Sonic Pluriverse Festival – Global Echoes of Gnawa

Gnawa as a Bridge of Cultures

The Gnawa are a musical and spiritual tradition of Morocco that has grown over centuries: descendants of enslaved West Africans whose sounds have merged with Arab, Andalusian, and sub-Saharan elements to form their own unique expression. Maalems (masters) lead through ceremonies with the Guembri bass lute, Krakebs iron castanets, and trance-like singing, which originally served a healing function and are now part of the global world music scene.

Four Weekends, Multiple Traditions

The festival runs over three weekends between late June and mid-July 2026, repeatedly pairing Gnawa ensembles with other traditions with which they share historical, musical, and spiritual connections:

• Flamenco – Andalusian roots connected to Gnawa through Spain and the Mediterranean
• Candomblé and Santería – Afro-Brazilian and Afro-Cuban religions with West African Yoruba roots
• Voodoo (Vaudou) – Haitian and West African tradition
• Tarantella – Southern Italian trance dance tradition
• Desert Blues – Tuareg-Malian Sahara tradition

Prominent Voices

The stage features stars of the global world music universe: Baaba Maal (Senegal), Majid Bekkas (Morocco), Maalem Hassan Boussou (Morocco). Special emphasis is placed on female voices in the Gnawa tradition, asserting themselves against the historically male-dominated Maalem role: Asmaa Hamzaoui & Bnat Timbouktou (Morocco, the first all-female Gnawa ensemble) and the highly acclaimed Bab L'Bluz (French-Moroccan fusion).

Haus der Kulturen der Welt – the Pregnant Oyster

The HKW – popularly known as the 'Pregnant Oyster' due to its curved roof shape – is Berlin's most important institution for international arts and discourse. Located directly on the Spreebogen in Tiergarten, in the Mitte district, it is one of the architecturally striking buildings of post-war modernism (1957). The Sonic Pluriverse Festival aligns with the institution's programming: curated intercultural encounters beyond one-dimensional folklore.