Jazz a Rabat - formerly Jazz au Chellah

For over twenty-five years, Rabat's jazz festival had the most magical setting in Morocco: the Roman-Merinid ruins of the Chellah necropolis, where European and Moroccan musicians improvised among storks' nests and ancient stones.

A New Name and a New Home

After twenty-seven editions, the festival left the Chellah (closed for major restoration works) and was reborn as Jazz a Rabat, moving to the amphitheater of the Hassan II park - the 2025 edition ran September 25 - 27 with the same recipe: European jazz ensembles paired with Moroccan musicians for one-off fusion creations, plus workshops and street performances. Dates for the next edition are typically announced in late summer.

What Makes It Special

• The fusion principle: each night pairs a European act with Gnaoua, Amazigh or chaabi musicians - creations you will hear nowhere else.
• Human scale: a few thousand spectators, relaxed and intimate - the anti-Mawazine.
• The city: combine with the Udayas kasbah, the Mohammed VI museum of modern art and the rest of our Rabat guide.

Note: the Chellah site itself has reopened to visitors after restoration - a must-see even outside festival dates. See our Rabat map and all events in Morocco.

Recommended Reviews for Jazz Festival Chellah

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