About Wandering Songs
Wandering Songs began in 2013 with Ugandan Recordings. Over the course of eight months, more than 100 songs and video clips were recorded in northern Uganda, a region deeply affected by twenty years of conflict that left lasting scars on everyday life. Many of the recorded songs reflect on this period of violence, giving artists the opportunity to openly share their personal experiences. Following Uganda, the project continued in the Netherlands, where people with refugee backgrounds share their stories through music. Recordings there are ongoing. Sessions have also taken place in The Gambia (2025), with a return trip currently in preparation. Recently, a new chapter began in Suriname, where recordings are taking place at this moment (February – May 2026).
Wandering Songs is a volunteer-driven initiative dedicated to documenting and sharing music with care and respect. All recordings are made without financial compensation, and artists retain full ownership of their work at all times. The Wandering Songs website serves as an platform where music and the stories behind it can be shared, heard, and appreciated by a wider audience.
Subscribe to our channel for new videos!
4
countries
149
videos
200+
artists
our team
Evert Aalten
audio and production
EVERT DANIEL AALTEN is a musician and studio engineer at Omni Recordings, specializing in field recordings worldwide. He spent three months in Kingston, Jamaica recording reggae with Sly & Robbie and Earl Chinna Smith. For Boot Recordings, he traveled Europe with a mobile studio. Evert also records sound for documentaries and, of course, music and field recordings for Wandering Songs.
Karin van Bemmel
research and video
KARIN VAN BEMMEL is a cultural anthropologist with extensive fieldwork experience in Guatemala, Kenya, Tanzania, en Uganda. Haar PhD research explored the conceptualization of illness in a post-conflict setting, focusing on how local discourses and music shape lived experiences. She produced a documentary and documented more than 100 songs in Uganda, the Netherlands, and The Gambia.
Sjors Swierstra
video and montage
SJORS SWIERSTRA is an independent filmmaker who has produced several well-received documentaries. His latest documentary ‘The World According to Monsieur Khiar’ was selected for the IDFA Competition for Dutch Documentary 2015. Sjors is currently filming and editing the Wandering Songs from refugees and asylum seekers in the Netherlands.
