THE TRIBE

The Tribe Exclusive featuring Nautilus Production House

This Tribe #ErongoExclusive features one of the most sought-after production houses in the Land of the Brave.

Making waves not only in the Erongo Region but across Namibia, too, Nautilus Production House is doing big things in the music industry and raising the bar of excellence with each production they work on. Co-owners Reiner von Hatten and Gernot Fritze take us through the 15 years of dream-chasing which led them to where they are today. They also share details on their inspiring All Ears Music Production which kept Namibians jiving during the 2020 Covid-19 lockdown.

Where did it all start, what is the history behind Nautilus?

Reiner: In my pursuit to uncover who was doing music at the time I very quickly identified that we didn’t need more music to be made, we needed to have conversations to be had about what we’re actually doing with music and where it’s heading. For the next ten years after I started out in the industry, I ended up working with many artists who as soon as they gained momentum would eventually move to Windhoek or South Africa to establish what they were trying to pursue. It became very clear that the coastal community needed a foundation. I ended up moving to Windhoek and worked in radio but after a few years I came back to the coast. It was just the perfect timing and the stars aligned. That’s when I ran into my business partner Gernot around six, seven years ago and that’s when the conversation started.

What are some of the projects that stood out?

Gernot: From the beginning, we kind of made it hard but exciting for ourselves. We didn’t want to be restricted to a genre or to only doing music. So we built a facility where we can do a little bit of everything.

For me, predominantly being a rock and metal producer and starting to work with Gospel artists, I really developed a love and a passion for gospel music. The more I worked with church bands and gospel groups, the discipline, the craftsmanship, the musicianship is something that stood out for me. Some of the memorable ones include Worship Outcry and Ponty Dikua… but there are too many to think of.

With the Covid pandemic hitting the music industry so hard, how did you cope?

Reiner: Also in this respect we can’t just talk about ourselves. One of the big things that happened last year was the National Arts Council of Namibia releasing the relief fund for artists. We decided to apply for funding for a project that was to benefit our local community through the All Ears event.

We pitched a live-stream studio recording session to show the public what musicians actually do in a recording studio. Through this, we had a total of about 26 session musicians get the opportunity to have paid work, be in the studio to record, collaborate and gain experience for that one week. That project has established a community at the coast that is involving itself in work that’s happening in our studio. So last year was actually a blessing in disguise.

Where do you see Nautilus over the next five years?

Reiner: This whole project started with big dreams but it will continue with big dreams. This industry is largely based on taking risks and that’s something that we’ve taken up well. Five years from now we want this industry to be slightly more established especially in our coastal community. When you go to your parents in five years and say you want to be a musician, the answer is not going to be ‘no’, they can rather go ‘look at Nautilus, it’s not impossible’.

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