Maghreb jazz

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Maghreb jazz is a subgenre of jazz and world music that is characterized by a combination of traditional jazz and Maghreb music culture, a wide-spread collection of sounds and styles with North African Maghreb roots. It is a relatively new type of crossover music that is being developed further by various musicians worldwide.

Notable examples of Maghreb jazz include artists such as Karim Ziad,., Jan Wouter Oostenrijk, Mohamed Rouane, Nguyen Le and Jah Wobble.

Origins

The Arab world has a rich and extensive musical culture (Arab music) in which the Maghreb region has its own unique identity. The region comprises the north-western part of Africa, namely Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Mauritania and Western Sahara. The word Maghreb itself means 'west'; the place where the sun sets, seen from Saudi Arabia. The original population of this region are Berbers, who have a strong identity that includes their own language, various dialects and rich musical traditions. Although the majority of the Maghreb people live in the big cities, a strong bond with the Sahara desert and its Bedouin culture remains.

Over time, the music from these parts intermingled with many other musical genres. Examples include crossovers of Berber music with Middle Eastern, West African and European (western) influences. Artists include Malika Zarra, who combines it with American Jazz and other Western music and Ammouri Mbarek who mixes it with rock, reggae and Latin sounds.

Maghreb jazz styles

Arab-Andalusian jazz

The roots of this style lie in 12th century Spain when Andalusia was occupied by the Moors and Arabic and Andalusian classical music blended together. Moroccan singer Nabyla Maan mixes these old Andalusian musical traditions with jazz in a contemporary form.

Melhoun jazz

Melhoun or Malhun literally means 'melodic poem'. It is the most important old song form in traditional Maghreb folk music. It has many variants and is related to Andalusian music and Ma'luf music from Tunisia. In this style, the melodies are monophonic, and the vocals are often accompanied and answered by an orchestra with knee fiddles, oud, loutar and percussion instruments like tarizja and darbuka. One of the groups known for this specific style is the Mohamed Ahaddaf Quartet.

Gnawa jazz

Gnawa music or Gnaoua originates from the music practised by slaves who were traded by the West African caravan routes from Mali, Senegal and Niger to the south of Morocco. Gnawa is a form of Sufi trance music (see Sufism) in which West African traditions are mixed with Islamic and Berber culture.

Characteristic musical instruments in this style are the gimbri, a kind of Bedouin lute, also called hajhuj or sentir, and metal castanets also known as krakebs or qraqabs.

Among all Maghreb crossovers, Gnawa Jazz the most popular. It has been embraced by various international artists too, including Wayne Shorter and Marcus Miller.

Every June since 1998, the Moroccan city of Essaouira celebrates Gnawa music during the renowned dedicated Gnaoua World Music Festival. Previously named Karim Ziad, a well-known Algerian drummer, programmed the festival for a period of ten years, during which time he significantly boosted Maghreb crossovers and musical innovation.

Chaabi jazz

The word chaabi means people. Chaabi (music) is found throughout North Africa and, in the Maghreb region, it is mainly used for parties and weddings. The style is characterized by polyrhythmically layered Chaabi rhythm patterns. with typical Berber percussion instruments like the bendir and the taridja.

Famous artists in this genre include Karim Maurice with his project Koum Tara, Othman el Kheloufi and the French Arbaa Quartet.

Raï jazz

Raï music is one of the most widely known types of North African music. It features Western influences and has its roots in West-Algerian Bedouin music. Although it is internationally known as a form of pop music, it has is roots in folk and jazz. A prime example of this is the Fanfa RAi brassband. Another example is the music of Cheika Rimitti.

Ahwach jazz

Achwach refers to folkloric dance and music by the Sous Berbers from the South of Morocco. Saxophone player Abdelhak Mabrouk is a well-known artist in this field.

Berber languages, people and culture

The ethnic identity of some Maghreb jazz crossovers is characterized by the Berber language. The group of Berber languages, also known under the collective name Tamazight, has several dialects spread throughout North Africa. The most common are Tarifyt or Riffian from the Moroccan Riff mountains, Tashelhiyt or Shilha from the South of Morocco (Sous Berber), Kabyle from Algeria and a group Tuareg languages called Tamaceq from the Sahara Bedouin Berbers.

Berber jazz

Some of the biggest names in Berber jazz are Hindi Zahra, Malika Zarra and Iness Mezel.

Kabyle jazz

Kabyle is the language of one of the largest Berber groups in the North of Algeria. Its speakers are found throughout the Atlas Mountains as well as in France and, to a lesser extent, in Canada. Artists who perform in this language include Tala and Haffyd H

Tuareg music

The most popular type of Tuareg music nowadays is Tuareg blues. Bands like Tinariwen from Mali and Nigerien Bombino have a wide international fan base and have been performing globally for many years.

Festivals

An important role in the development of Maghreb Jazz crossovers is played the numerous music festivals which are organized annually in the Maghreb countries. The festivals invite the best jazz musicians from Europe and the rest of the world to play with their own musical heroes, creating a unique mix of folkloric sounds and contemporary jazz. Examples include:

Algeria – Dima Jazz Festival

Tunisia – Sicca Jazz Festival Tabarka Jazz Festival and Jazz a Carthage Festival

Morocco – Tanjazz, Jazzablanca, Gnaoua World Music Festival in Essaouira and Jazz au Chellah

References

This article "Maghreb jazz" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Maghreb jazz. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.

📰 Article(s) of the same category(ies)

• Dixieland
• Koto Jazz
• Free jazz
• Chillhop
• Crossover jazz
• Gypsy jazz
• Chamber jazz

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