Fez — The “Nights of Ramadan” festival is set to return during the holy month with a new edition framed around cultural and spiritual dialogue between Morocco and Spain.
Led by the Spanish Embassy in Morocco and the “Instituto Cervantes” (Cervantes Institute), the program will feature nine concerts across six Moroccan cities — Rabat, Casablanca, Marrakech, Fez, Tetouan, and Tangier — running from February 23 to March 11.
Cultural diplomacy through sound
Organizers present the series as a form of cultural diplomacy, using music and poetry to foreground a shared Mediterranean heritage shaped by centuries of exchange.
The festival’s stated ambition is to create a space of encounter and mutual understanding, where historical ties are not treated as museum pieces but as living influences that continue to inspire contemporary creation.
‘Jinnan Al Andalus’ opens the cycle
The festival will open on February 23 at 9:30 p.m. at the auditorium of the “Institut national supérieur de musique et des arts chorégraphiques (INSMAC)” (National Higher Institute of Music and Choreographic Arts) in Rabat with “Jinnan Al Andalus” (“Gardens of Al-Andalus”), a project by Moroccan violinist Hamid Ajbar.
The concert is also scheduled to travel to the “American Arts Center” in Casablanca on February 24, the “Palais Bahia” (Bahia Palace) in Marrakech on February 25, the “Hôtel Barceló” (Barceló Hotel) in Fez on February 26, and the “Instituto Cervantes” (Cervantes Institute) in Tetouan on February 27.
Drawing on Al-Andalus’ spiritual and poetic repertoire, “Jinnan Al Andalus” revisits qasidas and muwashahat linked to figures such as Ibn Arabi, Rabia Al Adawiyya, Shushtari, and Busayri, offering a contemporary re-reading of Sufi texts and musical forms.
Flamenco meets Moroccan traditions
On March 2 at 9:30 p.m., guitarist Simo Baazzaoui is expected at INSMAC in Rabat for a performance built around his signature blend of flamenco and Moroccan classical music. The concert is presented as an embodied dialogue between two shores — one rooted in shared histories, the other shaped by ongoing artistic exchange.
A closing tribute to women poets of Al-Andalus
The cycle will conclude with “Quand tombera le soir” (“When Night Falls”), scheduled for March 9 in Rabat (INSMAC), March 10 in Casablanca (American Arts Center), and March 11 in Tangier at the “Instituto Cervantes” (Cervantes Institute).
Timed with International Women’s Day, the project pays tribute to prominent women poets of Al-Andalus, including Hafsa Al Rakuniyya and Wallada Al Mustakfi, while weaving Eastern and Western musical references into a single stage language.
As Morocco and Spain navigate a relationship shaped by geography, history, and migration, “Nights of Ramadan” offers a reminder that cultural ties are often sustained less by official statements than by the quieter work of shared listening — the kind that turns heritage into a living bridge rather than a distant memory.
