THE AIT ATTA

This dance resembles somewhat the Ahwash of Kelaa M'Gouna. A row of women in festive dress faces a row of men. All the gestures of the dancers express gaiety and enthusiasm. The dance marks the end of work in the fields, when the harvest is in and when the winter cold of the mountain regions gives way to the season of relaxation.

Another warrior dance performed only by men. Wearing white "gandoras", they link arms as if welded to each other and chant their song during a continuous backwards and forwards movement. The dance appears to symbolize the indivisible unity that should link the warrior of the tribe in the face of the enemy. The men form an impenetrable barrier: they are as one man, one will be animated by a single rhythm.

The central figure wears a different costume to the rest of the troupe. He has a pointed bonnet covered with a strip of white muslin and plays a double flute. He is the only professional in the troupe and produces a nasal buzzing with his instrument which has a striking effect while the men and women of the village turn in a circle. The dance is at times light, composed of slides and little steps, or more dynamic when the performers stamp hard on the ground. It is an abstract dance by the mountain folk but it has the virility also of warrior dances. Poems are recited.

The "Ahidous" of the Middle Atlas is a visual enchantment performed in its traditional purity by men and women dancers of the Oulmes and Khenifra areas. Most of the girls are very young and very pretty. The costume, strongly influenced by urban dress is in pale colors. The men and women form a large circle and rock to the rhythm of "bendir" drums. They do simple steps, advance and withdraw. The gestures are discreet, full of dignity and modesty. Poems are recited.

The Ait Haddidou live on the upper plateaux of the Assif Melloul in the High Atlas mountains at an altitude of 8,500 feet, and seem to have been subjected to no influences to upset the harmony of their patriarchal existence. The women wear "handiras", blue cloaks with white stripes. Married women and widows may wear "akidoud", a kind of henna, in their hair. Hefty necklaces of yellow amber beads and heavy silver jewels convey an impression of barbarian beauty. The men wear long burnouses and wrap their heads in impressive turbans. The "Ahidous" they perform is fascinating although static. We see here gestures which have resisted and triumphed over the passage of time, but whose significance is lost to us for ever.

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THE HOUARA

These dancers come from Inezgane near Agadir. The troupe is composed of a group of men and one woman. The men begin the dance to a sprightly rhythm. One or two virtuosi leave the circle to execute solo dance. When the rhythm reaches its peak, the woman rushes to the center. There follows a whirling dance of great power. Uncommon physical strength is required to keep up the rhythm and do such elaborate steps. The dance is without doubt one of the most spectacular in Moroccan folklore and arouses the enthusiasm of the audience.

In the Middle Atlas Haidous dance singers and dancers form a large circle with the men and women standing alternately shoulder to shoulder. Sacred and secular influences are deeply linked in this ceremony. To the rhythm of tambourines, the men and women undulate and sing a joyful hymn.

Warriors carry rifles dance to the tune of pipes and drums. It is not clear whether they are dancing to work up courage to face the enemy, or whether they are celebrating a victory. They do not sing but shout rumbling cries in cadence. Their rifles, like toys, are balanced on the head, spun at arms length, and they pretend to shoot with them at invisible enemies. Forming a circle and turning to the rhythm of a noisy orchestra, they aim their weapons at the ground, at a signal from their leader, fire off blank charges.

The music is reduced to a solo seven-hole flute made out of a reed and elementary in design. The rhythm is supplied by hand-clapping and stamping of the feet on the ground to give a both powerful and enchanting effect. Dancing vigorously, the men produce an ensemble that is disciplined and virile.

It would take too long to try to explain the significance of this dance from South Morocco in which the attitudes and movements have their origin in a very ancient symbolism. It represents some ritual ceremony whose origins are lost in the mists of time.

The women dancers kneel and are completely covered with a black veil. The steady rhythm like a beating heart brings out the hands that describe vivid and expressive motions. The head is revealed, with eyes closed, swaying like a pendulum. The rhythm is supplied by a "guedra" or cooking pot (an earthware drum covered with skin). It becomes pulsating as the dancers continue to speak their mysterious language. The singing of the spectators changes to brief and guttural cries. The dancer gradually casts off her veils and finally collapses in a heap.

These acrobats belong to the wandering brotherhood of Sidi Ahmed Ou Moussa, the saint of Tazeroualt, a locality of the Anti Atlas mountains. Originally the young people of the area performed these exercises in preparation for their role as archers and marksmen. With the disappearance of the warriors, acrobatics became an end in themselves and a way of earning a living.

Many people from the Oulad Ahmed ou Moussa work in circuses in Europe and America . The colorful costumes are often embroidered and have not changed in centuries.

The people who perform this rhythmic entertainment are not professionals. The strange orchestra composed of craftsmen and merchants of Marrakech is made up entirely of earthware drums of different dimensions. The ceremony starts with simple and rather solemn rhythms, and then the cadence of hand-clapping accelerates. High and lower pitched beats on the drums are cleverly orchestrated and the men start singing powerfully in chorus. The rhythm changes suddenly from time to time, but it is all amazingly well- regulated. The general impression is an explosion of joy, a sonorous enchantment that seems wild but is disciplined.