Sounds of Morocco

Still pictures, although the most common, are not the only method I’ve used for capturing my memories of Morocco.  Along with a few videos (which are, unfortunately, too large for me to post at the moment), I’ve collected a number of audio recordings of the sounds and events that have stood out in my experience.

Donkeys (Hashek)

It’s impossible to deny the ubiquity of the donkey here in Morocco.  In the classroom we learned that if you say aghyoul, for any reason, you should follow it with hashek—a phrase a bit like “please excuse me.”  Although donkeys might be considered stupid, unclean beasts that shouldn’t be mentioned in polite company, there’s no doubting their importance to rural life in Morocco.  They are everywhere.  Bled (countryside) families that have cars most likely still have donkeys, too.  With so many donkeys around, you learn a lot about their ways.  When one donkey goes off across a valley, chances are another one will join in the conversation.  Donkeys are usually scared of strange people or other donkeys.  Actually, I have a perfect example of this from this morning, May 20^th: I was in a hurry to meet Brenda for the bus to Tiznit this morning and so I walked rather quickly around the corner just outside my front door.  Unfortunately, there happened to be a man riding “side-saddle” on his donkey just beyond the corner.  When I stepped out the donkey immediately balked and the man made an unintended dismount.  Luckily, he managed to catch himself before more than his feet hit the ground.  I could probably go on, but I’m pretty sure anyone reading this who hasn’t spent time in rural Morocco will have trouble understanding exactly what I’m trying to explain.  Perhaps the following audio clips (along with some of those under the other headings) will give you an idea of life with donkeys.

Donkey Alarm 1

Ten seconds of Sean and Amber’s donkey.  Most days when Jessica, Nicole, and I went to pick up the other two, we’d knock on their courtyard door and the donkey would go off like an alarm.  Some days he wouldn’t and we’d be sad.  I tried several times to get a recording of the door knocker followed by the donkey, but to no avail.  I did get a couple fairly decent clips.

Donkey Alarm 2

Amber and Sean’s donkey going off, again.  You hear Nicole say, “Or maybe not” after we figured the donkey was either not there or feeling a little calmer than usual. This time I almost got it all…

Donkey on the Loose

A neighbor’s donkey came barreling down our little unpaved street and for some reason decided to barge in through Amber and Sean’s door to confront their donkey.  Unfortunately I couldn’t get my camera on the video setting fast enough, but I did get the audio file.  Sean’s expressions of concern: “He’s gonna beat up my donkey!” and, “I thought I was going to have to save my donkey.”  You might think the focus is on this particular donkey, and you’d be right.  He always seemed to be getting upset over things.  And in this case, the neighborhood bully might have known where to find an easy battle.

Donkey Imitation

This is a recording of my little host nephew Ayman doing his donkey imitation.  At 11-months-old, little Ayman has a deep affinity for donkeys (and asserdouns, aka mules).  When he heard a donkey going off, he would get this look on his face and then start breathing really hard in answer.  If he saw a donkey he’d do the same and squirm with delight.  I wish I had gotten a better recording, but this one gives you an idea.  It’s not nearly as passionate as his usual donkey moments.  The laugh you hear is my host sister, Hassna, and Nicole says, “He’s like, you recordin’ me?”

The Azan, or Call to Prayer

The call to prayer is certainly as ubiquitous as, though not to be compared to, the donkey.  They are at completely opposite ends of the musical spectrum.  My two main reasons for including a section here on the azan are that I love it and appreciate it and that I receive a lot of questions from the States about it.  It’s hard to explain exactly how the call fits into life here.  For a non-Muslim like me, it primarily marks the movement of the sun and hence the passing of time.  I enjoy the gentle structure it adds to each day.  I appreciate the meaning behind it and the effect it has on those around me.  In particular, I like the idea of pausing from the activities of the day in order to reflect and refocus.

I really haven’t had much time yet to experience the azan in very many places.  The most impressive call, musically speaking, that I’ve heard was in the city of Azilal.  It was hard to leave the beautiful calls that I heard each day during my two months in my CBT site.  I’m still pondering why the typical azan in my region of Tiznit lacks any musical quality whatsoever.  In fact, here in Izran at least once everyday I hear the most unpleasant call to prayer that I have ever heard.  And here I will point out that the same man does not always do the call at a mosque.  At least in some areas, you might call it first-come-first-serve.  We found this out one day when our language teacher left class on a short break to claim the loudspeaker at the mosque next to our classroom.

One last thing before the clips themselves: you might want to know what the call consists of.  Here is the Arabic transliterated into English, alongside the English translation.

Allahu akbar.	God is most great.
Allahu akbar.	God is most great.
Ashhadu anna la ilaha il-Allah.	I testify that there is no god but God.
Ashhadu anna la ilaha il-Allah.	I testify that there is no god but God.
Ashhadu anna Muhammad ar-Rasoulullah.	I testify that Muhammad is the Messenger of God.
Ashhadu anna Muhammad ar-Rasoulullah.	I testify that Muhammad is the Messenger of God.
Hayya ala-ssalaah.	Come to prayer.
Hayya ala-ssalaah.	Come to prayer.
Hayya alal-falaah.	Come to success.
Hayya alal-falaah.	Come to success.
Allahu akbar.	God is most great.
Allahu akbar.	God is most great.
La ilaha il-Allah.	There is no god but God.

Sunset Prayer / صلاة المغرب

One evening Tarabut Hussein went up the hill above town to watch the sunet.  We had our usual posse of host brothers, sisters, and cousins along with us for a chat.  The call to prayer came from over a far hill as we talked about all sorts of things.  We we just commenting on how we needed to head home… when the call next to our school started, as well.

Sunset over al-Khemis.

Noon Prayer / صلاة الظهر

I recorded this rather long file while sitting above al-Khemis listening to the sounds of the birds and the school, waiting for the midday call.  To skip to the call itself, go to 5 minutes 30 seconds in the file.  From where I was sitting I had an interesting experience where the call echoed off of the hill across from mine.  The man doing the azan had an almost musical style, making the mixture really cool.

Afternoon Prayer / صلاة العصر

The best call to prayer that I heard in Al-Khemis.  Unfortunately, and I’m very sad about this, I never managed to get a complete recording of it.  I started this recording just after he started.  I love this man’s azan in particular because it’s like singing.

Evening Azan

Another call listening moment, this time on Sean and Amber’s roof.  The first call is from over the hill, by our school.  As we have one of our always fun conversations, the call at the mosque just up the hill from our houses starts up.  This guy’s has an interesting wind-up quality.  At the very end of the recording you’ll hear Fadma, our cook and Amber and Sean’s host sister, commenting on how something is “ur ifulki” or “not good.”  She says, “inas wakha”—“say, ‘ok.’”  Not exactly sure what she was commenting on, but it’s always nice to listen to her talk.

Izran Azan, with Accompaniment

To give you an idea of the wide variety of calls to prayer, here is unfortunately the most common one I hear in Izran.  Without fail, the dogs in town begin to howl along with it—as you can hear in the second half of this recording.  I will leave that as all the description necessary.

 Dawn Prayer, in Ramadan / صلاة الفجر

Ramadan is a perfect time to here the first call of the day, the one that comes well before the official time of sunrise determined by weather forecasters.  It’s been interesting to experience the dawn call to prayer during this time when it holds so much power over one’s daily routine.  This call is the one that, throughout the month of Ramadan, signals that all eating and drinking must stop until tiwoodchi, the sunset call to prayer.  All year long this first call of the day contains a small addition that I find to be intriguing.  Just after the repetition of hayya alal-falaah, the caller goads listeners out of bed with the reminder that as-salatu khairun min an-naoum: prayer is better than sleep.

Tarabut Hussein

Here is a special section dedicated to my wonderful CBT-mates, Amber, Jessica, Nicole, and Sean.  I wish I had more to post, but here are a few of the memories that I caught.

Tongue Twister!

One day in class our frustrations about the difficulties of telling certain words apart led us to begin writing our own Tashlheit tongue twisters.  The idea behind our first (and perhaps our best ever) tongue twister was to include as many of the words that involve the Arabic root for “four” as we could.  The result was an insane sentence about parsley.  This clip is our language teacher, Ali, reciting it as we surely could not.  Unfortunately the last words are cut off, but you’ll get the idea.  Here are the words:

Arabic transliteration of the Tashlheit:

أس ن لاربعاء ويسربع غ الربيع سغيغ أربع وربع (كيلو) ن الربيع غ الأربعة وربع

My awful attempt at English transliteration:

AS N LARBAA WISSRABA GH LRABIA SGHIGH  ARBA URBUA (KILO) N LRABIA GH ALRABA URBUA

English:

On the fourth Wednesday in spring I bought four and a quarter (kilos) of parsley at 4:15.

“My house!”

This clip is not easy to make out, but it’s a memory that means a lot to Tarabut Hussein.  Sean and Amber’s host sister Fadma knew a little English and would occasionally share it with us.  It’s so funny to hear this woman who speaks Tashlheit like a songbird break out a few words in English, out of nowhere.  The entire Tarabut is here along with the family from above our classroom and Fadma, our cook, right after our final party in Al-Khemis.  Fadma says “mashi bzef” several times, meaning “not a lot.”  She’s commenting on how she doesn’t know much English.  Eventually she busts out the “my house” that she knows.

Wipe Out

Another Tarabut Hussein memory, this time in Beni just after we left our CBT site.  The whole Tarabut got together to watch Gladiator (which was filmed in Ouarzazate, Amber and Sean’s new home) and eat ice cream.  Jessica had been down in the lobby and so we were waiting on her, just chillin’, when we hear some really heavy sighs coming down the hallway…  The whole story turned out to be pretty funny, so I recorded the details…  Apparently Jess had tripped on some steps down on the first floor and sighed about it all the way up the steps.  We were just laughing at the emphatic sighing, but she actually randomly admitted the tripping part on her own (hence our continued laughter).

 

Safi for now, but I’ll be adding more later!