Mazaher

Mazaher

Mazaher are a small group of mostly women musicians and singers who play Zãr music: chanting songs and playing hypnotic polyrhythms used as a purification and exorcism ritual to help pacify and cleanse the human spirit. The instrument prominently featured is called the tanbūra, a six string instrument found across East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula.Though Zãr ceremonies have been largely dissipating or outlawed, Mazaher remain part of a movement preserving it as a vital cultural heritage passed across generations.

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News

Watch: VPRO Vrije Geluiden sessions with Etran de L'Aïr, Víctor Herrero, Ored Recordings, Mazaher & Mario Batkovic at LGW21

Wednesday Feb 2nd 2022

Watch/read: Mazaher live at LGW21, premiered by Pan African Music

Wednesday Jan 26th 2022

Hidden Musics (2021)

Listen or read: a personal introduction to Egypt’s Mazaher, bearers of the Zar tradition, by Nadah El Shazly

Wednesday Sep 29th 2021

LGW x SPEAK present: Egyptian ensemble Mazaher introduced by Ahmed Mostafa

Friday Sep 10th 2021

Le Guess Who? presents the second edition of concert series Hidden Musics at 2021 festival

Tuesday Aug 31st 2021

Hidden Musics (2021)

Watch a video portrait of Egyptian Zar ensemble Mazaher

Monday Dec 28th 2020