Sonic Cartographies:
Tracing the Garifuna Migration through Sound
As part of Central American Futurities 2.0—a transnational two-day conference held at Dartmouth College in April 2025—artist and composer Philip P. Harper (Tru) presented a site-specific iteration of his research project “ECHOES“, Tracing the Garifuna Migration through Sound. This sound-based work maps the migratory pathways of the Garifuna people from the coasts of Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Panama into Southern Belize- using sound as a connective tissue between land, language, memory, and the resistance embodied by diasporic communities.
The presentation took place within the “Care, Community, Identity & Autonomy” panel, alongside thought leaders such as Tomás Ayuso, Dorian Wood, Trooko, José Giddel, Derrick Martinez (nephew of Garifuna music legend Aurelio Martinez), and Dr. Eileen Galvez among others.
This research continues FORTHEFUTURE’s mission of documenting diasporic memory and community repair through art, education, and experimentation.
Images c/o E. Hong, CAFC 2025
Explore more from ECHOES and our evolving research into sound, place, and diaspora.