‘Festival Lafi Bala’ – Chambéry, France

The Festival Lafi Bala this year celebrated 20 years of mutual cooperation between the towns of Chambéry – in the Rhône-Alpes region of France – and Ouahigouya in Burkina Faso, West Africa.

For 3 days the Jardin du Verney in the centre of Chambéry was transformed into a colourful, exuberant African village, with stalls selling traditional African crafts and food; exhibitions; story-telling; giant puppets, drumming and dance workshops, discussions, and a main stage hosting musicians of exceptional quality from Burkina Faso, France and other parts of West Africa. For the whole month of June, two highly talented Burkinabe artists took up residence in the ‘Cité des Arts’ in Chambéry, and ran workshops with local schoolchildren in the weeks leading up to the festival.

The biennial festival – now in its 7^th year – celebrates not only the richness of cultural exchanges between the two towns, but also a sustained program of projects and investment (‘decentralised cooperation’) in the town of Ouahigouya, including health, urban and economic development, restoration of buildings and roads, sinking of wells and reforestation.

Read more: http://www.chambery-ouahigouya.com/

Festival website: http://www.lafibala.com/

‘Festival au Désert – Presenze d’Africa’ – Firenze, Italy

The ‘Anfiteatro delle Cascine’ on the outskirts of Florence hosted the second edition of the ‘Festival au Désert – Presenze d’Africa’ at the end of July, for a weekend of African food, celebration and discussion of Touareg culture and music. The massive stone amphitheatre resounded for 3 days with Saharan blues from Festival au Désert regulars such as Tartit and Koudede, dance & drumming from Sénégal, and collaborations between African and Italian musicians.

More can be read about the food and water security projects and other initiatives among the Touareg artisan community, at: http://www.placesandseasons.com/2011/04/gardens-in-the-desert/

The projects are supported by ‘Jump4Timbuktu’ – more information can be found on their website, at: http://www.jump4timbuktu.org/

Food and Water security projects in Touareg villages, Timbuktu region

See ‘Tombouctou – projects in Touareg villages’ for more images: http://www.placesandseasons.com/2010/05/travel-photograpy/ 

The impressive image of a Touareg nomad in traditional robes, traversing the Sahara desert astride a camel is one that has captured the western imagination for centuries. Whilst the Touaregs featured in the photographs on this website do still dress in brightly coloured robes, and ownership of camels is still an essential part of what it means to be Touareg, the reality of day to day life in one of the harshest regions in the world has forced many Touaregs to adapt their traditional way of life in order to survive the challenges of climate change and desertification.

At the present time Touareg tribal lifestyle and culture in the Timbuktu region are under severe threat. Poverty, climate change and geographic isolation pose serious challenges to their nomadic tribal way of life. In discussion with tribal leaders and the artisan associations, the UK charity ‘Jump4Timbuktu’ has agreed a long term plan to meet these challenges, starting with projects to improve their capacity to trade from their workshops in Timbuktu, and also projects to improve water and food security in five of the desert villages in the region of Timbuktu. The initiatives in the villages were planned with the full participation of the villagers, who are also making a financial contribution, and provided all the labour necessary for the projects.

In March 2011 I visited food security projects in three of the villages that ‘Jump4Timbuktu’ is working with. These include pilot garden schemes which have stimulated very positive community involvement, some of which produced quantities of vegetables within 4 months, with the potential to double and treble the growing area. Other villagers are requesting to be involved now that they have seen the success of the first group of villagers to try gardening.

A second well is planned for N’Dala / Tagouft, one of the villages that I visited, due to increased demand for water as more families have come to settle in the village. This new project has been developed in close collaboration with the local population, and with Malian organisations; ‘Malian Association for the Survival of Sahel People’ (AMSS), and ‘Touareg Relief’ who organised the fundraising for the project.

During our visit to N’Dala we witnessed the ‘laying of the first stone’ for the new well – or rather, ‘the first digging’ to mark out the spot in the vegetable garden where the new well is to be sunk.

Huge progress has also been made in the village of N’Dala with the building of a school and a health centre, assisted by money raised from the sale of jewellery and leather work made by artisans from the village. The school is now attended by 100 children, taught by teachers who are paid by contributions from the villagers. On the day I visited the school, I witnessed very young children grasping the intricacies of French grammar far more impressively than I ever remember doing at that age….

Five gleaming new computers greeted us on entering the new ‘Centre de Ressources pour l’appui des artisans’ – a computer and resource training centre – which has just opened in the town in partnership with ‘Jump4Timbuktu ‘. The centre plans to provide training in computer skills, French and English, and promises to provide invaluable assistance to enable the many highly skilled artisans of Timbuktu to market their work abroad.

The manner in which these communities have successfully risen to the challenges of climate change is inspiring. Rather than allowing their entire culture and way of life to be destroyed, they have embraced the need to change and adapt in order to retain their community and much of their traditions, and to be able to remain in the region they have always lived in. Both the garden projects and the artisan training centre will eventually assist these communities in taking back a degree of control over their lives, and will help place them back on the path to self-sustainability.

© Alice Mutasa 2011
 For more information on the food and water security projects in the Timbuktu region, please visit: http://www.jump4timbuktu.org/

My latest photos from the ‘Festival au Désert’ in Mali are now online in the Travel gallery – http://www.placesandseasons.com/2010/05/travel-photograpy/ I was commissioned this year as the festival’s ‘Official Photographer’, and had full access to the stage during the concerts; I was therefore able to capture completely exclusive images of the concerts and artists which will not be available elsewhere. I was also present on the site to photograph the festival from start to finish – from the construction to the dismantling of the stage, and everything in between….

Most of the photographs are available for purchase; the selection on my website is a very small sample of the images available. A wider selection should shortly be appearing on the Official Festival website, but if there is a particular artist that played / gave a press conference at the Festival that you are interested in, please contact me: alice@placesandseasons.com

The 11th edition of the ‘Festival au Désert’ in the Sahara Desert in Mali took place in spite of numerous difficulties – including the advice of several European governments to its citizens against travelling to the Tombouctou region. Those of us who ignored such advice and made the journey were treated to a unique and unforgettable experience full of inspiring people and astonishing music – including impressive performances from Bassekou Kouyaté, Oumou Sangaré, Vieux Farka Touré, Khaira Arby, Koudede, Amkoullel, Tartit, Etran Finatawa, Samba Touré, Baba Salah, many invited artists from across Europe and the USA, and of course numerous incredible Touareg musicians who came from all over Mali and from Niger.  This year’s edition also hosted a visit from the President of Mali, and camel races to mark the 50th anniversary of Mali’s independence.

A selection of my photos of the Festival can also be viewed on  the official festival website: http://www.festival-au-desert.org/index2.cfm?m=3

Bethnal Green Library
Cambridge Heath Road
London E2 0HL

01 – 19 April 2011
Monday.Tuesday.Thursday….12.00 noon to 19.00
Wednesday and Sunday Closed
Friday…………………………….12.00 noon to  18.00
Saturday……………………….11.00 to  17.00

Day one

The familiar storming bass lines of ‘Amassakoul N’ Tenere’ ring out across the sand dunes as Tinariwen take to the stage in full Tuareg robes & shesh[1] headdress… The now legendary poet guitarists are greeted with rapturous excitement by the audience, as their desert-rebel beats echo through the star-filled Sahara night sky…. Despite Tinariwen’s significant worldwide success, there is nothing quite like hearing them playing on ‘home ground’, to an audience that knows the lyrics to all the songs, and feels the passion behind them in a way that European audiences probably never could….

Tinariwen closed the first day of this years ‘Festival au Desert’ in Mali, following a whirlwind opening concert consisting of previews of many of the great Malian musicians who are to play throughout the weekend, such as Bassekou Kouyaté; Tartit; Haira Arby and Habib Koité. Longer performances took place in the evening, including the Sept Etoiles de Dire; Groupe Folklorique Bellafarandi and the phenomenal Fantani Touré, sporting a wild red headscarf, and whose energy and presence blew the crowd away….

In response to the perceived ‘security concerns’ of certain foreign governments, it was decided to move the 10th edition of the Festival from its usual site near Essakane to just outside Timbuktu. This seemed a fitting venue however, given that Timbuktu is celebrating its own 1000 year anniversary this year, and the crowds are swelled by proud and excited locals who have walked out from the town each day to experience the festival.

Despite not being several hours drive into the desert, this is still very much the Sahara however; there is sand everywhere, as far as the eye can see, and it takes a while to get used to my feet sinking ankle deep into the pale soft dunes that curve up and down to the horizon, and which become patterned with tiny bird footprints in the early morning light….

When we arrive on Thursday afternoon the final touches are being put to the main stage, and there is an air of expectancy as groups of elegant looking Touaregs on their camels appear from over the top of every sand dune, mingling with tourists arriving in 4 x 4’s and Malians from every corner of the country.

Welcoming speeches at the opening ceremony are given by the Mayor of the City and the Minister of Culture, Hon. Mohamed el Moctar. Their heartfelt emphasis on the key themes of the Festival – peace, co-operation, security – are echoed time and again throughout the Festival, and serve as a reminder of the Festival’s roots, in the “Flamme de la Paix” (Flame of Peace) ceremony held at the end of the Touareg rebellion in 1996, where more than 3000 firearms were burned and transformed into a monument to peace.

Day Two

After a small technical hitch the music begins with traditional Touareg bands from Mali and Niger. Impressive performances are delivered in particular by Terakaft; Group Folklorique Niafunké and Rhissa Ag Wanagli…. Despite having previously listened to a certain amount of Touareg music before my trip, nothing has quite prepared me for the visual impact of traditional Touareg dancing; a graceful sinewy undulating movement that seems to start from the neck and flows through the body down to the hips and feet, accompanied by exquisitely precise, delicately flowing hand gestures.

The Touareg musicians create a powerful visual presence on-stage, the men mostly in full traditional dress, often with only their eyes showing; dances involving vicious looking swords twirled around their heads are executed with equal style as when they are wielding electric guitars….. The women are the soul of grace and elegance; swathed in beautiful robes; henna decorations on hands and arms; elaborate jewellery and headdresses, and a strong, confident self-possessed presence both on stage and off….

Nowhere is this embodied more strongly as when Tartit take to the stage; led by 5 women, who mainly sit on stage playing cyclic rythms on tinde drums; their performance is accomplished and joyful. Their lead singer, Fadimata Walett Oumar, a superstar in her own right and role model for many young Malians appears on stage throughout the festival with several other bands, including Koudede from Niger, clearly enjoying the opportunities for musical collaboration that the festival provides.

Bassekou Kouyaté delivers yet another of his passionate, polished performances; this is now the third time I have seen him perform in as many different countries, yet he seems to get better every time, and his band even more slick and tight. The evening is rounded off with a tribute to Ali Farka Touré, led by Afel Boucum, and including performances by Vieux Farka Touré, Haira Arby and Babah Salah.

Day Three

By Saturday I have become somewhat accustomed to being woken up by the sound of camels grunting right behind my tent; of stumbling out to be greeted by the sight of Touaregs parading around nonchalantly on their camels, their brightly coloured robes and swords glinting in the searing desert sunlight, and of the legendary Touareg hospitality involving numerous invitations to drink the obligatory ‘three cups’ of Touareg tea[2]….

During the day on Saturday I come across members of the group Amanar entertaining a small crowd with an impromptu jam session outside a tent. The festival is not only an opportunity for Malians to see some of their favourite super-groups, but is also an important showcase for up and coming unsigned bands such as Amanar, who already seem to have a strong following. Their sound has echoes of Tinariwen, tinged with reggae; modern, but unmistakeably Touareg…

The non-African international artists at the festival are an eclectic mix, including Dick and Hnatr – an authentic Kanak group from New Caledonia; Dady Dasty – a rap group from Martinique; Skullroots from Norway, with an unusual take on the jews harp; the Leni Stern Band (USA), and Harper Simon (son of Paul).

The idea of Hebrew cantorial vocals may sound like an unlikely choice for a festival in the Sahara, before a largely muslim audience, but New York band Sway Machinery deliver an extraordinary performance, and Jeremiah Lockwood’s haunting vocals, together with an impressive bass saxophone seem strangely at home amongst the desert blues. As if to emphasise this mellow blending of cultures, the band joins the great lady of Timbuktu Haira Arby on stage and they jam as if they’ve been playing together for years…. The band are due to record their next album in Bamako with Malian musicians, which promises to be a rare musical collaboration.

Other treats on Saturday night include a gymnastic Michael Jackson tribute band, rap group Double K Non, and from Niger; Mamar Kassey and the marvellous Koudede, with his own brand of superb desert blues. And this has to be the first festival I have attended where announcements from the stage include lost camels….(!).

The evening is rounded off by a blinding jam session led by Cheik Tidiane Seck and his band of highly accomplished musicians and singers. The band provide support for stunning performances by Habib Koité, Kasse Mady Diabate, Mangala Camara, and the always excellent Amadou and Miriam, who had been eagerly awaited by the crowd, and finally took to the stage around 3.00am.

The Festival au Desert was listed this year among many major events celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Independence of the Republic of Mali. I am sure that everyone who attended – including over 600 foreign visitors – would agree that despite the huge challenges faced by the Festival organisers due to the withdrawal of most of their western financial partners, it was an unqualified success.

For the many visitors from western countries this was a unique opportunity to experience Touareg music first-hand, and to make connections with people from a culture we would never otherwise get the chance to encounter. The journey from Bamako was not for the faint-hearted, involving some very poor roads and a lot of dust and heat. But after a weekend of astounding music; several stunning desert sunsets; numerous conversations in the sand dunes, and more cups of Touareg tea than I can remember (!) this was without a shadow of a doubt a journey well worth making.

© Alice Mutasa 2010

This article was commissioned by Michael Valentine Studio – music photography and reviews:

http://www.michaelvalentinestudio.com/soul_other/festival_au_desert2010_day1/index.php

Official festival website:

http://www.festival-au-desert.org

[1] Tuareg headdress worn by men, consisting of a long piece of coloured cloth wrapped around the head, generally leaving only the eyes showing.

[2] ‘The first; bitter like death, the second; gentle like life, the third, sweet like love’ ( = ‘La première; amère comme la mort, la deuxième; douce comme la vie, la troisième; sucré comme l’amour’)….

Festival au Desert – Festival in the Desert – Festival au Desert Photography – Festival au Desert Photographer – Festival in the Desert Photography – Festival in the Desert Photographer

 Several of my images from Mali and Sénégal were selected for an exhibition that was held during the annual gala dinner in aid of ‘International Lawyers for Africa’ (ILFA:  http://www.ilfa.org.uk/index.php  ).

My review of the 2008 Festival Gnaoua can be found here: http://www.placesandseasons.com/2009/05/festival-gnaoua-essaouira-morocco-2008/

© Alice Mutasa 2010

Day One – Thursday 24/06/10

“There’s a real breath of freedom in this music – because no one sings better of liberty than a person in chains” (“Il y a un vrai souffle de la liberté dans la musique Gnaoui, parce que personne ne chante mieux de la liberté qu’une personne enchainé” – Amazigh Kateb)….

The roots of Gnaoua in the music brought to the Atlantic coast of Morocco by slaves from West Africa many years ago may not be immediately apparent in the joyous exuberance that overflows from the stages of the ‘Festival Gnaoua et Musiques du Monde’, but the ‘breath of freedom’ that Amazigh Kateb describes is there in all of the musical collaborations that are the essence of this unique event.

The 13^th edition of the festival begins with an opening parade of all of the Gnaoua troupes in the festival; a noisy riotous affair, with each troupe entertaining the crowd between Bab Marrakech and the main square with their own style of Gnaoui music. They are followed by a ‘fantasia’- a tradition dating back to the 15^th century; troupes of cavaliers on somewhat unruly Arab-Berber horses, nowadays used as an expression of joy linked to a major event – be it religious, national, regional or even familial. Fantasias also take place on the beach each day, including simulated horse races and somewhat alarming synchronised gun fire from the cavaliers.

The opening concert of the festival is a spectacular dance fusion between the Georgian National ballet and the dancers of the Gnaoua troupes of Maâlems Mohamed Kouyou and Saïd Kouyou. An unlikely combination you may think, but as one of the three Festival Artistic Directors, Karim Ziad explains: “ We decided this year to give dance an important place in the festival because it is so important to the Gnaoui music…. When I had the chance to see the Georgian National Ballet the incredible energy they radiated seemed to me to be akin to the ‘African energy’.

The enthusiastic crowds of Moroccans of all ages – from tiny babies to the very elderly – that pack the squares of Essaouira for the Festival are a testimony to the incredible popularity of Gnaoui music throughout Morocco. Gnaoua has however primarily a spiritual function – played during all-night ‘Lilas’ (literally ‘night’) in which different spirits are invoked and possessions take place. The trances which take hold of adepts during the Lila are said to have a therapeutic function; the Gnaoua Lila is thus both a ritual of healing and of possession.

During the festival Lilas are staged in some of the indoor venues; on Thursday night I attended one of these in Zaouia Gnaoua, led by Maâlem Allal Soudaini; descendant of a line of Gnaoua, whose grandparents came to Essaouira as slaves from the Soudan. The Gnaoua troupe are a wide range of ages, the youngest being a small boy of around 10 years old, who executes the songs and dances with as much confidence, flair and enthusiasm as his older colleagues; his permanent grin evidence of his enjoyment of  the ritual and pride in his place in the troupe.  Whilst the Lilas during the Festival may not be as intense as those that take place behind closed doors, it is a chance for the festival audience to experience a little of the sacred and spiritual aspects of Gnaoua. Certainly the intimate nature of the venues, often architecturally impressive and charged with history, lends itself to an appreciation of Gnaoui music and culture on a deeper level than the exuberant flamboyant concerts on the main stages.

Even without being a Gnaoua adept, in that far more intimate atmosphere, the hypnotic beat of the qraqebs (metal castanet-like instruments) and tambours (drums); the rhythmic bass of the Guembri, and the flowing melodic chants lend the music a power that reaches somewhere deep inside me, and I begin to see how it can induce trances….

Day Two: Friday 25/06/10

One of the first major ‘fusion’ concerts of the Festival takes place on the main stage in Moulay Hassan square on Friday: Maâlem Saïd Ouressan with Trio Horacio, Garrison, Kinsey – Cuban percussionist Horacio el Negro; keyboard player Scott Kinsey and bassist Matthew Garrison. Even in the 2 years since I last attended the festival, I notice a more relaxed blending of the Jazz with the Gnaoui music; a genuine enjoyment of each other’s music is evident.  As Karim Ziad remarks: “since 2001, when I first took part in the artistic direction of the festival, the Gnaouas have learnt a way of working with the foreign artists and vice-versa. Nowadays the Gnaouas are much more relaxed, but nevertheless, the fusions can only work if the invited artists love the Gnaoua music. “

Maâlem Mahmoud Guinea – a son of Essaouira – is a veteran of musical collaboration with western artists, including amongst others  Carlos Santana, and is one of the most respected and powerful Maâlems on the Gnaoua scene.  One of the undoubted highlights of the festival is his concert with Mauretanien guitarist Daby Touré.  Born in the Mauretanien desert, son of one of the members of emblematic African band Touré Kunda, Daby first immersed himself in the Wolof, Soninke and Toucouler musical cultures of West Africa, prior to establishing the group Touré Touré, mixing jazz and African musical influences.

There is clearly a strong musical connection between the two musicians, and the infectious enjoyment that they share onstage spills over into the noisy joyful crowd.  “I have a real feeling of humility with regard to the festival and the people I am working with here…. also joy and excitement… the Gnaouas represent a culture that touches me personally because of their links with my ancesters.” (Daby Touré).

Day Three: Saturday 26/06/10

For many young North Africans, Algerian musician Amazigh[1] Kateb represents a link between the traditional and the modern; his trail-blazing band Gnawa Diffusion, with their mix of Gnaoua, funk, reggae, rap and traditional African music played to packed audiences in France and the Maghreb for over 15 years up until 2007, when Amazigh embarked on a solo career. His first solo album, ‘Marchez Noir’, released in 2009, continues to develop Amazigh’s unique and subtle blending of traditional and modern musical influences, with his revolutionary spirit and uncompromising, politically charged lyrics. The album includes two songs whose lyrics are adapted from poems written by his late father, the highly respected writer Kateb Yacine, viewed by many as the father of modern Algerian literature.

In a press conference given in the morning, Amazigh talks about his musical influences, and explains how, having been somewhat dismissive of traditional African music as a youngster – preferring Michael Jackson, funk and reggae – it was a trip into the desert and the discovery of Gnaoui music that led him to his appreciation of other African music. I ask him about the song ‘Africain’ on ‘Marchez Noir’, which he has described as ‘my own vision of ‘Africanness’ (‘Africanité): “ Young North Africans now have a much stronger sense of their identity as Africans… We are in the process of constructing a new Africa; a new ‘Africanité’, which also involves reconciling ourselves with our own history… slavery, colonialism, etc….”. He describes Essaouira and the festival as a place for genuine collaboration between artists from different parts of Africa and the rest of the world; a place where this new African identity can be explored and developed.

Amazigh’s own collaboration at the festival is with Maâlem Abdeslam Alikane, one of the three Artistic Directors of the festival and an initiate of Gnaoui music since the age of 9. Abdeslam Alikane has toured extensively abroad with his group, Tyour Gnaoua, and has played with a number of foreign artists, including Peter Gabriel and Ray Lema. His presence on stage is relaxed and assured – clearly that of a master musician – and his voice is beautifully rich and mellow, providing a contrast to the hypnotic rhythms of the craqebs played by his troupe.  The exuberant lively crowd at the Bab Marrakech stage includes mothers with small children; groups of teenagers; elderly people and entire families – testimony to the huge popularity of the two musicians.

Amazigh Kateb and Maâlem Abdeslam Alikane each perform a solo set, then come together onstage for a set they have prepared especially for the festival. For his solo venture Amazigh has retained the formidable talents of  Amar Chaoui on percussion and Mohamed Abdennour on mandolin – two stalwarts of Gnawa Diffusion.  Amazigh’s opening song begins as an almost solely vocal rendition of ‘Bonjour’ –  one of his father’s poems – delivered with a passion and intensity that sends shivers up and down my spine… His evident love of and familiarity with Gnaoua music, and the respect for him and palpable enjoyment of his music that radiates from the Gnaoua troupe give this concert a completely unique and particularly uplifting atmosphere. Later in the set Amazigh and Abdeslam Alikane are joined by French trombonist Daniel Zimmerman, who has thrown himself into the spirit of the festival and appears onstage with various other artists throughout the weekend.

Earlier in the evening the crowd at the Bab Marrakech stage are treated to a ‘fusion’ concert par excellence; Maâlem Aziz Bakbou from Marrakech, together with trombonist Daniel Zimmerman; Afro-Cuban percussionist Oussama Chraibi, and members of the ‘Armenian Navy Band’ – pioneers of ‘new Armenian jazz’, they won the BBC award for ‘best world music group’ in 2006. Their music wanders between electronic; jazz; Asian percussion, pure groove and oriental trance. This unlikely combination of musicians, together with the acrobatic energy and pounding rhythms of Maâlem Aziz Bakbou’s Gnaoua troupe really sum up what this festival is all about; a joyful, dance-inducing, uplifting celebration of the power of music  to find common ground among apparent difference, and to bring people together in mutual respect and pure enjoyment.

The only female singer at the festival is Raissa Fatima Tabaâmrant and her orchestra; a hugely popular Moroccan Berber singer who owed her initial success to the originality of her poetry, whose subject matter – which includes poverty; marginality; morals – struck a chord with her fellow Berbers. In 1991 she created her own orchestra which found immediate success. In full traditional Berber costume, Raissa Fatima and her female singers create a striking impression on stage, and the powerful connection she has with her audience is immediately apparent. I find myself wishing I could understand the lyrics, as the mainly Berber crowd near the front of the stage sing along with all of the songs, whose subject matter clearly resonates deeply with them.

Day Four: Sunday 27/06/10 – Closing concert

The festival organisers have this year saved the most popular artist till last; every available space in Place Moulay Hassan is packed on Sunday afternoon for the closing concert given by Maâlem Hamid El Kasri. One of the most popular Maâlems in Morocco, he began his apprenticeship at the age of 7, and specialises in fusions of Gnaoua styles from the north and south of Morocco. He has worked closely with Karim Ziad, Festival Artistic Director and renowned percussionist, and for this concert is joined on stage by Karim, plus a number of the other invited musicians who have performed during the festival, including Scott Kinsey, Nguyen Lê, Linley Marthe, David Aubaile and Vincent Mascart. At one point violinist / Oud player Amir Ali (leader of group ‘MoRockin’) also appears onstage with his violin in an improvised burst of musical energy.  Hamid El Kasri is the undisputed star of the show however, every song being greeted by rapturous enthusiasm by the crowd. His set combines old and new material, and manages to strike a subtle balance between evidently well rehearsed numbers, and the apparently spontaneous, joyful, seemingly improvised dance moves  that the Gnaoua dancers in his troupe execute with such ease.

The golden African late-afternoon sun shines down on the excited enthusiastic crowd, who dance, fling their hair around, shout, laugh, wave their arms and sing at the tops of their voices, as another unforgettably exuberant, uplifting and totally unique Gnaoua-Jazz-African experience draws to a close, and we all leave the festival a little bit richer in spirit….

© Alice Mutasa, 2010

[1] Literally ‘Free Man’ in the Berber language.

Click here for my review of the 2008 festival:   #mce_temp_url#

Alice Mutasa 2010