Music as Memory Heritage as a Living Practice
Hamza Castro is a Sudanese musician, composer, and cultural heritage researcher whose work focuses on documenting, preserving, and reimagining Sudanese musical heritage through artistic practice, field research, and cultural documentation. His practice bridges traditional musical knowledge with contemporary artistic expression, exploring music as a living archive of memory, identity, and cultural continuity.
Over the past decade, he has collaborated with communities, cultural institutions, and international organizations across Sudan and East Africa on initiatives dedicated to safeguarding musical heritage, promoting cultural dialogue, and supporting peacebuilding through artistic collaboration. His work integrates performance, research, and documentation, creating connections between artistic practice, cultural memory, and community engagement.
His work has been presented internationally, including performances at Nyege Nyege Festival, and developed through collaborations with organizations such as Norwegian People’s Aid, Tubman Network e.V., DefendDefenders, and Adila Organization. He is the Founder and Director of the Sawa Peace & Justice Research Center and previously established the Sudan Music Research Center to advance research, documentation, and artistic engagement with Sudanese musical heritage.
Performing and creating music rooted in Sudanese traditions while engaging contemporary audiences through artistic collaboration and live performance.
Preserving and reinterpreting Sudanese musical heritage through artistic practice, documentation and cultural engagement.
Conducting interdisciplinary research, oral history, and documentation to generate knowledge and support artistic and cultural practice.
Develuping collaborative artistic and cultural initiatives with artists, communities, and institutions through music , research and creative practice .
Guiding every performance, research project, and cultural collaboration.
Officially shortlisted among 278 artists worldwide for the Prince Claus Seed Award.
First Sudanese artist to present Eastern Sudanese musical heritage at Nyege Nyege
Festival.
Co-produced a published report documenting violations against cultural institutions,
heritage sites, and artists during the Sudan war.