Indigenous music, art and culture center
Donation protected
My names Joseph Dean, I'm an artist named Natural Symphony, I create music and immersive art installations, all controlled by nature. Iv spent the past 3 years coming to the Amazon, recording nature with 3D-spatial audio/bio-sonics equipment. Ive been supporting reforestation projects, learning the way of life here and looking for traditional music and art.....
I found it hard to find authentic, traditional music, and the more I looked, the harder it was, and the harder it was, the more concerned I became.
Eventually I uncovered a small network of indigenous artists, and began to learn their difficulties......
Life in the forest is made to be difficult by industries, people walk away from their traditions, sometimes by force, tricks, destruction of land, lack of resources due to deforestation & contaminated rivers.
As modern society is edging into the forest, people have less time to just….be.
Because of this, today's youth are being more drawn towards making money in modern society and leaving their true identities behind. Traditional knowledge, music, and art are at risk of becoming a past time. Today's society holds no space for indigenous values or tradition. Foreign rhythms dominate. There are no dedicated spaces for ancestral interpretation and cultural preservation, authorities provide little to no support or funding, indigenous artists are often underpaid, not recognized, and in many cases been offered food as payment.
For me this is not acceptable.
After connecting with many communities in the Amazon, I started to call local artists for meetings, and brainstorming sessions. It became apparent to us that uniting as one would give our newfound artist community strength, putting aside any differences, and forming a collective would allow us to make an impact.
Now...We are about to shake up the music and art industry in South America.
To do this, we have formed a bigger network of artists, a record label/agency, community meet-ups/jams, and a system of fair pay.
But.....
We need our own permanent space to operate.
So together we have created the following.....
Seeds of Sound by Natural Symphony
Myself and a group of Amazonian Indigenous artists have formed a collective called 'Semillas de Sonidos' translated as 'Seeds of Sound'. Together, we are building a free-to-use music, arts, and culture centre deep in the Amazon rainforest to help Indigenous nations reconnect with and preserve their traditions.
Equipped with modern recording technology, traditional instruments, and performance areas, this space will be a sanctuary for learning, teaching, and creative expression, strengthening cultural identity and ancestral wisdom.
This GoFundMe will raise funds towards construction, materials and legal costs.
We are building an artists retreat space with a gallery and performance area for Amazonion and foreign artists to create, collaborate, connect, display, perform, teach and preserve traditions, whilst providing a sustainable business model and fair income for locals.
Who this space will support:
Local Artists – A safe place to record, perform, earn, and share their music and art with each other and the world.
Indigenous Children & Youth – A space to reconnect with their roots, learn ancestral music and arts, and gain skills in modern filmmaking and music production to document their culture.
Indigenous Nationalities –This is a multi-nationality, cultural space. Our arts community here, in the Napo region of the Ecuadorian, Amazon Rainforest is growing and currently made up of Kichwa, Siekopai, Kofan, and Shuar communities. Here they will be able to share knowledge, create music together and connect and collaborate in a safe and neutral space.
Foreign Artists – A unique opportunity to stay with and collaborate with Indigenous musicians in the jungle through artist residencies, skill exchanges, and cultural immersions.
Nature & Reforestation – A portion of all proceeds from music sales, artist residencies, and art purchases will fund Amazon conservation and reforestation projects.
Worldwide Audiences – Audiences looking for authentic Indigenous music and culture, otherwise hidden in the forests and unheard by the world.
Why this matters:
Many Indigenous artists lack access to recording equipment, funding, and global recognition. Support is often limited to city-based artists, leaving the true voices of the forest unheard.
The project will be a self-sustainable operation that allows artists from the Amazon and around the world to unite and support themselves and the forest.
This will be an artists sanctuary, a beautiful space to create, to learn, to share and inspire.
It's about displaying our message....as artists
It's about preserving who we are….as humans
It's about connecting to our identities through our ancestors.
It's about preserving our cultures as one….
By bridging this gap, we can empower artists, preserve traditions, and support reforestation efforts through music.
We Need You!
We are calling on donors, sponsors, musicians, artists, teachers, and retreat hosts to join us in making this vision a reality.
Support the movement.
Collaborate. Donate. Share.
Visit www.naturalsymphony.co.uk to get involved!
Let’s protect Indigenous culture, uplift artists, and heal the Earth through music and art.
Please Support us in bringing it to life!
Below is some content and designs.....
Seeds of sound community:
Over the past few months I have sat down with each individual artist and recorded and collaborated on music, they all had the same issues, faced more or less the same problems, and all want change!
I brought everyone together into the same room, and we have worked on a what is now a solid plan to create a brighter future for all artists, from all nations.
But ...... we need you help!
✨️
Brainstorming session:
Community jam/meet-up
3 'semillas de sonido' members, each from different indigenous nations collaborating in a music jam
The time has come to build our own unique space....
Please note .....The following images are ultra realistic design models based upon locals needs, capabilities and ideas, currently this building is a concept and does not exist....YET!
Cultural space:
We are in need of a new space, purpose built for recording and offering capability of generating an income for local artists, the building will contain a recording studio, performance area, traditional art and instrument gallery and a classroom.
Our Indigenous record label and booking agency will be operated from this space too.
Accommodation:
A lot of artists who are part of seeds of sounds community live very deep in the forest, in some cases they would travel for days to use the space and would require accommodation, the same for foreign artists residencies. The cabins would be operated and handled by local indigenous communities which also offers them financial support.
Artist's Cabin designs:
Location:
The 'Semilla De Sonido' community space will be located next to YAKUM'S Cultural food and forest hub in the Napo region of Amazon rainforest.
Who is YAKUM?
YAKUM is a reforestation and food sovereignty project that helps regenerate and preserve indigenous food culture.
This unity will provide a cross-pollination space, where people can come and learn about traditional food, plants, dance, music and arts of the Amazon rainforest.
On site will be a huge YAKUM nursery, growing Indigenous superfoods and trees from all nations. Which, when big enough move out into their forever homes across different territories.
There's a kitchen space offering local indigenous foods, reforestation workshops, traditional music and art classes, performance spaces, art + instrument gallery with indigenous library and wisdom archive.
Access to private cabins, nature trails and natural swim spots, native language lessons, tours with local guides.
Organiser
Joseph Dean
Organiser
England