Project Identity
07Project Completed | Documenting Red Sea Musical Heritage
Singing Coasts
The sea’s stories live in songs, mawwawil, and people’s voices. BEHAR has completed Singing Coasts, documenting 113 folk songs from El Quseir, Marsa Alam, and Ras Ghareb, preserving coastal musical memory for future generations.
113 Songs3 Coastal CitiesOne Shared Musical Memory
BEHAR2026
Project highlights
113
Songs
03
Cities
01
Memory
Visual Showcase
Three visuals that carry the spirit of Singing Coasts
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Campaign Message
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Singing Coasts Mark
01 / The Story
When Sound Becomes a Place’s Memory
Across Red Sea towns, songs, chants, and mawwawil carry traces of maritime life, trade routes, and social celebrations. Some of these voices risk fading as ways of life change and cultural bearers grow older.
Every song carries a story—and every voice connects past and present.
Project Results
- ✓113 folk songs collected and documented
- ✓3 coastal cities: El Quseir, Marsa Alam, and Ras Ghareb
- ✓One shared musical memory celebrating the cultural heritage of the Red Sea
02 / The Journey
From the Field to the Archive—and Back to the People
1Step
Listen & Document
The research team conducted fieldwork and collected songs, oral histories, and recordings from local communities.
2Step
Preserve the Memory
A total of 113 songs were collected and documented across the three cities, preserving coastal musical memory.
3Step
Create Across Generations
The project created space for youth and artists to engage with traditional songs and exchange knowledge across generations.
4Step
Share the Heritage
The project’s outcomes will be shared at its closing event through documentation outputs and the celebration of local musical heritage.
03 / Save the Date
Singing Coasts — Closing Event
BEHAR invites you to celebrate the sounds and memories of the sea at the project’s closing event, featuring the outcomes of our documentation journey and the songs and stories that hold the coast’s spirit.
Save the Date30–31 October 2026
Venue and programmeTo be announced soon.
Join us in celebrating the voices, stories, and musical traditions that make the Red Sea coast unique.