Terraforma
A decade of harmonizing environment and music while igniting inspiration and pioneering the future. Terraforma is an international festival of experimental music driven by a deep love for the environment and its people. However, limiting the definition of Terraforma to a simple music festival seems overly simplistic, as it doesn’t fully capture the vast, interdisciplinary nature of this project.
David Toop performing at Terraforma Exo 2024, via Stefano Mattea.
Founded in 2014 by the creative agency Three, the name “Terraforma” was conceived for exactly what it is, inspired by the concept of terraforming: an artificial process that transforms an uninhabitable planet into one capable of sustaining human life by altering its atmosphere. This philosophy serves as the foundation for the festival, which aims to create a perfect environment for human connection and creativity. The festival promotes music and art while maintaining a conscious approach based on sustainable culture, making it the perfect space for those who want a multidisciplinary experience.
This festival’s values have been clear since its inception. Terraforma began with an urban regeneration project, focusing on the environment of Villa Arconati. In collaboration with the Augusto Rancillo Foundation, they breathed new life into the historic garden, transforming it into a space that will benefit the community for years to come.
The restoration of Villa Arconati’s historic garden began as the result of a 3-year project in collaboration with Borotalco, with the aim of reconstructing an 18th-century labyrinth from scratch. Developed by Fosbury Architecture and inspired by a series of ancient drawings by Marc Antonio Dal Re, the labyrinth, completed in 2018, features 500 specimens of Carpinus Betulus (European hornbeam), blending seamlessly with the surrounding flora. For the past two years, Terraforma has been involved in a biennial reforestation project for the camping area. Designed by Space Caviar, the project draws inspiration from the work of architect Cesare Leonardi, known for the book "The Architecture of Trees". Over 100 trees have been planted, echoing the 1982 performance by Joseph Beuys, in which he and the Kassel community in Germany planted 7000 oaks. Many international experimental music artists have graced the Terraforma stage over the years, including Laurie Anderson, Autechre, Suzanne Ciani, Laraaji, Jeff Mills, Caterina Barbieri, and Charlemagne Palestine. The festival’s focus on sustainability and the environment extends to the performance line-up. As stated on the official website, they have adopted a "one stage at a time" approach to “ensure a seamless and immersive musical experience for the audience, with no overlapping shows”. Through this policy, the audience has the opportunity to immerse themselves in a totally organic musical experience, with performances alternating on the various stages.
Being a multidisciplinary experience, Terraforma has given rise to various experiential and editorial formats over the years. All of these are driven by a spirit of innovation and research, incorporating different art forms across various contexts and cities. One such format is “Il Pianeta Come Festival” (The Planet as Festival), which creates a dialogue between sound and architecture to establish new configurations. The planet serves as the creative incubator, and the performance takes the form of the place it inhabits, exploring the ecological meaning of co-existence. Through seemingly utopian languages, Terraforma contributes to the generation of new reference universes. For the second edition of “Il Pianeta XL”, Terraforma re-imagined the spaces of the MACRO Museum in Rome, transforming it into a club that hosted live shows, DJ sets, and installations. The event featured performances by Bill Kouligas, Crystallmess, Heith, Honour, Katja Novitskova, and a collaboration between Low Jack and Le Diouck.
The Museo Macro of Rome turned into a temporary club for the 2nd edition of Il Pianeta XL, via Il Pianeta Come Festival official website.
“Il Pianeta Come Festival” is not the only satellite project. There’s also "Terraforma Journal", a biannual publication that explores the intersection of sound, art, ecology, and contemporary culture. Additionally, there’s "Terraforma Symposium", a format launched in 2021 that offers a space for discussion through multidisciplinary activities. It aims to address issues such as sustainability through a series of lectures, workshops, and sound interventions, providing an innovative listening experience. The second episode of Symposium, for instance, featured a screening of The Institute of Queer Ecology: Metamorphosis, along with conversations with TF Journal editors and a live performance of Glacier Music (a project of the Goethe Institut) with Robert Lippok, Anushka Chkheidze, Eto Gelashvili, Hayk Karoyi. These three parallel projects illustrate the myriad opportunities that art, performance, and music offer to bring together local and international communities, all while honoring sustainability and the organic nature of our habitat. The environment is more than just a backdrop for stages and concerts; it represents a space for thoughtful living and respectful inhabitation, allowing us to create non-ephemeral and meaningful communal spaces.
In 2022, after a two-year hiatus, Terraforma returned to Villa Arconati with its most radical experience, bringing together audiences through music and dance. The event featured performances by Amnesia Scanner, Autechre, Voices From The Lake, Common People, Valentina Magaletti, Paquita Gordon, Crystallmess, DJ Marcelle / Another Nice Mess, DJ Nigga Fox, DJ Red, Donato Dozzy, and many others. In the same year, the festival was certified as an Ecoevent, thanks to the support of Etica Funds and Legambiente. This certification further demonstrates how new spaces can be transformed. Additionally, in 2022, the Vaia Stage was introduced, designed by Space Caviar and named after the severe weather event that struck the northeastern regions of Italy. The Vaia Storm devastated about 42,500 hectares of forest, and the stage was built using wood from trees felled by the storm.
In 2024, Terraforma celebrated the tenth anniversary of its Manifesto, marking the perfect occasion for the release of an LP featuring tracks by artists and friends such as Lorenzo Senni, Caterina Barbieri, and Suzanne Ciani. However, the most significant news of the year was the launch of Terraforma Exo, a new cultural manifesto that extends beyond traditional venues to explore new geographies. Terraforma Exo features moments of introspection, sound walks, live performances, installations, and conversations with leading thinkers, musicians, and artists working in the realms of sound and ecology. The ecological dimension remains central while transforming spaces and offering new ways of coexistence for humanity.
Worth mentioning is the presence of David Toop at the Exo, who has been pushing the boundaries of sound, music, and materials since the 1970s. Known for his improvisation and electronic sound, Toop presented a lecture and a live performance titled "Resonance, Ecologies, and Ways of Listening" in collaboration with Dialogo/Obscure Records. The American artist was not the only star at Terraforma Exo. Japanese techno legend DJ Nobu, a cult figure with decades of experience, is renowned for his ability to draw from a wide range of music to create his own unique sound. This versatility made him one of the most eagerly awaited artists at the festival among true connoisseurs of the genre. These two artists are just some of the highlights featured at Exo 2024.
Robert Henke bringing his performance CBM 8032 AV on the stage of Terraforma Exo 2024, via
Terraforma is more than just a festival; it is a platform, a philosophy, and a manifesto that explores the intersection of art and sustainability. It’s no surprise that the format “The Planet As Festival” was inspired by an article from 1972 in Casabella (no. 365) by Ettore Sottass Jr., who envisioned a future without cities on earth due to the “explosive decentralization of the distribution of consumption”. What are the benefits of the consistent efforts by organizers and artists to support ecology and the environment? When channeled appropriately, music and art can mirror ecological concerns but also contribute to shaping a culture that prioritizes sustainability and environmental protection.
