Mahmoud “Mood” Chouki is a Moroccan master guitarist, multi-instrumentalist, composer, and educator currently living and working in New Orleans. His art draws together music from around the globe, exploring how music may speak across cultural divides. In addition to training and performing with conservatories around the world, Chouki also teaches music at the Lycée Français de la Nouvelle Orléans and is the music curator for monthly programs at the New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA). Most recently, he composed the music score for the 2021 Sundance Award winning film, “Ma Belle, Ma Beauty,” directed by New Orleans based filmmaker, Marion Hill. Also in 2021, Chouki was awarded 2020’s “Best Emerging Artist” by OffBeat Magazine’s annual Best of the Beat Awards. His New World Ensemble has been steadily gaining acclaim, earning him Gambit Weekly’s 2022 “Best World Music Artist” Award at their annual Big Easy Awards.