''Fijiri'' (

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

: الفجيري; sometimes spelled ''fijri'', ''fidjeri'', or ''fjiri'') is the specific repertoire of

vocal music Vocal music is a type of singing performed by one or more singers, either with instrumental accompaniment, or without instrumental accompaniment (a cappella), in which singing provides the main focus of the piece. Music which employs singing but ...

sung by the

pearl divers Pearl hunting, also known as pearl fishing or pearling, is the activity of recovering or attempting to recover pearls from wild molluscs, usually oysters or mussels, in the sea or freshwater. Pearl hunting was prevalent in India and Japan for tho ...

of Eastern Arabia's coastal Gulf states, especially

Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...

and

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

. A lead singer is backed up by a

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song), the part of a song that is repeated several times, usually after each verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in whic ...

of accompanying singers and clapping. The accompanying instruments to a ''fidjeri'' ensemble are a small double-sided hand-

drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a ...

, known as the '' mirwās'' () and the ''jāhlah'' (), a clay pot played with both hands. There are eight genres of fijiri: Sanginni (sung on the beach, not on the boat), Bahri, Adsani, Mkholfi, Haddadi, Hasawi, Zumayya, and Dan, the last two actually being subgenres of Hasawi and Mkholfi respectively. Bahri and Adsani are the two main genres. Pearl diver singers are referred to in Arabic as ''nahham'' ().

Salem Allan Salem al-Allan (1914 – 25 September 1981) was a popular Fijiri singer from Bahrain. He was born in Galali,Bahrain, Galali, a village in Muharraq Governorate. Biography Allan was born in the village of Galali, Bahrain, Galali in Muharraq Gov ...

and Ahmad Butabbaniya are two of the most well-known fijiri singers from Bahrain.

External links

Youtube clip of The Ghalali traditional music and dance group performing a Fijiri song in a village near Muharraq, Bahrain, October 7 2009
Music of Bahrain Arabic music Music of Kuwait Arab culture Pearls Music of the United Arab Emirates {{song-stub

See also

Further reading

External links