Yavireri – a Matsigenka word that can be understood as “those who live in the depths” – describes the spirits of the forest and those who, from within the jungle, sustain a way of life rooted in listening, vision, and oral tradition.
This recording is the result of two years of continuous coexistence by Hankel Bellido with Matsigenka communities of the Lower Urubamba in the southeastern Peruvian Amazon. Amongst the rivers, trails and campfires, Bellido recorded the songs, stories and soundscapes where the natural, spiritual, and acoustic worlds intertwine. The Matsigenka inhabit deep territories of Megantoni National Park, an area considered among the most biodiverse and culturally significant in the region. Their language, unwritten, is transmitted through songs, whispers and advice; their spirituality flows through visions, animal-spirits, and the memory of the forest.
The main voice of the recording is Edith Auca Ríos, an oral teacher and guardian of songs. Through her interpretations, a sonic worldview unfolds: where one sings to greet the day, care for children, converse with birds, bid farewell to the dead, or return from the invisible world. All recordings were captured in situ, walking or navigating alongside the communities, with no script or objective. It is not a folkloric reconstruction nor an academic document, rather a sonic witness to everyday life in the margins.
