Does anyone know of a source of Somali oud music - specifically sheet music for a fairly simple Somali piece and/or videos? I've found a few youtube
videos of Xudeydi/Hudeydi, but that's about it.
A friend is doing an arts benefit for Somalia, and I thought it would be fun to play something. I'm a beginning-intermediate oud player, and I'm more
familiar with Medieval Spanish music and a few North African pieces.
Thanks,
MarkSidow - 9-8-2011 at 08:20 AM
Hi, markmid as a Somali I can't thank you enough for your effort in trying to help those who are suffering in my once beautiful country, It brings
tears to my eyes to see people like you and your friends taking part in the world wide effort of helping Somalia. now to answer your question and It
could probably be too late, I don't think you will find any Somali sheet music because the country has been in civil war for so long, I know Hudeydi
in person, he is my oud teacher and a great oud player but he doesn't read music. I hope that answers your question and thanks again.Brian Prunka - 9-8-2011 at 12:42 PM
I really love the Somali style, it's heartbreaking to see the war and destruction.
I hope that the music finds a way to survive, not to mention the musicians themselves.
Brian Prunka - 9-8-2011 at 01:18 PM
Here is a short one:
littleseb - 9-9-2011 at 03:42 AM
wow, great stuff, and good to finally see a thread on somali music on here.
i'm a big fan of somali oud music, it probably got me into playing oud in the first place, together with yemeni music.
lovely, lovely stuff, almost like the very roots of blues. i love the east african pentatonic scales.
and markmid, i'm in the process of organising a fund raiser for somalia too. i've booked a theatre (maybe 500 seats) for the first week of december,
and i've got a few somali musicians and dancers lined up, alongside non-somali performers. it is going to be a multi-cultural event representing
london's diversity, united in the desire to help somalia through this difficult time.
i'm hoping to get a few more stars in eg mooge and xodeidi who also lives in london (fulham i think).
sidow - if you have xodeidi's contact details - please pm me!
also - if any other londoners would like to get involved - please let me know.
and it is not far from rock n roll in places ... well vice versa - amazing to hear what sound very much like the roots of some familiar 'western'
guitar phrasing particularly in the first minute and a half or so.
Fantastic oud style Ararat66 - 9-9-2011 at 12:09 PM
I'm loving that ... rock and roll again
Leonstringmanca - 9-9-2011 at 12:25 PM
Cool stuff - reminds me of Jethro Tull for some reason...littleseb - 9-10-2011 at 08:23 AM
yes guys,
fantastic choices and wonderful duule clips posted! and yeah, it's all very rock'n'roll with its pentatonics and the oud/vocal interplay. this music
moves me so much, it has everything i want from a good tuuuunnnneee: lovely melodies, simplicity, sadness, melancholy, joy. and above all - some of it
is so funny too. it seems like a very serious music that doesn't take itself too seriously, if that makes sense.
we've had a lot of cumar duule now, so let's move on to the man of men, the dude, the geezer from another planet without whom somali music wouldn't be
where it is now.
what a voice, what lovely picking:
unfortunately there isn't much material on youtube, but i'm sure you can see beyond the poor quality.michoud - 9-10-2011 at 02:07 PM
Greaaaaaaaaat! Its the first time I hear somali oud music, I love it!!! I listen a lot to sudanese music, but never somali....
yeah pure bluesy!!!!!!!!!
Where can I find some somali oud music to buy or download???
also I would like to know if there is any instrumental oud music in Somalia... I would love to learn some pieces... littleseb - 9-10-2011 at 04:08 PM
yo michoud!
good stuff, innit!?!
it's not easy to find out about their music unless you hang out with people from somalia. i have learned everything i know about it by talking to and
jamming with somali people. music is not really written down but is more an aural tradition. most somali oud players and singers i've met don't read
music and don't seem to care too much about scales and theory and names of notes.
the oud is more seen as a tool to deliver poetry. somali people are very proud of their strong poetic history and a good poet enjoys a great deal of
admiration. songs and poems are passed on from generation to generation by great musicians and singers and speakers by means of presentation rather
than script.
man, i wish i'd understand somali, it must make their music 100000000 times better than it already is....
btw - i'm by no means an expert, and everything i'm saying here is stuff people told me or i somehow found out about. i might be talking complete
bollocks. i just really like somali oud music so i've listened to a lot of it and talked to a lot of people about it. if somebody on here knows more
about it and can correct me - go ahead!
i've never heard a somali oud instrumental, but there might well be something out there. shareero rather than oud dances/instrumentals seem to be more
common. as far as i know, somali oud music has its roots in traditional shareero music crossed with southern yemeni oud style, brought back from aden
etc by the likes like xudeidi and many others.
it's interesting how you can hear the somali oud-style (like in the clips above) in traditional shareero music:
I hope that the music finds a way to survive, not to mention the musicians themselves.
it mustn't and it won't die out!
it's still a very popular music, enjoyed by millions all over the world. a lot of somali musicians have left somalia and by settling elsewhere made
their music accessable to people who otherwise wouldn't have dreamed of enjoying somali music played by their somali friends, neighbours and
colleagues.
the best example is k'naan (if you like a bit of hip hop, that is) who is a world wide superstar and carries on waving the flag by bringing good music
to the ears of millions, somali or not:
waaw It gives me great pleasure to see others interested in Somali music so much, Omar dhuule was one of the best oud players from Somalia and a
legend God bless him. but that said, you haven't heard Somali Oud music until you listen to his teacher of the oud, Hudeidi. there are't that many
video clips of Hudeidi around but I have a lot of tunes of him in the 70s if anyone is interested. feysal.mp3 here is web address where you can listen
to him giving an interview to the BBC in English and playing the oud (http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/world/onyourstreet/mshudeydi.shtml) Littleseb yeah I do have Hudeidi's contacts, I will
send them to you soon. thank you all and please do bear with me I am new to forum and learning.littleseb - 9-11-2011 at 06:49 AM
the xudeidi interview sidow linked to is actually a good little read. xudeidi reckons there weren't many somali oudies before the 1960s. i like this
quote a lot
Quote:
Through out the late 50's & 60's, I played all over Somalia in public places, for theatre and concerts. My nickname is 'Hudeydi' but I'm known as
'The King' because of my hot rhythms. I was always into rock & roll and Elvis Presley.
as it really
confirms that there is a dose of rock'n'roll in it, as mentioned before.littleseb - 9-11-2011 at 08:32 AM
sidow - please tell us more about somali oud music! what are the regional differences, eg is there a difference between hargeisa sound and mogdishu
sound?Sidow - 9-12-2011 at 02:07 PM
Hey Littleseb Iam glad you like the hudeidi interview, you seem to know a lot about somali music yourself, I fell in love with the whole oud music
only 4 or 5 years ago thanks to hudeidi's style, so I still don't know much about somali oud music but from what I know somali oud music is the same
in northern and southern somalia though Hargeisa is the Home of the oud music of Somalia if you are in London You should see Hudeidi, from him you
will get all you need to know about Somali oud music and you will be amazed to see him play. I have sent you his numbers.
Cheerslittleseb - 9-13-2011 at 02:42 AM
sidow - i got his numbers, thank you, i will give him a call in the next few days and hopefully meet him. i will feed back on here and share
everything i've learned.
also - are there any other important somali oud players we haven't talked about before on here? we need names and links and clips!
on a side note - have you listened to the xodeidi interview up there ^ ? no? why the flip not? we all have a lot to learn from this man! littleseb - 10-7-2011 at 03:02 AM
LONG LIVE SOMALIA