Woman: [ Vocalizing ] ♪♪♪ Narrator: It borders one of the largest deserts on planet Earth.

[ Vocalizing continues ] ♪♪♪ And within its borders is a country overflowing with exotic music... diverse cultures... and landscapes that must be seen to be believed.

This is Morocco.

[ "Afriquia" by Fnaire plays ] ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ This is a journey across the largest mountain range in Africa.

♪♪♪ and into the great expanse of the Sahara.

♪♪♪ A voyage into the wonder and mystique... ...that is... [ Triumphant music plays ] ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ [ Moroccan Chabbi music plays ] ♪♪♪ Marrakesh -- it's a blend of Arab, European, and African influences.

It's a melting pot of old world traditions and customs fuzed with modern ideas and beliefs.

And it is called the Red City.

♪♪♪ And for these three friends, this journey will take them into the far southern reaches of the mystical Morocco.

♪♪♪ Built at the foothills of the High Atlas Mountains, the city was founded in 1062 A.D. by the Amazigh Empire.

A traveler's first visit to this energetic city overwhelms the senses.

The sights, sounds, smells, and tastes come at you fast and furiously.

♪♪♪ Hassan Hakmoun, a master Gnawa musician, and his friends, superstar singer, songwriter, and producer, Nouamane Lahlou and Laurent LeGall, a documentary filmmaker, have journeyed to Marrakesh to experience the mystery and wonder of this ancient city.

♪♪♪ This is the house here where I grew up.

You grew up here?

And some of my family member was born here.

But you're Muslim, right?

I am Muslim.

But, you know, Jews and Muslims live together at the same house.

[ Hassan and man speaking Arabic ] Come, come.

I used to bake bread here.

I worked in this place here, in this bakery, making bread.

You can put 300 pieces of bread like this inside.

Wow.

And when the bread comes in and it's like this, when it's hot, you do this so it doesn't burn, okay?

And then you put it here, and all this bread goes back into the markets.

But besides that, people also bring their own bread.

So, this is commercials and also for the neighborhood.

That was me back then.

That kid was me.

But the music took me around the world.

Laurent: And here, you were playing music also when you were young in those streets, in this area?

Yes.

I was playing, you know, all over this this neighborhood music.

[ Horn honks ] Narrator: A taxi ride in Marrakesh is a wild and unique experience.

Come on, guys.

Don't be shy.

Man: [ Speaking foreign language ] [ Chuckles ] And it's pretty wide in there.

Narrator: Laurent and Hassan make their way across town to learn more about the spiritual style of music called Gnawa and its iconic instrument.

Well, this instrument have 27 names, but I call it sintir.

It's carved by hands.

And sanded.

You see?

Now, he's going to put the skin.

The skin is a camel skin.

But not just the camel skin.

It's a special part of the camel, which is the neck.

The neck.

Why?

Well, when he hits your neck, you hear a different sound right here.

That's where our voices come.

This instrument used for healing.

The healing like what?

When somebody is sick, they come into the Gnawa and they do ceremony.

And that ceremony lasts all night long and play by this instrument, which we call sintir.

Is it a kind of a trance in a way?

It is.

It is a trance?

It is a trance.

Trance music.

How long have you been playing Gnawa music?

Well, I grew up with this music within the family, but I become a master at the age of 14.

To become a master, you have to perform all ceremony.

You also have to make your own instruments.

Not go and buy it.

And this instrument, it's a bass instrument.

Two and a half strings, that is a bass.

This is before bass -- electric bass, or an upright bass, or a lot of other instrument that you see.

This instrument is like the godfather of all the instruments.

So, he's almost finished putting the skin on, and this is the way it's going to look on when he's finished.

Mm-hmm.

[ Sintir music plays ] ♪♪♪ Hassan and Laurent continue their adventure through Marrakesh.

And riding mopeds through the cobblestone streets of the Medina is common here.

They're heading into the very heart of the city.

Laurent: This is Jemaa el-Fnaa, probably the most famous square in Morocco.

It's pretty tame during the day, but at night, this place really comes to life.

The square is located right next to the Medina.

Narrator: Here, the henna artists, snake charmers, and musicians mix with the wide-eyed travelers.

♪♪♪ Hassan takes Laurent deep into the Medina, where vendors offer all kinds of goods, leather, food, jewelry.

It's the perfect place to taste some of Morocco's most unique cuisine.

Hassan: This market have everything.

So, you come here, you want olives, you want mint, you know, you want spice, you want incense, you want to buy clothes, you want to buy, you know, carpentries -- everything.

Laurent: Everything is here.

Everything.

Is it busy right now?

No.

No?

[ Chuckles ] This is not busy.

You haven't seen busy.

Now, do you like olives?

I love olives.

You can have some.

You can have some.

[ Men speaking foreign language ] Hassan: Go ahead.

[ Speaking Aabic ] Shukran.

Mm.

A little bit spicy.

And tasty.

Mm, and very tasty.

Very tasty.

That's right.

Out of this world.

Mm.

[ Indistinct chatter in background ] Mm.

Olives in Morocco.

Magnifique.

♪♪♪ As the light fades, the musicians and performers bring Jemaa el-Fnaa square to life.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ [ Seagulls squawking ] [ Waves crashing ] The friends' journey continues to the coast of Morocco.

♪♪♪ Essaouira is a city built on the traditions of fishermen harvesting the sea.

Just over 200 years old, the town is young by Moroccan standards.

♪♪♪ It was formerly called Mogador after the nearby island that shelters the city from the winds of the Atlantic Ocean, making this one of the best ports in all of Morocco.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Hassan: Here, you got the ocean.

And you got also, you know, the fish.

The fish is fresh.

The boat comes here in the port, and they start selling the fish right off, you know, off the boat.

Laurent: The architecture also is totally different.

We can see the flavor of the Portuguese here.

It was like built by the sea.

You know, you can call it the blue city or, you know...

So, it is a very special place to be.

I think it's a very inspiring place -- It is.

...for artists.

It is.

It's a very creative -- I mean, imagine you come here, sit right by the ocean -- You can have something in your mind.

Yup.

...and start the writing.

Every time the wave hit the rock, it comes out in your poem or words for your song.

Essaouira is a haven for artists from all around the world.

Regardless of race, ethnicity, or beliefs, there's a feeling of acceptance and respect among the fellow artists.

♪♪♪ [ Indistinct chatter ] Before the main harbor was in Casablanca, it was first here in Essaouira.

So, they provided fish for the whole area -- for the city of Marrakesh, for the capitals, for everybody.

Everybody ate the fish, but not only is it good fish because there is a lot of fish, but they know how to cook the fish.

Narrator: Today, Essaouira is known for more than just seafood.

♪♪♪ It's also famous for Gnawa music.

♪♪♪ Essaouira has become a Mecca of sorts for the popular trance-like music that uses ancient African Islamic spiritual religious songs and rhythms.

Many of these songs can last for as long as several hours and are used during healing rituals.

♪♪♪ The annual Gnawa Festival attracts music lovers from all over the world who descend upon Essaouira to enjoy three days of concerts that include impromptu jams and fusions with other genres such as jazz, hip hop, and blues.

How many people here?

They exceeded 500,000 people.

Wow.

[ Chuckles ] That's a lot.

Yeah, it is "Wow."

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Heading south along the coast, the friends voyage into the Atlas Mountains.

This part of Morocco is famous for the argan trees and the goats that climb up into the trees to eat their fruit.

♪♪♪ The oils from the fruit have grown in popularity in Europe and North America.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ As the three friends travel through the southern part of Morocco, the sun begins to dip below the Atlantic Ocean.

♪♪♪ It's a vista worthy of stopping the bus to experience firsthand.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Their journey continues south along the coast to the city of Agadir -- the next stop for the Voyagers.

♪♪♪ It's known as the Miami of Morocco.

Nouamane: We are in Agadir, one of the most famous and known cities for tourism.

We are in the capital of Sousse.

Agadir is the joy of Morocco.

Sun all the time.

Beaches all the time.

Very, very beautiful.

And what about the music comes from here?

The main two kinds of music in Agadir is ru-ice, which means chiefs that our masters go through all villages in Morocco from Agadir and tell story to villages from other villages.

And another main, main music kind is folk music called Ahwash.

Ahwash?

And this is a player of Hosh, and Hosh is the courtyard in your house, like every family gets in the evening of at the courtyard and starts playing and getting -- It's social life.

[ Singing, chanting in foreign language ] And they play this kind of tambourines called Tara -- Mm-hmm.

...goes in a crescendo from slow to fast, and at the fastest movements, they start to use the hands called, in this region, afoos, afoos, which means hand.

[ Singing, chanting continues ] ♪♪♪ That's why you're going to see a man, a maestro, saying, "Afoos, afoos, daka, daka, daka," with the drums.

Very, very -- And the ladies playing and chanting and dancing together.

♪♪♪ The Agadir of today is modern and advanced.

But it does not have the Medina many other cities in Morocco cherish.

February 29, 1960, changed the city of Agadir forever.

A 5.7 magnitude earthquake struck the area.

It lasted for only 15 seconds, but that was long enough to level the entire city, injuring or killing more than half the population.

The whole city was swallowed up from there... over there in that mountain.

So, we came down here and built this all new city.

Today, the city shows no sign of enduring one of the country's largest tragedies in its history.

To the very far south, on a peninsula that stretches out into the Atlantic, is the city of Dakhla -- our voyager's final destination.

Woman #2: [ Speaking foreign language over PA ] This is considered the far reaches of Morocco, hundreds of kilometers from the larger cities like Casablanca and Tangier.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ This all area, the Moroccan Sahara, was colonized by the Spanish.

Back in 1975, the King Hassan II had this beautiful specific vision and asked for a green march, green which means peaceful.

Only people taking coral and Moroccan flags and walking.

But how many people were involved in that?

350,000 did the march at that time.

And as soon as we reached the Sahara, we were responded by Spanish, and they evacuated the place.

This area of Africa has been coveted by many different countries, most recently by Spain and Algeria.

In 1975, when this area was known as the Spanish Sahara, King Hassan II of Morocco publicly called upon his people to march into the Spanish Sahara unarmed, a peaceful protest to the Spanish occupation of the region.

Spain relinquished its occupation soon thereafter.

Today, this part of the world is very important to the Moroccan people.

Nouamane and Hassan have invited many of their friends and famous Moroccan musicians to Dakhla, like Omar Sayed, whose band Nass El Ghiwane brought Western influences to Moroccan music... ...and the beautiful Bayane Belayachi, a classically trained vocalist.

[ String instrument plays ] ♪♪♪ [ Singing in foreign language ] ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ And Fnaire, One of the hottest hip hop groups in Morocco.

[ Singing in foreign language ] ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Man #2: The song... it's a gift for the people of Morocco and also the people here that lives in the deserts.

And it's always stay as a traditional culture, traditional of Morocco and always will be.

Narrator: It's time to explore Dakhla.

Laurent and Bayane head to the center of town.

So, we are here in the souk in Dakhla, and this is the first time for you?

Yes, my first time.

And first time for me.

Let's go and experience and we'll see.

Yes.

Let's go.

[ Chuckles ] ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ As the day fades, everyone heads away from the city and out into the desert.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Laurent and Bayane come upon a traditional sub-Saharan music performance.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ You have to imagine... a beach... a full moon... a fire... and all those musicians united together to play together.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Narrator: With everyone seated around the fire, Nouamane leads the jam.

All the musicians take turns adding their own style to the melody.

♪♪♪ To be with Nouamane, with Hassan, meeting all those fantastic musicians was an incredible experience for me.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Narrator: Here in Dakhla under the desert moon, the Moroccan voyage of the three friends has finally come to a crescendo.

They have traveled from Tangier, across the emerald mountains, along the deep blues of the ocean, to the majestic golden Sahara, and have come to appreciate the diverse cultures, landscapes, ancient history, and modern cities.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Laurent: And that's it.

We are there to cherish a moment.

♪♪♪ Narrator: Yet, the heart of Morocco is its people who come together in perfect harmony, in one unified voice.

And we all one.

We all one.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪