Mike's Oud Forums

Treble sounds on Arabic vs Turkish

mdshax - 6-1-2021 at 07:15 PM

Hi, all! Relatively new player here, and I need a bit of a sanity check. My first oud was a Turkish oud from Sala, but I recently purchased an Arabic oud -- a Shami Oud by Zeryab from Ethnic Musical. The sound is very different, especially in the top/treble courses where the sound is very bright and decays quickly.

What I want to be sure of thought is there is very much a "plinking" sound or undertone, mostly on the second string (G), markedly less so but still a little present on the top string (C). Is that just a tonal characteristic of Arabic ouds vs Turkish, or do I have a setup issue?

ArmoOudist - 6-2-2021 at 01:46 AM

You're not crazy, Turkish ouds are known for having a longer sustain, while Arab ouds have a more percussive quality.
Growing up Armenian, I was used to hearing Turkish oud. My first oud was an old Arab one my grandfather had gotten from Damascus. I ran into the same problem. I was getting frustrated because the oud never sounded like I was used to hearing. (I eventually got a Turkish oud of a little higher quality, so that helped)

In the end, ouds will all probably slightly vary from each other, especially if they are made by hand. I'm not sure what oud music you listen to, but that will affect how what you think the "right" oud sound will be.

Jody Stecher - 6-2-2021 at 05:27 AM

Quote: Originally posted by mdshax  
Hi, all! Relatively new player here, and I need a bit of a sanity check. My first oud was a Turkish oud from Sala, but I recently purchased an Arabic oud -- a Shami Oud by Zeryab from Ethnic Musical. The sound is very different, especially in the top/treble courses where the sound is very bright and decays quickly.

What I want to be sure of thought is there is very much a "plinking" sound or undertone, mostly on the second string (G), markedly less so but still a little present on the top string (C). Is that just a tonal characteristic of Arabic ouds vs Turkish, or do I have a setup issue?


Short sustain is an intentional characteristic of Arabic ouds. The bright plinking sound may well be the result of how you are holding the plectrum/mizrap/risha. The best ouds in the world will sound that way if the plectrum is held between thumb and index as some guitarists do. Another possibility is a faulty gg string or gg pair.