Musha Cay and Rudder Cut Cay: the underwater mermaid piano and the private island

Musha Cay is a privately owned island in the Exuma Chain, in the southern Bahamas¹. The sculpture sits off the neighbouring Rudder Cay³. For the other stops along the chain, see the places guide. For the wider story of Exuma’s private islands, read Exuma private islands and celebrity owners.

Where are Musha Cay and Rudder Cut Cay?

Musha Cay lies at 23.89306°N, 76.26111°W¹. Rudder Cay, also written Rudder Cut Cay, is just south of Musha Cay³. Both are south of the Exuma Cays Land & Sea Park: the Bahamas National Trust gives the park’s two southern boundary corners as 24°14′25″N and 24°18′37″N⁴. The park vs wider Exumas guide shows how that comparison works.

Who owns Musha Cay?

Wikipedia says Musha Cay is owned by the illusionist David Copperfield, and that Google co-founder Sergey Brin was married on Musha Cay in May 2007¹. The island’s own site says Copperfield uses Musha Cay as a test lab for his creative pursuits².

What is The Musician, the underwater piano?

The Musician is a sculpture of a mermaid looking at a grand piano, sunk underwater off Rudder Cay³. The sculpture’s details:

• Commissioned: by David Copperfield from the underwater museum artist Jason deCaires Taylor, who is a sculptor, environmentalist and professional underwater photographer³.
• Depth and place: about 13 to 15 feet of water off Rudder Cay, just south of Musha Cay³.
• Date: installed in 2011³.
• Build: a stand-alone sculpture with a full-scale mermaid and a Steinway concert grand piano replica, constructed using 316 stainless steel³.
• Mermaid: made from pH-neutral cement to encourage marine growth³.

The sculpture is hidden underwater for snorkelers to discover, near a private island owned by the illusionist David Copperfield³. Staniel Cay Adventures says the piano plays soft music as divers approach, similar to the sound of a whale or dolphin³.

How do you see the underwater piano?

You see it by snorkeling, on a boat trip. Staniel Cay Adventures runs its Mermaid Melody tour as a private tour seven days a week³. The tour snorkels alongside the sunken mermaid and piano, visits a turtle sanctuary and snorkels a sunken plane³. It is offered as a private tour or a small-group tour, and you will never be with more than 12 people on the biggest boat³. The operator’s page shows no dollar price, so ask for a quote. The Staniel Cay guide covers another Exuma stop.

Can you visit or stay on Musha Cay?

The island’s own site describes the only private archipelago of 11 islands available to rent anywhere in the world². It lists 40 private beaches spread across 700 acres, for you and 24 guests². Five private homes stand on the islands: Highview, Pier House, Beach House, Blue Point and Palm Terrace².

For access, the site says Exuma International Airport is less than 1.5 hours by flight from Ft. Lauderdale, Miami and Nassau, or guests can fly directly to the island². Visitors request a reservation, and no rate is published on the page². The site also describes a two-mile seasonal sand bar, reached by jet ski, that appears for a few hours and disappears as the tide rises, and an island teeming with curious iguanas².