New Program: New Delhi, India 2023

Global Music Collective is an organization founded by Kate Bass and Richard Steighner, building a growing series of recordings, performances, workshops, and forums with the mission of using the power of music across cultures and genres to break barriers, share platforms, support economic growth within local artistic communities, and forge connections across diverse backgrounds worldwide.

• With a history of engagement across 70+ countries, we have leveraged Embassy and US State Department collaborations to catalyze cultural exchange. We’ve observed the need for sustainable impact, not only for independent musicians worldwide but also for our international audiences who desire deeper engagement and understanding of unfamiliar cultures.
• Now we are gearing up for our next project in New Delhi in September. Collaborating with an amazing mixture of established and emerging local singers and instrumentalists, we aim to spotlight lesser-known musical styles and instruments (including Konnakol!). In tandem, we will host public forums and workshops with our collaborators and capture them on video. These will be cut into a documentary series exploring diverse music cultures, akin to a travel show focused on cultural depth, not just food or landmarks.

What We Need & What You Get

• Each regional Global Music Collective project has a baseline cost of $15,000, covering travel, lodging, studio rentals, recording engineer fees, venues, design work, and equitable compensation for our collaborating musicians. Scaling up, a larger budget empowers us to craft higher-quality albums, hire more local musicians, expand our offerings, and effectively share the essence of various regions with a global audience.
• Supporting this project gets you involved in the beginning of the Collective, with perks ranging from early releases of the albums to behind-the-scenes connections and future performance perks. The sky is the limit; every cent up to our goal will go towards our project in New Delhi, but every cent after will contribute towards important capacity-building funding with the possibility of backers even requesting certain locations.

The Impact

Global Music Collective’s impact is broad-reaching and grows exponentially with every project:

• Each Global Music Collective project not only makes an artistic impact on the hundreds of people that attend the live masterclasses, forums and performances, but boosts economic development within the community involved, including musicians, photographers, videographers, audio engineers, visual artists and artisans, poets, and designers, all of whom are paid fairly for their contributions. Furthermore, the reach of the albums online as well as the documented video series inspires, educates, and opens the eyes of countless people around the world. 
• Our recent venture in Uganda extended economic opportunities to over 55 Ugandan creatives spanning various disciplines. With a budget of only $15,000, we were able to collaboratively write, record, and produce an EP album of new, cross-cultural, and cross-linguistic songs as well as hold numerous performances showcasing emerging Ugandan talents to influential audiences, both local and international. Additionally, we orchestrated workshops and masterclasses that reached hundreds of Ugandan musicians, facilitating skill development, and fostering lasting connections. You can read more about our experience, here.
• The impact continues to grow after the program is over: every album’s release garners exposure to thousands around the world about all cultures involved, enriching mutual understanding beyond conventional sources. 

Risks & Challenges

Our $10,000 goal is the bare minimum cost to move forward with this project, and does not include any honorarium for Richard and Kate, legal fees, travel insurance, local transportation costs, mixing and mastering fees, publicity and promotional fees, distribution fees, or design fees. If we exceed our proposed minimum budget, stretch goals of meeting these other expenses will be detailed for transparency.

Other Ways You Can Help

Building a Collective means building a community, and that takes more than money! Whether you are able to give financially or not, your support of our project goes a long way. There are a number of other ways you can help:

• Firstly, the obvious! Connecting us with individuals who may be interested in helping, whether through sharing our project on social media or through email and text.
• Expanding our network of people in India (and beyond!) is also our intent. If you happen to know any people, collaborators, venues, or local partners you think this would spark interest for, please feel free to connect us.
• Indiegogo has many convenient sharing tools! Help us get the word out – the more we can build our network, the more of a chance we have to grow!

Help us create a new, inclusive platform; one that not only supports, but sustains the future of music and connection across cultures.

Help us bring the world closer through music.