National Geographic Music (National Geographic)

For Part I of National Geographic World Music's coverage of the 2007 Fes Festival of Sacred Music, click here.

As in previous editions of the Fes Festival, this year's musical performances offered a little something for everybody, from the glossy Afropop of Angelique Kidjo to the stately Turkish whirling dervishes of Ayin-i Djem and the Kadiria and Mawlawiya Brotherhoods. There were local Moroccan chaabi pop groups and Mauritanian folksingers; Pakistani Qawwâlis and British Gospel Choirs; Spanish Flamencos and French Sepharidic chanteuses.

Some of the musical highlights included a hypnotic performance of traditional Mauritanian chants by singer Aïcha Mint Chighaly (pictured) and her 4 piece ensemble. Trained in a traditional griot family, Chighaly held her audience at the Dar Batha rapt with a haunting set of songs. Backed by such traditional instruments as the ardin harp and the tidnit lute, Chighaly's set brought a whiff of the southern Sahara into the heart of Fes.

Another outstanding performance came from a trio of North African singers—Algeria's Beihdja Rahal, Tunisia's Sonia M'barek, and Morocco's Fadwa el Malki—who were billed as the "Voices of the Maghreb." Backed by a traditional Andalusian orchestra, these three very different divas offered up contrasting takes on contemporary and traditional Maghrebi (North African) song—and had the large Moroccan contingent at the Bab Makina finally putting down their cellphones to sing along in the aisles.

Also impressive was the Misa Flamenca Murciana, or "Flamenco Mass" presented by Spanish duo the Piñana brothers. Hailing from the city of Murcia, singer Curro and guitarist Carlos were backed by Cuban string quartet, Quinteto de Cuerda Diapasón, who leavened their deep Andalusian sound with just the right amount of Caribbean sweetness. The "Mass" itself was a passionate song-cycle based on both Catholic liturgical chants called saetas and the poems of Juana Román Hurtado. Performed in the festival's spirit of openness and ecumenicism, the performance received a standing ovation.

But the overarching theme that pulled (most of) the concerts together was the commemoration of the 800th birthday of Persian Sufi poet Jalal ad-Din Muhammmed Rumi, whose spirit presumably presided over the myriad of Sufi-themed events. One of the most dynamic Sufi performances came from young Syrian singer and oud player Waed Bouhassoune. Accompanying herself on the oud, Ms. Bouhassoune's passionate readings of select Rumi poems was illuminated by a gorgeous voice that more than a few festival-goers were heard to compare to the legendary Egyptian singer Umm Kalthumm.

Iranian singer Parissa celebrated Rumi's memory with a spellbinding set of his poems, set to music in the Persian classical style by the impressive Dastan Ensemble. Parissa's crystal-clear voice and emotional delivery breathed new life into Rumi's venerable verses—even for those who couldn't speak Farsi. Among those enthralled by Parissa's oerformance were U2's Bono and the Queen of Jordan.

Other memorable Sufi-themed events included a stately and meditative display of the art of the whirling dervish from Ayin-i Djem and the Kadiria and Mawlawiya Brotherhoods. These Turkish masters—decked out in the traditional white flowing robes and tall fezzes of their order— were backed by an ensemble led by the extraordinary Turkish master Kudsi Erguner. Together they mesmerized crowds at the Bab Makina. Equally trance-inducing was the Pakistani qawwali party led by Akhtar Sharif Arup Vale. The party, as these ensembles are known, propelled the crowd at the Bab Makina to ecstatic heights with an intense combination of hand percussion, harmonium and ensemble singing.

Of course, one of the festival's perennial draws is the Sufi Nights series at the Dar Tazi. As always, these performances drew on a wide range of Moroccan Sufi brotherhoods, each specializing in a different style of sacred trance music. Among this year's standouts were Tariqa El Harakiya and Chadilia Mchichia (both, interestingly, from Tetouan). For those keeping score, this year marked the first time that a Moroccan gnawa ensemble was featured during the Sufi nights. The gnawa brotherhoods offer up a different kind of sacred trance music; one rooted in the experience of the black Africans once brought to Morocco as mercenaries and slaves. Long on the sidelines of the official festival, this year's inclusion of the gnawa ensemble of Ouled Kamar added a welcome new dimension to the Sufi nights.

Equally praiseworthy was the festival's commitment to bringing popular local acts to the free concerts in the city. These shows offered up a unique opportunity for travelers to see acts that might never perform outside of Morocco—not to mention the chance to mingle up-close with the average Moroccan punter and check out the kind of music he listens to. Some of the more interesting acts included Mazagan, Darga and Amargh Fusion, all of whom performed variations of rai, chaabi and other forms of North African popular music. One unfortunate side note was that the frontman for Amarg Fusion, Ali Faiq, was hospitalized for a heart attack prior to one of the performances-the band soldiered on admirably without him.

The festival was directly engaged with the city of Fes on many fronts this year, most notably with the inclusion of a youth theater program presented by the Association Fes Dhar El Mahraz, a homegrown youth group that empowers some of the city's poorest children through theatre, song, film and video. The organization gives a voice to children and their parents from one of Fes' bidonvilles (shantytowns), in a cooperative, community building atmosphere – and was a welcome addition to the more internationally themed programming of the festival's main stages.

Still, the headliners are what many festival-goers came for – both native fassies and foreigners alike – and the big names didn't disappoint. South African legend Johnny Clegg set the pace with a blistering set of Zulu- and Township-inspired protest pop. Though his heyday was during the anti-apartheid struggle years of the '80s, Clegg's energy and enthusiasm were infectious, and his music still packs a punch.

Later in the week, Brazilian pop star Tania Maria delivered a slick, polished set on the big stage at the Bab Makina – which, for all her considerable talent, didn't seem to quite grab the local Moroccan elites (who spent the better half of her performance glued to their mobile phones).

But four nights later Afropop diva Angelique Kidjo made everybody put down their phones and dance when she took the stage at the Bab Makina. Kidjo was a whirlwind of energy and motion, unleashing her big voice on the unsuspecting audience and pulling surprised audience members (mostly children) onto the stage for an impromptu dance party. Though Kidjo's show was just past the festival's halfway mark, for many it was the emotional high point of the event.