Gnawa Music, Songs and Dance
Gnawa Music has three instruments: guembri called also Sentir or Hajhouj (three-stringed bass lute-drum), Krakeb (or Krakch) sort of rattlesnakes and tbel (drums). Each of these these instruments has a special function during the Gnawa ritual and returns to a specified member of the brotherhood. The guembri is the key instrument of Maâlem (master) who is also the lead singer of the band. This drum lute with three strings is low register.
The sounding of guembri is it, covered by camel skin (taken on his neck) dried and tanned. It is precisely this skin, struck by the right hand of the musician along the ropes, gives guembri a percussive sound. The three strings guembri are made from the intestines of a goat greasy, ritually sacrificed by the use of Gnawa, so they do not break. A metal sistre the sersèra comes meanwhile is recessed at the end of the handle guembri to be in resonance by the movements of the instrument and the strings' vibrations. There are also guembris for learning which are called "Aouicha" and are smaller. With his guembri Maâlem interprets particular melodies corresponding to specific melk, which is the supernatural entity that is in the lila (ritual ceremony), overlap the possessed.
The qraqeb (or qrâqech) the instrument dancers. Besides maâlem a Gnawa brotherhood account of instrument players. It is the latter, also dancers of the troupe and followers of maâlem. Those indeed play qraqeb performing dances to the rhythms and sounds of the Gnawa music. These instruments-symbols-Gnawa music are two cups iron identical, thirteen inches in diameter, connected by a metal rod new three centimeters wide.
Finally, there are two drummers, instruments also called tbels (the tbels are used in pairs and are accompanied by four pairs of qraqechs) used in introducing the sacred part of the rite of possession. Maintained on the left side of the musician, tbel is held by a strap. Two sticks are used to produce the sound of which is curved and the other straight.
These three instruments represent a part of Gnawa identity.
In a Gnawa song, one phrase or a few lines are repeated over and over, so the song may last a long time. In fact, a song may last several hours non-stop. However, what seems to the uninitiated to be one long song is actually a series of chants, to do with describing the various spirits (in Arabic mlouk (sing. melk)), so what seems to be a 20-minute piece may be a whole series of pieces - a suite for Sidi Moussa, Sidi Hamou, Sidi Mimoun or the others. But because they are suited for adepts in a state of trance, they go on and on, and have the effect of provoking trance from different angles.
The Gnawa originally used their music, songs and dance to heal the pain of their captivity. Gnawa lyrics contain many references to the privations of exile and slavery. Some songs express the trauma of being displaced and the deep hurt of loosing their homes. This is well illustrated in the following songs:
They brought from the Sudan
The nobles of this country brought us
They brought us to serve them
They brought us to bow to them
....
The Sudan, oh! Sudan
The Sudan, the land of my people
I was enslaved, I was sold,
I was taken away from my loved ones
...
The sounding of guembri is it, covered by camel skin (taken on his neck) dried and tanned. It is precisely this skin, struck by the right hand of the musician along the ropes, gives guembri a percussive sound. The three strings guembri are made from the intestines of a goat greasy, ritually sacrificed by the use of Gnawa, so they do not break. A metal sistre the sersèra comes meanwhile is recessed at the end of the handle guembri to be in resonance by the movements of the instrument and the strings' vibrations. There are also guembris for learning which are called "Aouicha" and are smaller. With his guembri Maâlem interprets particular melodies corresponding to specific melk, which is the supernatural entity that is in the lila (ritual ceremony), overlap the possessed.
The qraqeb (or qrâqech) the instrument dancers. Besides maâlem a Gnawa brotherhood account of instrument players. It is the latter, also dancers of the troupe and followers of maâlem. Those indeed play qraqeb performing dances to the rhythms and sounds of the Gnawa music. These instruments-symbols-Gnawa music are two cups iron identical, thirteen inches in diameter, connected by a metal rod new three centimeters wide.
Finally, there are two drummers, instruments also called tbels (the tbels are used in pairs and are accompanied by four pairs of qraqechs) used in introducing the sacred part of the rite of possession. Maintained on the left side of the musician, tbel is held by a strap. Two sticks are used to produce the sound of which is curved and the other straight.
These three instruments represent a part of Gnawa identity.
In a Gnawa song, one phrase or a few lines are repeated over and over, so the song may last a long time. In fact, a song may last several hours non-stop. However, what seems to the uninitiated to be one long song is actually a series of chants, to do with describing the various spirits (in Arabic mlouk (sing. melk)), so what seems to be a 20-minute piece may be a whole series of pieces - a suite for Sidi Moussa, Sidi Hamou, Sidi Mimoun or the others. But because they are suited for adepts in a state of trance, they go on and on, and have the effect of provoking trance from different angles.
The Gnawa originally used their music, songs and dance to heal the pain of their captivity. Gnawa lyrics contain many references to the privations of exile and slavery. Some songs express the trauma of being displaced and the deep hurt of loosing their homes. This is well illustrated in the following songs:
They brought from the Sudan
The nobles of this country brought us
They brought us to serve them
They brought us to bow to them
....
The Sudan, oh! Sudan
The Sudan, the land of my people
I was enslaved, I was sold,
I was taken away from my loved ones
...