Music of Western Sahara - Definition and Overview

Western Sahara is a West African nation, disputed between Mauritania and Morocco. Formerly a colony of Spain, the area has been fiercely contested since 1975. The music of the Sahrawi people is more Mauritanian than Moroccan, and shares many of the Mauritanian focus on ways and modes. In contrast to Mauritanian music, Sahrawi musicians can come from any caste. The tbal is the basic instrument of percussion, though the traditional tidinit has largely been replaced by electric guitar.

Several compilations of traditional Sahrawi music have been released, including , which has shed some light on the culture of the people, many of whom are crowded in refugee camps in Algeria.