This week, meeting with a young Moroccan artist: Saad Tiouly, who traces his path to the heart of Gnaoua music. A touching artist, encountered during the Kriol Jazz Festival in Cape Verde last April. Â Â
The enchanted enchanter. Saad Tiouly is possessed when he makes his voice resonate, when his fingers make his guembri vibrate. A child seized by this Gnaoua trance during healing ceremonies in his neighborhood of the old medina of Casablanca. HAS” The first time I discovered this instrument was during Lilas in the old Medina where there were malems playing. The sound of the guembri caught me, it had an impact on me. I wanted to buy a guembri but I couldn’t afford it. So, I learned to make the guembri, I did it without even knowing how to play this instrument. And for me the guembri is the soul, it’s an instrument that helps me feel good. So, I like playing the guembri because it’s part of me. »
Gnaoua music is based on large families of musicians, where this tradition is passed down from generation to generation. This is not the case for Saad Tiouly, who therefore had to convince his loved ones, break the codes and prove that his destiny was linked to this ancestral culture. HAS” For my parents, at the beginning it was very difficult. They had difficulty conceiving the idea that I would dedicate myself to this music. Particularly because it takes a lot of time to excel and refine your game to the detriment of other things like studies, for example. But I was determined, I was clear: I want Gnaoua music because I love it and it’s part of me. »
Self-sacrifice is therefore an important value for Saad Tiouly. He worked extensively on the classics of Gnaoua music before choosing to compose his own songs. HAS” It’s a song called ‘Ghrib ou berrani’ which evokes the sharing of love between people. And at one point, we arrive at a crossroads where people, for personal reasons, each take their own path, but on the other hand, given the solid bonds that existed, one day, we meet again and life goes on. HAS” Explosive, creative and soaring, Saad Tiouly’s music rocks the souls and also transmits a saving energy, that which pushes one to surpass oneself, to seek the impossible. “For me, music is a way to send a message to people who share values, especially love. Without this music, it is very important, without it, I could not even exist. »
Also readSpecial Gnaoua and World Music festival in Essaouira
