Field Report: Visa For Music, Rabat Morocco, with Alex Boicel

The Visa For Music conference takes place annually in the center of Rabat, Morocco. More than 1,200 professionals from more than 80 countries participated in discussions, networking, and forging new collaborations with the goal of raising the visibility for Arabic and African artists. Alex Boicel, there as a music professional, graciously agreed to report from the showcases and activities for MondoLocal. He sent us video and shared thoughts about what he had after each very busy day.

Sunday Bia Ferreira performed at the Rennaissance Stage. Coming from Brazil, she stepped on stage with only an acoustic guitar and needed only it and her voice to held the audience spellbound. Before singing she spoke to the audience about the power of love. It was an intimate moment and reminiscent of how she started out as a musician, traveling around her country with her guitar playing anywhere she could.

Opening Night festivities included Valerie Ekoume and Ferro Gaita who caught Alex’s eye at the Mohammed 5 Theater.

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Nomfusi is a force of nature when she walks on stage, she delivers on many levels, musically (her band is superb), lyrically and visually. She has won over audiences worldwide, as her recent US engagements, through Center Stage demonstrated. Listeners completely new to her music found it irresistable. Nomfusi could sing anything and it would captivate, so, while there is a double scoop of funk, and soul in her music, it is her roots that call her on her latest album 'The Red Stoep'. On it, Nomfusi, who grew up in KwaZakhele in the Eastern Cape province returns to her township roots.  It was there, from her mom, she learned “the spirit of perseverence and not giving up” and that comes through in the music.

Like leader Jabu Morales, Ayom's music traverses cultures, intentionally blurring the borders into a unique sound. Morales grew up in Brazil and moved to Barcelona where she met bandmates Alberto Becucci, accordion, from Italy; Timoteo Grignani, percussion from Greece; Walter Martins, percussion, from Angola; Ricardo Quintera, a Portuguese/Angolan guitarist; and Italian Francesco Valente, bass. So when this band takes the stage don't expect Morales' bateria to pound out a samba rhythm or sea shanties from Becucci's accordion even thought hey call tyhemselves "musical seafarers" its a voyage forward and full of ear opening listening

Sonia Noor is a local artist, born in Rabat and self taught musically. She had her first hit song 'Poco a Poco' sung in Spanish demonstrated he openness to exploring in her music and describes how she has built her career in becoming a major artist in Morocco and beyond. 

Sonia has released a string of singles in the past year,  ‘Yailah' is the latest. It is a love song sung in arabic that “speaks to the beauty of embarking on a journey to embrace love’s endless possibilities".

From Porto-Novo, Benin, Assia Brass is a 7 member group 3 percussionists, tuba, 2 trumpets and trombone. The Fanfare( brass band) tradition in Benin grew out of music groups linked with churches, and in some cases like Henri Ahouandjinouthe military and police orchestra which he directed. Fanfare is rooted in 19th century colonialism, and carryed forward by bands such as Gangbe and Eyo’nlé  who mix traditional percusion  and brass instruments. The music is both played and sung in the Beninese brass tradition.

Karyna Gomes of Guinea Bissau became involved with music while studying journalism in Sao Paolo, Brazil in 1997. To date Karyna has released two albums Mindjer in 2014 and N'Na in 2021. 

One of the reason we look forward to Alex’s reports are most off the artists are new to our ears. The Visa For Music showcases are always eye openers, illuminating a world of talent that we may never experience in person ourselves.

A pan African jury of cultural professionals selects those who will grace four stages in two venues in the heart of the city. Now In its 11th edition, this arts showcase is fast becoming a must for  curators from around the world, while creating a gateway to international audiences for regional artists.

The duo of Sibusile Xaba and ESINAM began collaborating in 2022, initially for a WOMAD festival perfomance that they continued, releasing their first single 'Africa Wola'  earlier this year. Sibusile Xaba follows in the Zulu maskandi tradition which is similar to the acoustic bluesman of the American south and Mbaqanga music popularized by Malathini and the Mahatella Queens. ESINAM, a Belgian-Ghanaian multi-instrumentalist based in Brussels bridges the two worlds in her flute playing which blends African and European techniques, also in the mix of techno beats with traditional percussion.

Ferro Gaita’s music is funana, Cape Verdean roots music primarily from the countrysideon the island of Santiago. The funana can be played slow or fast. The accordion and the scraper are lead instruments the cowbell and the conch sit at the very center of the energy propelling the band.

Visa For Music, in 2024, presented 58 live concerts, featuring over 500 artists from 35 countries taken in by 12,000 listeners. There was 14 workshops and master classes, empowering over 500 emerging artists and cultural professionals, 10 conferences and panels, sparking meaningful discussions on global music industry trends and challenges. Over 500 artists and cultural professionals attended 14 workshops and masterclasses.