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Cairo - Al-Asala band for prophet praising represents Morocco at the 7th round of “Sama’a” international festival for Sufi Chanting and Spiritual music, taking place this week in Cairo.
From the Atlantic to the Gulf, Sufi Chanters from all the Arab Countries gathered at one of Cairo’s most significant historic landmarks, the Citadel, on Tuesday to perform a united spiritual symphony in praise of God.
Inspired by the Moroccan heritage and particularly the Sufi music, Morocco’s Al-Asala formed a group of 35 chanters, musicians and Quran reciters to present Moroccan spiritual music to the world.
“We’re very glad to take part in this prestigious event for the first time” Said Mohsen Nourach the band leader. He also added that spiritual arts do not distinguish between languages or nations, and the “cultural diversity” encountered at the workshop was a point of strength to the band’s performance.
Al-Asala band already took part in several local and international events- chiefly, the first National Forum for Praising and Sufi-hearing in Rabat, 2009. The band also produced 5 albums of the same genre.
However, Nourach said, "the best part about joining Sama’a is showcasing the Moroccan heritage to the world and especially to the audience of Eastern Arab countries."
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High turnout was seen during the workshop, among the attendees was Moroccan ambassador in Egypt Mohamed Alami.
Alami told MWN that Sama’a festival has multiple distinctions, one of them is the music genre which aims at reserving an original kind of heritage. More importantly, the diversity between the contributing bands, gives the festival a global edge.
Sama’a is an international annual festival organized by the Egyptian Ministry of Culture under the slogan “a message for peace” that aims to unite an international array of spiritual musicians.
Syria, Kuwait and the United States took part in this year’s round for the first time, while the guest of honour for 2014 is the “Arab Nation.” Rhoum Bakkali band for El Hadra Chefchaounia and Sufi art represented Morocco on the previous round.
Maestro Intissar Abdelfattah said, “the increasing number of attendees encouraged us to add new venues to this year’s round including the Light and Sound theatre at the Pyramids.”
Contributing bands are distributed among the following places: Citadel, Moez street, Al-Ghoury dome and Al-Hanager theatre in Cairo, to perform every night during this week until Thursday, while the closing ceremony is scheduled on Friday at the Pyramids with the participation of all bands.
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