Part of the MOROCCO, BODY AND SOUL series of half hour films which present various musical genres being performed in the environments which fostered them, all the while giving viewers a window into the diverse components which comprise Moroccan society.

Black Africa flows in the veins of Morocco. Originally brought in as slaves during the 15th century gold rush in the western Sudan, the Gnaouas gathered into brotherhoods which practice spirit possession and exorcism, but with rituals borrowing as much from pre-Islamic culture as from the rites of African divinities. These ceremonies, accompanied by the bass of the great "hajhouj" lute, the crackling of the metal castanets and the heavy beat of the drums, call for the "mlouk," the beneficent genie who will come down upon the dancer at the height of his trance.

"GNAOUAS portraits black Africans descended from those who came to Morocco as slaves during the 15th century and gathered into brotherhoods that practice spirit possession and exorcism. The religious ceremonies are accompanied by the music of the great 'Hajhouj" lute, metal castanets and the heavy beat of drums... The viewer can feel the intensity simply by watching."—EMIE Bulletin

"An excellent resource for any course on ethnomusicology or African studies."—MC Journal: the Journal of Academic Media Librarianship