated with? Tell us a little about them and your attraction to them.  What sort of impact are they making in the world? Describe any similarities in your personal philosophy or interests and those of the organization.

I'm not really part of any organization. Although I do have a bank account with the Triodos Bank which is a corporation that conducts its business in a sustainable ethically minded and morally correct way.


7) How do you maintain your integrity when faced with difficult ethical and moral issues that run counter to your values?

Because I am faced with these issues every day, as soon as I step out my door I have to focus my attention on which part I can play to change things positively. I do believe a single person can make big changes in the world. If you think of Gandhi as only one example of many, then maintaining your vision and spreading ethically correct ways of life will naturally find and attract the right people to create more awareness in these areas.

I think for everyday life activity just being conscious of my actions and thoughts can make all the difference. Small things like switching lights off when you leave a room or using the cold tap instead of the hot one when washing my hands all play a part in this. Thoughts are what shape me intellectually and what manifest into what I believe about myself.