A listening session with Leila Bencharnia

Leila Bencharnia Bio

Leila Bencharnia is a Moroccan composer, sound and textile researcher, and storyteller whose practice interlaces sonic experimentation with the materiality of textiles. Their work examines the parallels between the auditory and the tactile. Inspired by the intricate logic of weaving and the symbolic language of Tamazight textile traditions, Bencharnia constructs works that are about structure, repetition, narrative and resonance. Influenced by the spatial exploration of free jazz and its commitment to improvisation, their compositions become open spaces — fluid, non-linear, and charged with the potential for sonic transformation. Currently based between Marrakech and Berlin, Bencharnia creates across diverse formats, including sonic installations, acousmatic pieces, graphic scores, and live performances. Their relationship with sound is deeply informed by their upbringing in a village near the Atlas mountains, where the oral and musical traditions of their father, a traditional Moroccan musician, shaped an early belonging with rhythm and texture. Bencharnia’s approach to composition treats sound as a woven fabric, navigating the complexities of the language of textile as a space for interpretation and protest. This methodology not only underpins their creative process but also reflects a broader philosophical inquiry into the ways we listen. By positioning radical listening as a decolonial and embodied act, Bencharnia reimagines sound as a dynamic interplay between structure, memory, and materiality.