Sounds of Gathering

A new initiative by IN/PACT that aims to bring music by Indigenous artists and composers to more stages around the world

Sounds of Gathering is a new initiative within the IN/PACT New Music Network, bringing together festivals and concert presenters from Norway, Canada, Brazil and Australia. The starting point is to create more room for encounters, and to share new works and ideas by Indigenous artists globally.

For a long time, Indigenous artists have been underrepresented on established music stages. This has reduced visibility and helped sustain broader systemic inequalities. In recent years, growing movements for Indigenous rights and cultural recognition have also asked the contemporary music field to reflect on its own responsibilities, and on how it can contribute to change.

In 2024, partners across four continents responded by beginning to build a shared platform, one that supports Indigenous creation in new music and makes space for deeper, longer relationships. The project is guided by an advisory group of Indigenous composers, musicians and researchers: Dylan Robinson (Stó:lō/Skwah), Idjahure Kadiwel (Terena and Kadiwéu), Arve Nordland (representing Samisk Komponister), Chris Sainsbury, and Nicole Smede (Worimi, of mixed European ancestry). Together, we are working to strengthen connections between presenters, Indigenous communities and local contexts, not as a one off gesture, but as a foundation for lasting collaboration and exchange.

The first official Sounds of Gathering event takes place during La Semaine du Neuf at Le Vivier in March 2026. From there, the initiative will grow over time. While the final form and artistic outcomes are still taking shape, the project is conceived as a multi year framework for residencies, concerts and gatherings with Indigenous artists from around the world. Alongside the artistic programme, it is also an invitation for presenters to reflect on their own working methods, and to learn from the diversity of practices, histories and cultural contexts that the project brings into the room.

Partners festivals and presenters

Sounds of Gathering was initiated by the IN/PACT New Music Network. Partners are Ultima Oslo Contemporary Music Festival (Norway), Música Estranha Festival (Brazil), Music on Main (Canada), Le Vivier (Canada/Québec) and Canberra International Music Festival (Australia).

Acknowledgements

The partners warmly thank the Nordic Culture Fund for supporting the development of the project through the Globus FORWARD funding programme, as well as the Québec Ministry of Culture and Communications, the Québec government offices abroad, and Arts Council Norway.