Project Toki Rapa Nui and good news from Easter Island

We would like to inform you first about the positive news from Easter Island: no new coronavirus infections have occurred on the island for several weeks now, and as such the mayor has decided to reopen the schools for regular classes in July. This will surely benefit the only music school on Easter Island, a wonderful project that we would like to share with you.

Only 24 km long and with almost 8000 inhabitants, there is no other inhabited place in the world that lies so isolated in the ocean as this Chilean part of Polynesia. Because of the island’s great isolation, the aim of the Toki Rapa Nui project was to enable children and teenagers who love music to develop their talents on the island without having to leave it and all free of charge.

Since 2014, more than 80 volunteers from all over the world have helped to build the School of Music and Art, making the dream of this project a reality. Not only is the project special, but so is the school. American architect Michael Reynolds, a pioneer of sustainable constructions, helped build “Earthship”, as the school’s building (which resembles a spaceship) is called. With the help of motivated international helpers, it was possible to build an environmentally friendly music school from natural and recycled materials, which can produce its own energy thanks to solar cells.

You can watch a short video about the project and hear the words of Mahani Teave Williams – co-founder and concert pianist – here on Youtube. The school was inaugurated in 2015 with a concert in front of the unique background of the island’s coast.

Supported by ENTEL Chile and Desafio Levantemos Chile, the project also wants to help preserve Easter Island’s cultural heritage, with its famous Moai statues, distinct traditions and the Tapati Festival that fascinate visitors to the island. Only about 1,400 people still speak the local language Rapanui. At the school not only do the students develop their musical talents, they also learn the language of the island and about the special cultural traditions. Artistic presentations of the school can be admired during the main festivals of the island.

For more information on travel to Easter Island please contact your travelArt representative or email info@travelart.com.
There is also the possibility to visit the Earthship during a one-hour tour and learn more about this social and cultural project.