Traditional music in Morocco is a vast and varied world, which has evolved over the course of the country’s history and varies from region to region.
It includes, in particular:
– Andalusian music, classical Arabic music played on the following instruments: the houd (lute), the qanun (zither), the nay (reed flute) and the oriental violin, which is not held horizontally across the shoulder but rests upright on the thigh
An artist such as the Egyptian Umm Kulthum helped to fuel the enthusiasm for this music amongst Moroccan families
Melhoun, originating in Tafilalet and probably dates back to the Almohads, was heavily influenced by Arab-Andalusian music; during the Saadian period, it became closely associated with folk songs dealing with themes of everyd back to the Almohads, is heavily inspired by Arab-Andalusian music; during the Saadian period, it began to resemble popular songs addressing themes of everyday are Sufi-inspired religious hymns through which one implores baraka and healing; it is performed to the rhythm of percussion and ghaita oboe
A mystical form of music known as Aissawa, from the Fez region, is familiar to families; these are Sufi-inspired religious hymns through which people seek baraka and healing, and which are performed to the rhythm of percussion and ghaita oboes.
– The Hadra, folk songs from the Chefchaouen region with an Arab-Andalusian heritage, is performed exclusively by women, accompanied by percussion, violin, lute, drum and tambourines. It is of Sufi inspiration,
Gnaoua music originates from black slaves from sub-Saharan Africa
It is music that speaks to the soul, a mystical form of music linked to the beliefs of this brotherhood.
This music is performed using the gumbri, or houjouge – as the jnounes call it – the carcabus (caracas, large metal castanets), and the tbel (drum)
– In the Sahrawi region, the Guedra is performed by a woman surrounded by a circle of people; she is covered by a veil, and only her hands are visible. She expresses emotions, the cosmos, the earth, the wind, water and time, and calls upon the blessing of the heavens to the rhythm of the tambourines.
.There is also
a wide variety of Amazigh music,
which depicts social life and is performed using different instruments depending on the region.
Women play an active part in this, and dances accompany the music.
Hahidous
In the Middle Atlas and High Atlas mountains, the songs and dances are accompanied by the bendir: a tambourine. Men and women chant whilst standing with their shoulders pressed together.
Ahouache
This dance is practised
in the High Atlas and the sub-Saharan region; drums held vertically mark the rhythm, whilst those held horizontally provide the off-beats (in the Ouarzazate region, these are large drums). The male musicians stand in the centre, surrounded by the women who dance and sing. The poet’s solo verse is taken up by the group.
Ait Boughanem music, specific to the High and Middle Atlas regions, is sometimes danced without women to the rhythm of the bendir and a flute or oboe made of reed; the player is called a boughanim. The musician who leads the zajal is a poet, dressed in a robe and a green hat adorned with white.
‘Aita’, meaning ‘cry’ or ‘call’, dates back to the 12th century. It is traditional music sung in Darija and performed by mixed groups of musicians and singers. The female singers are called cheikhates.
Ghiatiya, the warriors’ dance from the Taza region, is performed by men; the bendir and the flute provide the rhythm for the dances, accompanied by shoulder movements and the stamping of feet on the ground. They follow the leader, shouting cries, and thus stand united in the face of the enemy.