The young Moroccan pianist Mahmoud El Moussaoui performed at a concert in the Belgrade Cultural Centre’s ArtGet Gallery
The concert was organised by the Embassy of Morocco as part of the Francophonie Month programme and was attended by numerous ambassadors and representatives of the diplomatic corps.
The repertoire included works by Johann Sebastian Bach, Joseph Haydn, Claude Debussy, Robert Schumann, and Sergei Prokofiev.
Morocco is rich in talent across various artistic fields, and pianist Mahmoud El Moussaoui is a notable example. At just twenty-five years old, Moussaoui is one of his country’s most prominent representatives on the international classical music scene. Born in July 1999 in Kenitra, he began learning the piano at the regional conservatory in his hometown at the age of nine. He is currently studying under Wilhelm Latchoumia and Alan Akabo at the Higher School of Arts (Haute École des Arts du Rhin) in Strasbourg. Before that, he completed his studies at the Strasbourg Conservatory, earning high praise from the examination board.
Mahmoud has won several prestigious awards. In 2014 and 2016, he won first prize at the International Piano Competition of HRH Princess Lalla Meryem, along with two special recognitions. In 2018, he received second prize and the Best Moroccan Talent award from the Portuguese Embassy. In 2015, he won first prize (piano) and was awarded honours by the Ministry of Culture. He is also a recipient of scholarships and honorary awards from the National Conservatory of Music and Choreographic Arts of Morocco.
In 2018, Mahmoud won the Grand Prix at the inaugural Russian Mushroom Festival in Casablanca. In 2019, he was a scholar of the Yamaha Music Gulf programme in Dubai, UAE. He won third prize at the 8th Competition for Young Classical Musicians from the Arab World in Baku, Azerbaijan.
He has successfully performed in several concert halls in Morocco, Germany, France, the United Arab Emirates, Azerbaijan, and Tunisia. His extensive repertoire includes works by composers from the 17th to the 21st century, with a particular passion for performing the music of Beethoven, Debussy, and Schumann. Seeking to refine his musical sensitivity, he has attended masterclasses with renowned professors such as François-Frédéric Guy, Marie-Josèphe Jude, Françoise Thinat, Alexei Sokolov, Anne-Lise Gastaldi, and others.
Mahmoud is also a state-certified engineer in fisheries and aquaculture, holding a master’s degree in management and business administration from EM Strasbourg Business School.
