Numena (1987) is an album by the American ambient musician Robert Rich. This is the most active solo album Rich had released by this time. It features the use of a variety of acoustic percussion instruments and just intonation for the first time in Rich’s career.

Numena
Studio album by Robert Rich
Released	1987
Recorded	1985–86 in Palo Alto, California
Genre	Ambient
Length	53:14
Label	Multimood
Producer	Robert Rich
Robert Rich chronology
Inner Landscapes (1987) Numena (1987) Rainforest (1989)

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The longest and most complicated track on the album is a piece called “The Other Side of Twilight”. It consists of two movements, each with a different gamelan-inspired electronic sequence and natural ambience.

This is also the first Robert Rich album to be originally released on compact disc. In 1997 Numena was bound in a two disc set with the album Geometry.

Note

Prior to the release of this album a shorter alternate version of “The Other Side of Twilight” was broadcast on the National Public Radio program Music from the Hearts of Space.

Track listing

1. ”The Other Side of Twilight” – 25:04
2. ”Moss Dance” – 5:40
3. ”Numen” – 11:51
4. ”The Walled Garden” – 10:31