This event, part of the Festival program, was organized by the Marsam Gallery and the International Center for Relational Psychosomatics (CIPSE). In his filmed conference, Sami-Ali evoked his work of calligraphy and painting on the poems of three well-known personalities and of which he was deeply impregnated, in particular Al Maarri, Ibn Arabi and Al Hallaj. “These paintings represent an aspect of my research that establishes links between different things, especially with the unspeakable. In the spiritual, if you do not see the unspeakable, you scatter.
So my painting is not only an aesthetic work, but it is also a spiritual quest. Not in the sense of conformism, but a free and always invented spiritual quest. In our world, we are already affected by a certain spirituality which allows us to say these things which are outdated for their unity. The concept of the unspeakable can be found in thought, poetry where there is the same search for calligraphy. That’s why I switch between mediums so easily and with the same consistency. And often, art, photography, psychosomatics and literature can give rise to different expressions full of love and spirituality”, explains Sami-Ali in his lecture. It should be noted that this native of Egypt living in France, considers Morocco as his adopted land on the emotional level. This has been very important for his work, as he regularly comes to Morocco to recharge his batteries around Sufi culture.
However, Sami-Ali’s exhibition is presented with a text that explains the calligram used and an excerpt from the poetry from which he took the calligram, in Arabic and French. “This event is the result of a meeting at an ecumenical concert given in Casablanca by Jews and Muslims. After getting to know him, I was very sensitive to his work, not only the subject of what he presents, but his real spirituality and his sincerity. Because many people can approach the spiritual without living it, but Sami-Ali really lives it. During a concert where the poems of Ibn Arabi had been performed, I saw Sami-Ali crying. Therefore, he is of great sensitivity and sincerity, coupled with a broad knowledge, since he has translated thirty-two works by well-known mystics and philosophers. He is also distinguished by this double dimension of a fan of mysticism and a philosopher, ”underlines Khalil Chraibi of the Marsam editions gallery.
For her part, Sylvie Cady, director of the International Center for Relational Psychosomatics, created with the collaboration of Sami-Ali, thinks that her work is not at all cut off from what it is on the scientific level. “There is always in him a search for unity, between the soul and the body. He lives it and transmits it, since it is all the research of the CIPSE that he created. What I find extraordinary about him is the fact that he went to the greatest school of French philosophy, but he never left his oriental roots and introduced his roots to go further compared to other studies. . Sylvie considers him a very great oriental philosopher. “His presence today is a plus for the festival as he has translated all the Sufi poems. Paintings are also part of this heritage and I think that the magic of Fez goes very well with its paintings, its thinking and everything it does. What I find wonderful in this festival is this link between the present and the past, because without our past, we cannot exist and this gives Fez its foundation of spirituality”.
At the end of this remarkable event, Arthur Cady, who sings in a classical music ensemble, wowed the audience by brilliantly performing witty operatic pieces and others in Arabic.
“It was not easy for me to learn the songs in Arabic, but I was helped with the pronunciation by the Lebanese singer Melkit, with whom I already collaborated during the last Festival of Sacred Music in Fez. . So, from the translations, I worked on the meaning of the words with the musical sensibility”.
When the Mugham of Azerbaijan meets the Maqam of Samaa
In the abundance of the program for this edition, two high quality concerts captivated the public of Jnan Sbil. This is the art of Mugham from Azerbaijan, with stars Kamila Nabiyeva and Miralam Miralamov representing the new generation of this art. With their impeccable technique, they captivated the audience with their powerful voices. The festival asked them to highlight this art of Mugham which is part of the intangible heritage of Unesco and whose world center located in Bamakou is a partner of the Festival. These maqamat of the art of Mugham were presented in the same evening with the Samaa Orchestra which offered a very beautiful concert entitled “The colors of the soul”. This last orchestra brought together musicians from Morocco and other countries, offering Muwashahat and Hadra, with the Mounchid Abdelkader Ghayt. The latter lived beautiful moments of communion with the public present.