Rachid Khelifi is a drummer, music teacher, and advisor. As a performing musician, he has worked with a wide range of national and international artists, with a particular affinity for North African musical traditions. He sees music not only as an art form, but also as a carrier of stories, traditions, and cultural heritage that connect generations.
As an artistic advisor at De MuziekRoute in Utrecht, he works from the principles of creative music making, inviting children and young people to explore, create, and make music together, with space for their own musical voice and cultural background. In addition, he is active as a music teacher within mental health care, where he experiences the connecting and developmental power of music in daily practice.
Khelifi is committed to a performing arts field in which artistic quality, accessibility, inclusion, and cultural diversity go hand in hand. He believes in the strength of different perspectives and in making cultural heritage visible and alive within both established and new forms of music-making.