Maalem Houssam Guinia is the son and successor of the late Maâlem Mahmoud Guinia, an emblematic figure in the practice of West African Gnawa music. Maâlem means “master musician”, and the Gnawa tradition is inherited by the family and passed down from generation to generation. Still in his twenties, Houssam released the beautiful album “Dead of Night” in 2024 on the British label Hive Mind Records, recorded in a single late-night session in a house in Casablanca.
Gnawa is an extensive treasure trove of ceremonial folklore, poetry and dance. The deeply hypnotic and repetitive rhythms are said to have spiritual and healing powers. For this reason, the music was originally used as a supporting element in ceremonies (“lila”), where participants can enter a trance-like state. The basis of these distinctive sounds is the “guembri” instrument, a three-stringed lute, covered in leather and strummed at the bottom, used in Morocco and neighboring countries, and also played by Houssam Guinia.
The Gnawa come from an ethnic minority; people whose ancestors were slaves in various West African countries and had to adapt to Moroccan culture. Music was their way of maintaining the traditions of their ancestors. This is a song of forced suffering and loss of home through violent means, marginalization and difficulties integrating into a new society.