Musique de Kuwait

Brève histoire

History

Kuwait is the birthplace of various popular musical genres, such as sawt and fijiri. Traditional Kuwaiti music is derived from the country's seafaring heritage. In pre-oil times, Kuwait was regionally renowned for its music and 20–30% of Kuwaitis were professional musicians. Kuwait is widely considered the centre of traditional music in the Persian Gulf. Traditional Kuwaiti music reflects the cosmopolitan influence of many diverse cultures. The habbān is a popular Kuwaiti music instrument. Kuwait's seafaring tradition is known for songs such as "Fidjeri". "Fidjeri" is a musical repertoire performed traditionally by male pearl divers. It involves singing, clapping, drums and dances with earthen water jars. "Liwa" and "Fann at-Tanbura" are types of music performed mainly by Kuwaitis of East African origin. "Al Arda Al Bahariya" is a well-known Kuwaiti sailor song, as are the "al-Nahma", a class of songs that accompanied many sailing activities. Kuwait pioneered contemporary Khaliji music. Kuwaitis were the first commercial recording artists in the Persian Gulf region.