The Gnawa are an ethnic minorityin today's Morocco, descendents of slaves from West Africa
who were brought to Morocco in the 16th century and who (although they quickly converted to
Islam) nevertheless brought with them remnants of their animistic practices.
The Gnawa perform a complex ceremony (called lila or derdeba) that over the duration of several
hours recreates the genesis of the universe by the evocation of the seven main manifestations
of the divine, represented by seven colours. Those ceremonies, led by a master or "maleem",
are still taking place today privately while Gnawa music in general has clearly been modernizing
and thus become more profane, but witnessing a performance is still an astonishing experience.