Gnaoua artisan & musician

Guembris made by hand, from raw wood to sound.

Guembris, qraqeb and tbel, shaped one by one in the Gnaoua tradition — for maâlems, musicians, and anyone who wants an instrument with a soul.

Order a guembri Book a workshop

Mustapha Kbib at his workbench, in front of guembri bodies

الكمبري · القراقب · الطبل

Every guembri has its own voice: the wood, the skin and the maker's hands give it one.

The workshop

The instruments

Every piece is handmade, one at a time. Guembris are made to order: wood, size, decoration and finish to suit the way you play.

Guembri

الكمبري

Body hollowed from a single piece of wood, stretched skin, round neck and gut strings. Made to order, to suit your playing.

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Qraqeb

القراقب

Forged, hammered iron castanets — the beat that carries the Gnaoua rhythm.

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Tbel

الطبل

Wood-rimmed drum, skins laced with rope, hand-painted decoration.

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Straps & ornaments

الزينة

Embroidered straps and covers adorned with cowrie shells to dress your instrument.

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Craft

From raw wood to the sound of tradition

Mustapha showing a guembri body and its neck

Choosing and carving the wood
The body is hollowed by hand from a single block of wood, forming the chamber that gives the guembri its deep voice.
The skin
The skin is soaked, stretched over the body and left to dry: it is what makes the sound vibrate.
Neck and strings
A round neck, three gut strings and the sersal, the metal plate that adds the guembri's distinctive buzz.
Tuning and finishing
Decoration, leather, cowries, then the test: no instrument leaves the workshop until it has been played.

Making workshops

Build your own guembri, by my side.

A workshop to understand the instrument from the inside: the wood, the skin, the strings, and what the guembri tells of Gnaoua culture. For groups, music schools, associations and visitors.

Length: Flexible, to suit your project
Group: One-to-one or groups, to be agreed

Ask for a date