Demise x OSU’s Andean Ensemble: Celebrating Community Through Sound

Earlier this year Demise co-founder Toby Zuniga-Shaw decided to step out of his musical comfort zone by joining a traditional drumming group, Ohio State’s Andean Music Ensemble. The group consisted of students who have a passion for music, culture, and community. Performing mostly pieces with roots in the Andes region of Peru, you could catch the ensemble performing at campus events, concerts, or even on the oval.

The ensemble leads by example and proves that indigenous music has a place in academic society, while also spawning a team of multi-faceted individuals to provide a means for change through inspiration and the arts.

Needless to say, Toby enjoyed his time in the ensemble.

Toby was so inspired by the group that he felt an obligation, as a co-founder of an organization like Demise, to document the space to the best of his ability. Enlisting the help of fellow Demise Co-Founder Javier Cruz, the pair recorded both auditory and visual examples of the ensemble’s work. By creating this archive of the group’s work, Demise hopes to amplify and solidify the influence that the group carries. We wanted to highlight and encourage spaces that promote indigenous and multicultural work to bring attention to and increase participation in similar spaces, and to give more credit and recognition to the cultures and traditions that deserve it.

We live in a time of uncertainty and divisiveness, though for thousands of years music has acted as a catalyst of community, a cradle for culture, and one of the purest forms of self-expression. It is high time that we all follow in the footsteps of the members of Ohio State’s Andean Music Ensemble and take advantage of all that music has to offer, because music really can be a helpful metaphor for life. When you collaborate with those around you and constantly listen with an open heart, you just might catch your rhythm.