Naragonia brings forth idiosyncratic folk with refined, robust energy. The duo spontaneously came together in the summer of 2003 at the Andanças festival in Portugal. Shortly thereafter, Naragonia became popular within the folk world and received warm acclaim from the press for their 8 albums, earning respect both domestically and internationally. Since 2003, Naragonia has been actively performing throughout Europe.
They inspire numerous other musicians, and many of their songs are covered or recorded by groups from both home and abroad, from Portugal to Russia, from Sweden to the United States. Some songs have indeed become genuine standards in the folk scene.
Over the years, various collaborations have been formed with theater (Tal en Thee and Theater de Spiegel) and foreign groups and musicians (Fernhill, Andy Cutting, Paulo Lameiro, Gregory Jolivet, and many others...). It's a rich story of countless journeys and beautiful encounters.
In his youth, Toon Van Mierlo studied oboe at the academy of Turnhout. At the age of 21, he was once again captivated by the music bug. Following a year-long stay in Ireland, Toon started playing the uilleann pipes. Shortly after, he discovered the French bagpipes, diatonic accordion, flutes, clarinet, and soprano saxophone. In 2003, Toon became the new musician for the folk group Fluxus. This marked the beginning of a whirlwind period, and Toon became a much sought-after musician in numerous formations (Göze XL, Floes, Amorroma, Embrun, Hot Griselda, ...). As a musical polymath, Toon is often requested as a teacher for workshops both domestically and internationally. He also teaches bagpipes at the music academy of Genk.
Pascale Rubens initially pursued a classical violin education but fell in love with the diatonic accordion at the age of 18. In 1999, she formed the duo Musaraigne with cellist Hannes Pouseele. The duo performed both domestically and internationally and released the album "Convoi exceptionnel" in 2005. That same year, Musaraigne represented Belgium at the ERU festival in Gdańsk (Poland). A few years later, Pascale became the new accordionist for Griff. In 2005, Griff released its first album. It was in 2003 that Pascale founded the duo Naragonia with Toon Van Mierlo, and Naragonia quickly became very popular in the folk world. In 2020, she formed a new duo with her sister Véronique Rubens: Systrar. Pascale also teaches diatonic accordion at the music academies of Schoten and Genk and is often requested as a teacher for workshops both domestically and internationally.