Said El Maloumi was born in Agadir, Morocco, and has quickly become one of the most inventive and renowned percussionists in Moroccan music. His originality is in his mastery of instruments which are not representative of Arabic music but come instead from the East.
Said El Maloumi is a skilled player of the zarb and the daf, iconic Iranian classical drums, and is also a master of the udu, a small claypot drum from West Africa which is often used in world music. Said El Maloumi is a regular member of his brother’s ensemble, the Driss El Maloumi Trio, with which he tours around the world.
In May, the Saline Royal d’Arc-et-Senans hosted the project Voyageurs Mystiques, a musical and poetic work combining religious texts from across the world (Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, animist) with jazz, Arabic and world music. Its musical director is Driss El Maloumi, and his brother Said El Maloumi brings the colours and rhythms of world percussion to the project. In a time of division and confrontation this musical journey, which links past and present, is a message of openness, unity and beauty.