Splice Soundscapes Antarctica with Madame Gandhi X Sound MANA

On an expedition to Antarctica in 2022 with dozens of musicians, activists and creators, Madame Gandhi, award-winning artist, speaker, and activist, was awe-struck by the vast beauty of our southernmost continent. Antarctica is one of the most threatened places by climate change and Madame Gandhi wanted to capture the fleeting, delicate, and increasingly rare sounds of this precious ecosystem. 

Since 1950, the Antarctic Peninsula has warmed almost 3°C (5.4°F). That's more warming than anywhere else in the Southern Hemisphere. Global warming has changed Antarctic weather patterns such that strengthened westerly winds force warm air eastward over the Antarctic Peninsula's 2km-high mountain chain. When this happens in summer, temperatures in the north-east Peninsula warm by around 5°C. Overall warmer temperatures along the peninsula are increasing ice melt across the continent and have caused several giant ice shelves to break apart, which threatens sea levels across the globe, amongst other damaging consequences.

“Really the idea of coming back with all of these nature sounds is, as a musician can I use my gift, my talent, my passion, to create empathy and awareness around climate change and can it inspire climate action.”- Madame Gandhi

All of the sounds in this pack are derived from field recordings captured in Antartica. From beautiful underwater ambiences of ice caps melting to the flamboyant squawking of Gentoo Penguins, to angry seal growls, and whipping arctic winds - its all here. These recordings were then taken and flipped into incredible electronic instruments with the help of sound designer and producer Sound MANA and engineer and producer Kevin McCann. These guys created gorgeous synth pads made from melting ice, bouncy percussion beats made from snow and Antarctic rock, and even killer penguin synths - yes that’s right…penguin synths!!!

“The more we fall in love with this planet, the more we feel motivated to do something”.

Madame Gandhi’s simple and beautiful philosophy on this project is to inspire others to fall in love with our planet through sound and music, and hopefully in falling in love with our planet we feel more inspired to take action. So take these magical icy sounds that will forever be frozen in time and create music that inspires others to love our planet and take action. 

A portion of proceeds from this pack will go directly to The 2041 Foundation who’s mission is to engage businesses and communities on climate science, personal leadership, and the promotion of sustainable practices to preserve of Antarctica through the promotion of recycling, renewable energy and sustainability to combat the effects of climate change.

Sound MANA stands for Music, Art, Nature, and Awareness. It is a music studio in Woodstock, New York, located on the second floor of ISObarn. Co-founded by Atropolis and his wife, Sound MANA's mission is to reunite artists with their home, Nature, by immersing them in the beauty of the Catskill Mountains and teaching them how to turn Nature field recordings into music.

Madame Gandhi was their first student in the summer of 2020. Atropolis, an Ableton certified trainer, taught Madame Gandhi how to use Ableton Live to turn any Nature field recording into a musical element, such as a synth, pad, and drum kit. This time, together, they catalyzed their first collaborative sample pack for Splice, Madame Gandhi x Sound MANA: 100% Organically Sourced Material From Nature Field Recordings.

Learn more at https://2041foundation.org

255 Samples