Berklee College of Music will host its third annual program, Berklee at Gnaoua and World Music Festival, from June 22 to 27, 2026, in Essaouira, Morocco, preceding the 27th edition of the Gnaoua and World Music Festival. Applications are currently being accepted until the April 20, 2026 deadline.
The six-day immersive program will be led academically by Leo Blanco, a piano professor and specialist in African music studies at Berklee. According to a statement, this year’s theme is “Listening with a Global Ear – Playing with a Global Concept.”
The initiative is open to professional and semi-professional musicians ages 18 and up, at any stage in their artistic journey, who are looking to “deepen their practice in a demanding intercultural dialogue.” The program welcomes “instrumentalists and singers from classical, Gnaoua, or contemporary traditions – jazz, pop, rock and current music,” the source indicates.
Providing pedagogical support will be Fernando Huergo (bass professor), Nadia Washington (assistant professor of ear training), Jason Camelio (Berklee Global’s associate vice president), and Bri Tagliaferro (associate director of partnerships and international programs).
Since the program’s creation in 2024, “118 confirmed musicians from 30 countries have participated in Berklee at the Gnaoua and World Music Festival,” including 29 Moroccan musicians and artists from “several African countries, including Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, and Zambia, as well as from Europe, the Americas, and Asia.”
Organizers have noted “significant progress between the first two editions,” and an “increasing attractiveness” and diversity of talent. This third edition builds on that momentum, solidifying Essaouira, a UNESCO City of Music, “as a space for transmission and creation at the crossroads of living heritage and contemporary world music.” The festival continues to highlight Morocco’s rich musical traditions on a global stage.
