Musician Petitions for Forest to Be Recognized as Song Co-Creator
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📰 The quick summary: Musician Cosmo Sheldrake creates innovative compositions using sounds from nature, with his latest project seeking legal recognition for an Ecuadorian forest as co-creator of a song, advancing rights for the more-than-human world.
📈 One key stat: Sheldrake already donates half of his royalties to conservation efforts, highlighting the significant financial impact artists can make on environmental protection.
💬 One key quote: “To really listen to a healthy ecosystem is quite something. It’s a massive, rich sonic tapestry,” says Sheldrake.
1️⃣ The big picture: Cosmo Sheldrake, a UK-based musician and field recordist, transforms nature’s sounds into innovative musical compositions. His work prominently features recordings of endangered British birds, ocean sounds like coral reefs and blue whale songs, and most recently, the sounds of Ecuador’s Los Cedros cloud forest. Beyond merely using these sounds, Sheldrake acknowledges nature as his collaborator. His latest project, ‘Song of the Cedros,’ created with writer Robert Macfarlane and other collaborators, might make history as the first musical work to legally recognize an ecosystem as co-creator, with streaming income supporting forest preservation.
2️⃣ Why is this good news: Sheldrake’s work brings attention to endangered species and fragile ecosystems by featuring their sounds in accessible, engaging music. The legal petition to recognize Los Cedros forest as a co-creator could establish a groundbreaking precedent for acknowledging the creative contribution of natural environments. This approach creates a direct financial link between art and conservation, with streaming revenue supporting protection efforts. The project extends the growing rights of nature movement into creative and intellectual property realms, potentially opening new avenues for environmental protection and public engagement with wilderness.
3️⃣ What’s next: The More Than Human Life project awaits Ecuador’s copyright office decision on recognizing Los Cedros forest as moral author of the song. If granted, this would create a legal precedent for more-than-human creativity in other artistic works. Sheldrake continues his musical exploration while advocating for people to take the concept of more-than-human creativity seriously.
Read the full story here: Positive News – The man who makes music with the more-than-human world
