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Date and Time

Thursday, June 25th

6:30pm

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Saha Gnawa make their Ronnie Scott’s debut, reimagining the Moroccan Gnawa tradition through New York’s contemporary jazz scene. Gnawa music - sometimes described as “Sufi blues” - is revered and treasured throughout Morocco for its soulfulness and healing power. Rooted in Morocco’s ancient history, gnawa combines devotional chant, cyclical rhythms and the deep pulse of the guembri (three-stringed bass lute) with metal qraqeb castanets and call-and-response vocals. Its repertoire is traditionally performed in extended ceremonial contexts built around trance and repetition. The group is co-led by Maâlem Hassan Ben Jaafer, a hereditary master of the gnawa tradition from Fes and leader of the Grammy-nominated group Innov Gnawa, and drummer/composer Daniel Freedman (David Byrne, Angelique Kidjo). Their ensemble brings together Gnawa musicians with players active in New York’s jazz and improvised music circles, expanding the music’s rhythmic and harmonic frame with drum kit, guitar and keyboards while retaining its core structures. The result is a set that moves between traditional Gnawa repertoire and open-ended improvisation - less fusion, more dialogue. Perfect in a jazz club setting where every detail and moment of musical interplay can be heard and appreciated.