The World Sacred Music Festival (Festival des Musiques Sacrées du Monde) brings together performers from every corner of our planet for a week of artistic show in Fez, Morocco’s ancient holy city. The festival intends to represent the spiritual heart of Islam – peaceful, pluralistic, generous and cheerful, honouring all the world’s spiritual traditions and dissolving musical boundaries.
FRIDAY 3 JUNE:
20h30 Bab al Makina A seats: €46; B seats: €23
Opera: Majnûn & Leïla
Artistic direction Armand Amar, libretto Leili Anvar, with Percussion of Shanghai; Drums of Japan; Sarah Nemtanu, solo violinist, London Symphony Orchestra; Grégoire Korneliu, cello; Ibrahim Maalouf, trumpet; Levon Minassian, duduk; Seye Mohamed, ney; Zaim Abdou, oud; Guo Gan, erhu; Mara Dubrescu, piano, Mathias Duplessy, guitar; Salah Aguili, Iranian song; Sandrine Piau and Adele Carlier, classical song; Epi, tone chant from Mongolia, Asif Ali Khan, qawwali.
SATURDAY 4 JUNE:
16h00 Batha Museum
Cantendi a Deus (Songs for God)
Elena Ledda and her quartet with the Polyphonic Choir Su Cuncordu ‘E Su Rosario de Santu Lusurgiu, Sardinia, Italy
20h30 Bab al Makina Songs and Prayers
Maria Bethânia, Brazil
SUNDAY 5 JUNE:
16h00 Batha Museum
Sephardic songs of Palestine
Françoise Atlan and Moneim Adwan, Morocco and Palestine
20h30 Bab al Makina
Tribute to Sheikh Sidi Ahmed al-Tijani
Youssou N’dour and the Super Etoile de Dakar, Senegal
MONDAY 6 JUNE:
16h00 Batha Museum
Sacred Music
Classical Orchestra of the Ducci Founation, directed by Marcello Panni, Italy
Night in the Medina 1
Dar Mokri, 20h00 & 22h00: Saetas, songs of worship Arcàngel, Spain
Dar Tazi, 20h30: Poetry of Djalal ad-Din Rumi Salah Arhili, Iran
Batha Museum, 21h00: Light of Asia, Prem Sanyas, North India
Dar Adiyel: 21h00 & 22h30: Sacred song & Beguena lute Alèmu Aga, Ethiopia
Dar Tazi, 23h00 Sufi songs Sheikh Taha, Upper Egypt
TUESDAY 7 JUNE:
16h00 Batha Museum
Sacred Art of Dhrupad
Gundecha Brothers, North India
Night in the Medina II
Dar Mokri, 20h00 Andalous music from Tetouan: Mohamed Amin el Akrami and his orchestra, Morocco
Batha Museum, 21h00 18th century Peruvian music Ensemble Paraguay Barroco d’Asuncion, Latin America
Dar Mokri, 22h00 Birds’ Conference, by Farid Naha Tajddod & Jean-Claude Attar Carriere
Dar Adiyel, 21h00 & 22h30 Art of Rabab Homayoun Sakhi, Afghanistan
Dar Tazi, 23h00 Sufi chants of the Thar Desert Divana, Rajasthan, India
WEDNESDAY 8 JUNE:
16h00 Batha Museum
Art of Matrouz
Kinor David Choir, directed by Michel Abittan, Morocco
20h30 Bab al Makina
Abd al Malik, France
THURSDAY 9 JUNE:
16h00 Batha Museum
Urbain Philéas, Réunion
20h30 Bab al Makina
Farid Ayyaz & ensemble, with the great voices of Sama’a, accompanied by the Arabo- Andalous Orchestra of Fez directed by Mohamed Briouel, Pakistan & Morocco
FRIDAY 10 JUNE:
16h00 Batha Museum
Doudou Ndiaye Rose & his ensemble of sabar drums, with the chorale St Joseph of Medina directed by Ambouras, Senegal
20h30 Bab al Makina
Kazem el Saher & Asma Lmnawar, with artistic collaboration of Aziz Lachhab, Iraq & Morocco
SATURDAY 11 JUNE:
16h00 Batha Museum
Songs & music Hajir Marawis of Cirebon
Ensemble Syubbanul Akhyar, Java, Indonesia
20h30 Bab al Makina
Ben Harper, USA
Get spiritually high with Ben Harper Sat 11th
FES FORUM
09h00 to noon, Saturday 4 – Wednesday 8 June, at Batha Museum
FESTIVAL IN THE CITY
18h30 Place Boujloud, daily
23h00 Dar Tazi, daily
Get local and down with the young crowd at Ait Skato most evenings for a buzz and free, usually Moroccan music that keeps the Fassi juniors a’ jumpin.
Thanks to http://riadzany.blogspot.com for the English version of this program. Please note that it is subject to change; anything from volcanoes to skate-board accidents can modify this program.
For ticket prices and other information see the festival site at http://www.fesfestival.com/fesfestival/index_en.html
