Joujouka 23 will take place in Morocco from 2-4 June 2023.
The last few remaining tickets for the Master Musicians of Joujouka annual Festival in their village, with capacity limited to 50 places, are available now.
The festival begins on Friday, 2nd June 2023 with pick up at the nearest city of Ksar El Kebir around noon and with drop-off on the morning of Monday, 5th June back to the train station at Ksar El Kebir.
Ticket price includes pick up at Ksar El Kebir, accommodation, three meals a day and drop-off on 5th June.
Also included is three days and nights of music and a full immersion into the Joujouka experience.
Guests stay with Master Musicians and their families.
Performances are held at the Madrassa of the Master Musicians of Joujouka in their village in the Ahl Srif mountains of Morocco.
“The music of the Master Musicians of Joujouka is not improvised – it has been honed & perfected over many, many years to help the listener access altered states”Jarvis Cocker
“The oldest and most exclusive dance party in the world”Rolling Stone Magazine
The remarkable music played by the Master Musicians of Joujouka, a remote village in the Ahl Srif tribal area south of the Rif in Northern Morocco, is thousands of years old. In the 15th century, when the Sufi saint Sidi Ahmed Schiech arrived in the village, he wrote music for the Masters’ ancestors which could heal disturbed minds. Today’s Masters are blessed with the Baraka or spirit of their saint and use touch and prayer to heal.
Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones travelled to Joujouka in 1968 to record the Masters. Brian Jones Presents the Pipes of Pan at Joujouka was released in 1971, honouring Brian’s memory and exposing a wider audience to the remarkable music of the Masters for the first time.
In January 1973, jazz musician Ornette Coleman recorded with the Masters. A small part of what was recorded was released on the 1975 album Dancing In My Head album. The Master Musicians of Joujouka have performed at the Glastonbury Festival on and off since 1975.
Ahmed El Attar, the Rais (leader) of Master Musicians of Joujouka, said: “The Master Musicians were hoping to come to London in 2021 which would have been the 50th anniversary of our first record produced by Brian Jones coming out. But Coronavirus stopped everything. Our last concerts in London were in 1980 when Rikki Stein brought us on a three-month tour, and we played a week at The Commonwealth Institute. Rikki has helped us and the village for 52 years and this London visit he has arranged as well. It is Baraka, the blessings of Sidi Ahmed Sheikh and the power of Boujeloud that keeps us all together for so long.”
Star of Moroccan World Cup side given a hero’s welcome in his mother’s hometown where a football stadium has been named in his honour.
Watch the Master Musicians of Joujouka at the welcoming reception for Achraf Hakimi in Ksar El Kebir
The Master Musicians of Joujouka performed recently at huge public gathering in Ksar El Kebir to welcome Moroccan World Cup legend Achraf Hakimi to his mother’s hometown.
Thousands of soccer fans lined the streets of the city to welcome the returning star – whose performances at the Qatar 2022 World Cup helped the Atlas Lions reach the semi-finals of the competition.
Though he was born in Spain, Hakimi’s mother is from Ksar El Kebir, the nearest city to Joujouka. Hakimi currently plays for Paris Saint-Germain in France.
Paying a visit to Ksar El Kebir on 10th January, Hakimi was greeted by fans at a reception where the Master Musicians of Joujouka where invited to play their ancient Sufi trance music to soundtrack the occasion.
Hakimi was a key member of the Morocco side throughout their record breaking run in the tournament as the first African and Arab side to reach the semi-final stage.
The 24-year-old right back started in all of the Moroccan side’s World Cup fixtures and memorably scored the penalty shoot spot kick that knocked out Spain in the second round. Hakimi played a key role in wins against Canada, Belgium and Portugal. The side went out of the competition to then cup holders France before a third place play-off encounter with Croatia, with whom they had drawn in the group stages.
Mohammed Al Simo, the president of Ksar El Kebir’s collective council, announced that a soccer stadium in the city would be renamed in honour of their returning hero – the Achraf Hakimi Municipal Stadium.
Hakimi told press: “I am so happy to be with you today. I thank all the town of Ksar El Kebir. I am very happy to see the mayor of the city, who did good things. We keep on working for the good of Morocco’s culture and we have to keep working for the good of Moroccans. I am happy here. This is my mother’s town, and I spent a lot of time here when I was a kid. Thank you everybody.”
A city council statement said the purpose of the reception was to continue “to celebrate the historic achievement of the Moroccan National Football Team in the Qatar 2022 World Cup”.
Like many people all over Morocco and beyond, the Master Musicians were cheering on the Atlas Lions at the recent World Cup.
Joujouka 23Festival 2-4 June 2023
The Master Musicians of Joujouka annual Festival returns in 2023 with a limited number of 50 places – tickets available now.
The festival begins on Friday, 2nd June 2023 with pick up at the nearest city of Ksar El Kebir around noon and by arrangement drop-off on the morning of Monday, 5th June back to the train station at Ksar El Kebir.
