Presenter
Songwriter and Performer, Public Transport Advocate, Operator of the Durie Hill Elevator
Few songwriters have followed a path quite like Anthonie Tonnon. Winner of New Zealand's Taite Music Prize, Tonnon has continually reinvented the way his songs are written, performed and experienced, while pursuing an enduring fascination with human geography and the systems that shape modern life.
Emerging from Dunedin in the 2010s with rough-edged pop songs, his work gradually embraced synthesizers, sampling and drum machines without ever abandoning its lyrical focus. His practice has also expanded beyond the stage, from immersive performances in planetariums and Rail Land - a touring show taking audiences by rail to historic halls - to operating Whanganui's historic Durie Hill Elevator and advocating for the revival of the city's public transport network.
In recognition of the geographical inquiry in both his songwriting and Rail Land, Tonnon was named New Zealand's Honorary Geographer in 2022, the same year he and longtime producer Jonathan Pearce won the Taite Music Prize for Leave Love Out of This.