National Geographic Music (National Geographic)

The Moroccan city of Fes once again hosted the Fes Festival of Sacred Music, an annual celebration of music, culture and diversity, which took place between June 2nd and 10th this year. Now in its 13th season, the festival attracted an impressive roster of international musicians, artists and academics to the walled medieval city for a week of musical and cultural exchanges. The performing artists were a mixed bag of world music superstars, sacred and traditional musicians, local Moroccan favorites and Sufi brotherhoods, and even the odd equestrian act. This year's headliners included South African legend Johnny Clegg, Brazilian pop star Tania Maria, and Benin's diminutive diva, Angelique Kidjo.

But not all the star power was onstage. Among those seen grooving in the audience at the Dar Batha venue was U2 frontman Bono - on a layover between his appearances at the TED development conference in Tanzania and the G8 Summit in Germany. Bono was in town with the rest of the band, reputedly absorbing the atmosphere and writing tracks for an upcoming record at a local riad (or guesthouse) in the city's historic medieval medina. Also spotted among the dignitaries and glitterati were the Queen of Jordan and not one but two members of the Moroccan royal family (Princesses Lalla Salma and Lalla Meryem). These sightings, plus the ever-present crush of European media and international festival-goers underscored just how big the Fes festival has become in recent years.

This year, as in the past, the Fes festival had three main components, held at a variety of venues across the city. First and foremost was the musical program, which was held at various times of the day throughout Fes. In addition to the music was the Fes Encounters Program—a series of academic roundtables devoted to themes of diversity, development and cultural preservation in the face of globalization. Finally, closing out each day's festivities were the ever-popular Sufi Nights—late night events held in an authentic, atmospheric Moroccan tea garden, that featured ritual performances from different Sufi tarikas (brotherhoods) from across the country.

Each day's concerts began at the intimate Dar Batha, a spectacular building in the old Fes medina that boasted a walled courtyard and Andalusian-style garden. Artists there performed under the gnarled branches of a 100 year old Barbary oak tree, while the mostly Western audiences crowded in close—many barefoot and cross-legged on Oriental carpets. Later in the day, free concerts were held as part of the "Festival in the City" program, which featured more popular local artists from around Morocco. These shows were held at two separate venues; one was a vast, paved courtyard of the Bab Boujloud—adjacent to one of the city's most famous medieval gates and an open-air evening market. The other was a sometimes dusty racetrack a bit off the main pedestrian routes. Both venues offered adventurous guests a rare opportunity to interact with truly local fassi crowds.

Each evening's main event was held in the most spectacular venue of all—a massive, 14th century horseman's gate called the Bab Makina. But the word gate doesn't do this architectural marvel justice. Easily capable of swallowing up hundreds of festival-goers, risers, chairs, food stands and all the beautiful people that could fill them, the Bab Makina is more of a massive, walled courtyard, topped off at one end by a monumental, two-story Moorish keyhole arch that provided an imposing backdrop for each evening's performances.

Finally, this year's festival offered up a special new treat – two dawn equestrian performances from the very theatrical French stunt rider Bartabas. Bleary-eyed guests were shuttled by bus to a vacant quarry, where a sumptuous Moroccan breakfast was served on plush Oriental carpets and the magnificently mononymic Bartabas put his trusty charger through its dressage - backed by the faintly audible strains of the great Turkish ney (flute) master Kudsi Erguner.