Posts Tagged ‘Moroccan Rap’

Fantasia in Marrakech at Chez Ali, Your Morocco Travel Guide

Sunday, October 2nd, 2011

Chez Ali Kasbah in Palmerie, Marrakech

Fantasia in Marrakech at Chez Ali is a spectacular way to see Marrakech by night. This Equestrian dinner and Moroccan music show in the Palmerie of Marrakech, Morocco an homage and touristic replication of the traditional Meknes Fantasia. At Chez Ali in Marrakech, a Moroccan dinner is served with a traditional starter of Harira, with a main course of Mechoui and couscous, all under caidal “tents”. The dinner is complimented by Berber folklore and a wide range of musical styles from Berber groups, Chabbi musicians, Moroccan Rap and Gnaoua. Attendees will see jugglers. the flying carpet, belly dancing and finally the Fantasia show.

Chez Ali Equestrian Horse Show, Marrakech

Originating from the region of Meknes Morocco, Fantasia is a war ceremony that consists of opposing groups of horsemen, each representing the best rides of its tribe. The performance is inspired from historical wartime attacks of Berber and desert knights. Today, Fantasia is considered as a cultural art and a form of martial art; it also symbolizes a strong relationship between the man and the horse, as well as an attachment to tradition.

Each region in Morocco has one or several fantasia groups, called serba, totaling thousands of horse riders nationwide. Performances are usually during local seasonal, cultural or religious festivals, also called mousseum, which translates to “season” in Arabic. This traditional equestrian performance practiced during cultural festivals in Morocco. Fantasia is not the original name as the actual traditional term used is “Game of gunpowder”.

Chez Ali Singers, Marrakech

Fantasia in its pure form consists of a group of horse riders, wearing traditional clothes and charging along a straight path at the same speed so as to form a line, at the end of the ride (about two hundred meters) all riders fire into the sky using old gunpowder guns. The difficulty of the performance is synchronization during the acceleration and especially during firing so that one single shot is heard. The horse is referred to as fantasia horse.

Discover The Best of Morocco - Travel ExplorationTravel Exploration specializes in Morocco Travel. We provide Tours and travel opportunities to Morocco for the independent traveler and tailor-made tours for families and groups with a distinctly unique flavor. From Morocco’s Seven Imperial Cities, to the Magical Sahara Travel Exploration offers a captivating experience that will inspire you. At Travel Exploration we guarantee that you will discover the best of Morocco! Call Travel Exploration at 1 (800) 787-8806 or 1 (917)703-2078 and let’s book a tour to Morocco for you today.

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Travel The World of Moroccan Rap

Monday, March 23rd, 2009

 

Moroccan Rapper Bigg

Rap is far from the new kid on the block in Morocco. Morocco’s rap roots can be traced as far back to the 1980’s with the group Out-Life; this group spread throughout small Moroccan communities as an urban art. From these small communities, other Moroccan rap artists emerged and moved into larger urban areas spreading their music its profound messages throughout Morocco’s imperial cities and small towns. 

  Rap is best described as a sub-group of hip hop.  Moroccan rap, similar to that of other countries, involves the spoken word immersed with spoken poetry alongside a musical accompaniment. Arguably, rap began as early as the 1960’s when a group of black militants called “The Last Poets” sang revolutionary messages through their music. Since that time rappers such as Tupac Shakur, Dr. Dre, and the Notorious Big have successfully captured the worlds and Morocco’s attention through their powerful lyrics.

Moroccan Rapper Appa

 Although rap and hip hop are not new to Morocco, it is only in the last decade that new Moroccan audiences have been captured by Morocco’s rap movement.  Since Moroccan rap artists and their profound musical messages did not sympathize with Moroccan traditional values, rap was considered new and unfamiliar, and therefore took longer to become popular. However, today rap is revolutionizing in Morocco. Rap and hip hop can now be heard fused with reggae and traditional Moroccan sounds such as Berber music, Arab, skah, and Gnaoua music. This melting pot of sounds is capturing Moroccan’s attention because more Moroccans now feel like they can identify with Moroccan rap.

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Travel Exploration specializes in Morocco Travel. We provide Tours and travel opportunities to Morocco for the independent traveler and tailor-made tours for families and groups with a distinctly unique flavor. From Morocco’s Seven Imperial Cities, to the Magical Sahara Travel Exploration offers a captivating experience that will inspire you. At Travel Exploration we guarantee that you will discover the best of Morocco! Google on call Travel Exploration at (917)703-2078 and let’s book a tour to Morocco for you today.