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Rabat – Gnaoua music has travelled all the way to Vietnam. The Gnaoua troupe led by Majid Bekkas made quite the impression on its audience on April 30, as a part of the ongoing Hue Festival 2018, in the province of Thua Thien-Hue, Vietnam.
Celebrating its 10th International Festival of Music, ending on May 2, the Vietnamese city had the opportunity to discover the typical rhythms of Gnaoua through a brilliant performance led by Bekkas and his troupe.
The entertaining troupe interpreted several titles of its rich repertoire to highlight the ancestral music that reflects the diversity of the musical culture in Morocco. The concert was warmly welcomed by the audience who provided the troupe with a standing ovation at the end.
Speaking to MAP, Majid Bekkas expressed his joy of being “the ambassador of this musical genre in Vietnam,” during his debut at the Hue Festival.
“Music is a vector of rapprochement between the Moroccan and Vietnamese people, who, despite the distance, share universal values ??of openness, peace, and solidarity, considering it necessary to further develop cultural cooperation relations between Morocco and Vietnam,” he added.
Given the enthusiasm of the Vietnamese public, the Gnoua master said that he is definitely coming back to Vietnam to perform in other shows.
Bekkas’s music fuses traditional Gnaoua music and African-American blues. Over time his music has become world famous, receiving the attention of other renowned international Gnaoua masters.
The maalem embellishes his music with new instruments such as guitar and African drums. He has also participated in numerous festivals: Jazz aux Oudayas and the Grenoble Jazz Festival.
Themed “Cultural Heritage with Integration and Development: Hue – One Destination, Five World Heritage,” the festival has attracted nearly 50,000 visitors each day
