Moroccan life is inextricably linked to music and dance. While traveling in Morocco, you may see processions of dancing villagers parading through the streets, or you may be kept awake late at night by the rhythmic drumming and piercing ululations of wedding celebrations. While Moroccan music and dance are usually categorized as indigenous Berber or classical Arabic, you will also hear African, European, and Jewish influences in these traditional forms. Dance has a long and storied heritage in Morocco, whatever its origins.
Ghiaytas
Ghiaytas are dances traditionally performed by the Haha Berber tribes of the Atlas Mountains to prepare for war. For young men going into battle, this dance is a show of courage. The choreography includes warlike movements such as simulated shooting. For a large part of the dance, rifles are held atop the heads of the men. Accompanied only by a simple reed flute, the men shout and stomp their feet in a rhythmic rhythm. As a cultural tradition, Ghiaytas is kept alive today. At the end of the routine, the male dancers usually fire blanks from their rifles simultaneously at the ground.
Ouais
A graceful, fluid dance performed by women, the ouais has been described as a blend of English ballet and classical Arabic music. Dressed in elaborately embroidered caftans with silk belts, the dancers wear copper cymbals on their fingers. Accompanied by a single-stringed fiddle, two or three small mandolins, and the simple rhythm of a musician tapping on a large piece of cast iron, the ouais dance is most often performed at weddings.
Ahidous
Performed by both men and women, the Ahidous is a Berber dance from the Middle Atlas. Their songs are lyrical and poetic, and all the dancers stand in a circle. The women wear matching blue cloaks with white stripes. They also wear jewelry made of yellow amber beads and intricately engraved silver. The men have turbans tied on their heads and wear sleeveless, hooded robes called burnooses. Some play tambourines, others sway and clap to the music.
Houara
Inezgane houara is also a mixed-sex folk dance, but the performing troupe includes several men and only one woman. All the dancers form a tight circle and take turns entering the center. They perform intricately choreographed routines. There may be one man coming into the circle on his own, or there may be two men coming into the circle together. The woman rushes into the center of the circle to end the dance as the tempo increases. The houara has traditionally been used as a spiritual folk dance by the Berber tribes of Morocco.
There are dozens of other types of Moroccan dance. These include Chikhat(Arabic belly dance), guitar (a Tuareg women’s dance), awash (a tribal dance from the High Atlas), and Gnaoua (a highly acrobatic dance with sub-Saharan roots).
Taskiwin
The Taskiwin, one of nine in Morocco, is recognized by UNESCO as an intangible cultural heritage. The Taskiwin is a dance of the martial arts. It is very specific to the western part of the High Atlas mountain range. The name of the dance comes from the intricately decorated horn that each dancer carries during the dance – the Tiskt. The dancers shake their shoulders to the rhythm of flutes and tambourines.
Historically, for young men and women, the practice of this dance was an important means of socialization. It has been an important part of a larger tapestry of social life. Through informal, direct practice and learning, it remains a dance that is passed down through the generations.
Today only a few mountain towns and villages still perform the dance. It is seriously threatened with becoming extinct. Young people from these regions have begun to abandon their traditions in favor of more modern practices, largely due to the promises of globalization. In the last decade alone, the dance has disappeared from places where it used to be found. Dancers are struggling to find younger generations to pass on their knowledge in the few remaining communities. As a result, the craft of making flutes and tambourines for the music of the dance is also in decline.
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