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story begins like all good ones do, with a 66-year-old man
standing on stage, dressed as a goat.
It is late March, and I’ve come to Morocco, in part, to see a
rare public performance by the Master Musicians of Joujouka,
a group of traditional Sufi trance artists from a remote corner
south of the Rif Mountains who have nevertheless captivated the
world. Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones recorded the Masters in
their village in the late ’60s. William S. Burroughs and Timothy
Leary famously dubbed them “the 4,000-year-old rock band.”
More recently, Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins spent a
week just observing them.
The Masters’ brand of ancient trance isn’t simply entertain-
ing. It’s also said to have healing powers. The half man, half goat
who is part of their act is called Bou Jeloud, and according to
folklore, if he hits you with a stick during a performance, you
will get pregnant. More on that soon.
The plan was to spend a week exploring Morocco through
its music, which is as varied as its landscapes—from the Atlas
Mountains to the red walls of Marrakech to the expansive deserts,
where the sound takes on a shape and color all its own. Here,
Berber drums beat in surprising rhythms, and music played on
ouds, an instrument like an 11-string lute, reflects the country’s
Arabic roots. Here, Gnawa music emerged from the country’s
slave-trading past, carried over on slave ships from West Africa
that docked in Mogador, now called Essaouira. Taken together,
the music provides a soundtrack to the country’s rich and com-
plicated history, and a creative tool to shape an itinerary.
It wasn’t my idea, exactly. Paul Bowles did it first. In 1957 the
author of The Sheltering Sky asked the Library of Congress to
sponsor a recording expedition across Morocco. He hoped to
preserve the country’s music before foreign influence muddied
the waters. (He was also maybe a colonialist who never wanted
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MARC SETHI (FESTIVAL); PREVIOUS PAGES: ALLAL FADILI (BOYS); SERGEY LOBODENKO/GETTY IMAGES (ALL ILLUSTRATIONS)