Casablanca – Moroccan Maalem Hamid El Kasri and Algerian Musician Karim Ziad will take the stage at Rabat’s Mohammed V Theatre on July 18 for a concert where Gnaoua tradition meets jazz in a contemporary musical fusion.
Bringing together two renowned figures from different musical worlds, the performance promises a dialogue between the spiritual depth of Gnaoua music and the rhythmic freedom of jazz, creating a fresh interpretation of one of Morocco’s most cherished traditions.
Widely regarded as one of Morocco’s leading maalems, Hamid El Kasri has spent decades preserving and sharing the essence of Gnaoua music through the hypnotic sound of the guembri, ancestral rhythms, and powerful vocals rooted in centuries-old ritual and storytelling.
Sharing the stage with him, Karim Ziad has built an international reputation for blending jazz, world music, and North African influences into a sound defined by improvisation and rhythmic experimentation.
His approach opens new creative spaces while remaining deeply connected to the traditions that inspire it.
Rather than placing the two genres side by side, the concert aims to let them speak to one another.
Gnaoua’s trance-like rhythms will intertwine with jazz harmonies and world music influences, offering audiences a performance that preserves the heritage while exploring it through a contemporary musical lens.
The result promises to be more than a reinterpretation of Gnaoua. It becomes an encounter between generations, cultures, and musical languages, inviting audiences to experience a tradition that continues to evolve without losing its identity.
Read also: Hind Ennaira x Omary Bring Gnawatronic to Jazzablanca 2026
