The ancient art of pearl diving music inspires new music

The World

Pearl divers in Kuwait used to make music with a complex rhythmic pattern, but when Kuwait banned pearl diving in 1955, the music stopped with it. That captured the imagination of Ghazi Faisal Al-Mulaifi, an ethnomusicologist who teamed up with Grammy Award-winning bandleader Arturo O’Farrill to bring those rhythms back to life. The World’s Host Marco Werman has the story. 

Will you support The World?

The story you just read is not locked behind a paywall because listeners and readers like you generously support our nonprofit newsroom. Now more than ever, we need your help to support our global reporting work and power the future of The World. Can we count on you?