yozhik - 12-10-2018 at 02:47 PM
I am a beginning oud player (I've studied Arabic oud for about a year in Europe and Egypt). I will be in Istanbul for 1 month now starting in the end
of December and would like to try my hand at Turkish oud and perhaps take a few lessons while I'm there.
I would like to purchase a Turkish oud when I am in Istanbul, but since I am mostly interested in the Arabic tradition at the moment and I already
have 3 Arabic ouds, I do not want to invest in an expensive Turkish instrument just yet.
What are your current suggestions for finding a playable student-grade instrument in Istanbul?
Looking at old posts I found the following suggestions:
1. Greg suggested visiting the mall at Unkapani (IMC Blok 6).
2. Someone else also suggested visting the Turkish marketplace website https://www.sahibinden.com (although I have a hard time judging what instruments might be worth buying on that site).
There are of course many other posts suggesting to get a quality instrument from a reputable luthier, but this is definitely beyond my price range
right now.
I am looking for something in the 300-400 euro price range, but I am not sure if this is reasonable for a student instrument from Turkey?
I paid less than 400 euro for my first Egyptian oud and have no regrets. It was a simple student model that stayed in tune, had decent action and was
more than suitable as a student instrument for my first year of playing, so I am looking for a similar Turkish "student" model if possible.
ChanningPDX - 12-10-2018 at 05:54 PM
There are a number of music shops in Unkapanı, so it's worth a stroll around the neighborhood. Ali Nişadır's shop is also there though
I suspect his ouds would be well out of your price range. Doesn't hurt to look, though.
I think the Çankaya shop and a couple of other music shops are on the street leading up from the Tünel to Istiklal St. For your price range, those
shops might also be worth a look.
Given the recent volatility of the Turkish lira, your euros might go far enough to get something a slight cut above entry level, but I haven't been to
Turkey in years, so I have no idea.
Sala Muzik has a retail shop in Istanbul (check their website). I've never played one of their ouds, but several others on this forum have commented
that they seem decent for the price.
Good luck! Let us know how it turns out!
yozhik - 12-11-2018 at 02:48 AM
Thank you for this information, I will check out all these options when I arrive in Istanbul next week.
I have been in contact with Zeynel Demirtaş about taking some lessons in Turkish oud while I am there, so hopefully I can find an oud during my
first day or two so that I can start lessons with him.
I'm wondering if it might be better option to get a used oud? Does anybody have any tips on finding used ouds in Istanbul besides the site
sahibinden.com? Is this that most used site in Turkey for selling used instruments or are there maybe some oud forums in Turkish I could check out?