Sufi Brotherhood Chant

In Senegal one immediately feels the strong presence of the mystic brotherhoods of Sufism. The taxi that takes you from the airport and into the city will be adorned with statements referring to Allah or to a particular Sufi order. And in recent years there has been a great rise in the popularity of Koranic song, as well as the special liturgical chants of the mystics.

This wonderful record documents a concert in Paris by the choirs of two of the central brotherhoods, the Tijaniyya and the Muridiyya, who along with the Qadiriyya are by far the most dominating brotherhoods in the vibrant West African country. As with many Sufi brotherhoods it is the chants, known as dhikr, hesb and anashid, that are used in order to attain a state of trance and not the played music and drums. On this album we meet two choirs, namely Ensemble Jama’at al-qur’ân Wa al-dhikr from Tivaouane and Ensemble Kourel Serin from Touba.

Of the two, the Muridiyya are the most musically exciting. The Tijaniyya proceed with hymns in the traditional call-and-response mode and although Imam Malick Sow, who leads the group, has a wonderful voice with a nasal quality that reminds me a little of Baaba Maal, the form has been heard before throughout the Islamic world – and often far better in quality. The real gem is the ‘Xasayid’ from the Muridiyya, a form which can be translated as ‘Songs of Praise’ (and which in the Arabic world is called Qasida). Here it is the collective blend of the voices that creates the trance. It includes a song that is the essence of Mouridism called ‘Ahbabtu Rabba L’âlamin’, which evokes the spiritual enlightenment of the founder of the sect, Sheik Amadou Bamba. It’s very strong and profound stuff.