Fes Festival of World Sacred Music

or so musicians, scholars and enthusiasts from around the globe, representing all of the world’s religions will be converging on a sacred 1,200-year-old city in North Africa. The city is Fes, Morocco and the people gather for the Fes Festival of World Sacred Music.

The Moroccan philanthropist Faouzi Skali founded the Fes Festival of World Sacred Music in this year.

Over these many years, the week-long festival has provided choices that will satisfy anyone with an appetite for knowledge, art and spirituality. Often referred to as a “beacon of peace from the Islamic world,” it has been designated by the United Nations as one of the major cultural events of the world.

or so people have visited the festival over the years. Every evening, the palace courtyard of the 14th-century Bab Makina is filled with a sold-out crowd who gather to watch and hear performers who have included the now deceased Ravi Shankar, Malian superstar Salif Keita, and even Björk.

This year’s theme is “Femmes Fondatrices”. Among the women celebrated are Fatima Al Fihriya (who founded the university in 859AD), the country’s notable 18th-century ruler, the scholar and diplomat Khnata Bent Bakkar, and Kenza El Awrabiya, whose 8th-century marriage to Moulay Idriss unified the Amazigh people and the Arabs, forming the basis of Moroccan society.

Indian artists will perform as part of the "Tribute to India" session. Each year the festival pays tribute to one country, this year it is India.