I am in Canada and a big fan of the Godin brand (I have an acoustic and classical guitar by them). I have always had a burden to learn the Oud and I
am thinking of picking up the Godin Multioud Encore.
I have some questions:
-What would be the downside if I learn on this Oud and later get a traditional one? Will I mess up my hand technique for example because of different
spacing?
-Is the Oud really bad acoustically or can it sound good in an apartment for practicing unplugged.
If I buy the multioud, I will order some high tension strings from Oud strings website to use with Arabic tuning.
-What would be the downside if I learn on this Oud and later get a traditional one? Will I mess up my hand technique for example because of different
spacing?
The downside as I see it is are these:
• If you are attracted to the oud, the sound is probably a big part of it. The multioud doesn't sound like an oud, and you will find it
unsatisfying in that regard
• the ergonomics of the godin are different from an oud. While someone who learned on an oud can adapt their technique to the multioud, the reverse
seems much more difficult. I've had a couple of students who started on multioud, and we basically had to start over once they got a real oud. It's
not so much that you'll "mess up" your technique, you just won't learn much because it's not the same instrument
• you'll be starting over with regard to holding the instrument. The multioud is held like a guitar, the oud is not
Quote:
-Is the Oud really bad acoustically or can it sound good in an apartment for practicing unplugged.
It is bad acoustically. Not that it doesn't produce enough sound to practice unplugged, but a huge part of learning to play the oud is learning to
produce a warm, big, open sound. You can't learn to do that on an electric oud, in my opinion.
Quote:
If I buy the multioud, I will order some high tension strings from Oud strings website to use with Arabic tuning.
While I appreciate that, I don't recommend the multioud as a starting instrument if it's at all possible for you to get a real oud.
Traditional ouds use lower tension as well, which gives it a certain feel and sound.MiddleEastern - 2-25-2020 at 10:10 AM
Hi Brian, thanks for the thoughtful reply. I appreciate it! This is exactly the kind of input I was looking for.
