Mike's Oud Forums

Where to buy a lavta for beginner?

yvestra - 10-9-2024 at 01:28 AM

Hey,

I live in France and I'm really really really interested in buying a lavta. Do you a place where I can try one in Paris (except les sons de l'orient), Nantes or Rennes?

I will probably buy one on line. Do you any recommendations of good sellers? I'm a beginner so I want to find one around 300 euros.

Thanks!

coolsciguy - 10-9-2024 at 09:17 AM

Hey,


Not sure about Paris but this is where I got mine:

https://www.paradosiakaorgana.gr/

The owner is a nice guy named Giannis, ask him about Lavta options. He is very helpful and helped me find a good one among his inventory.

Hope this helps

yvestra - 10-10-2024 at 11:13 PM

Hey,

Thanks a lot for your answer ! What model did you get ?

I started playing the saz (my true love is oud but to hard to play without frets), so the lavta appears to be the best choice :) ! Is it hard to play ? There are not so much information online about this instrument. The frets seems to be particulary weird compared to saz, buzuq, etc.

Yves

Cyril - 10-11-2024 at 12:29 AM

How about saving up some money and obtain a lute?

Cyril - 10-11-2024 at 12:32 AM

Or: https://www.mikeouds.com/messageboard/viewthread.php?tid=17452

yvestra - 10-11-2024 at 12:45 AM

Quote: Originally posted by Cyril  
How about saving up some money and obtain a lute?


Thanks for you answer !

When you say lute, you mean specifically an oud or something else ?

I look on the internet if i can an oud already already, didn't find so much things. And i'm not confident enough to make the frets myself, i wouldn't know how to do it properly since i want to play at the same time on this instrument armenian, music and arabic music (syrian and so on).

Jody Stecher - 10-11-2024 at 04:10 AM

Quote: Originally posted by yvestra  
Hey,

Thanks a lot for your answer ! What model did you get ?

I started playing the saz (my true love is oud but to hard to play without frets), so the lavta appears to be the best choice :) ! Is it hard to play ? There are not so much information online about this instrument. The frets seems to be particulary weird compared to saz, buzuq, etc.

Yves


What do you mean by "hard to play"? It is not physically hard to play the soft strings of a fretless oud. The vibrating length of its strings are typically shorter than those of a lavta. So there is less stretch between finger positions and, depending on string gauge, there is usually less string tension.

Do you mean it is hard for the mind to find the right place to put the left hand fingers? But if you don't have the confidence to place your fingers in the right place on a fretless fingerboard (few beginners do) how will you know where to position the frets of the lavta? And if its frets are correctly positioned how will you know which frets to use for anything you play on the instrument? The problem is the same with a fretless fingerboard and a fingerboard with movable frets. It is a problem of the mind and ears, not a physical problem.

What do you mean by the lavta frets being "weird"? Lavta frets are made from the same range of material as buzuq, saz, and tanbur.

You want to play several kinds of music. In my opinion an oud is more versatile, and more suitable for that than a lavta which was designed specifically for Ottoman music.

Cyril - 10-11-2024 at 04:32 AM

yvestra: I mean lute as an european instrument with movable frets, similar to oud (https://www.thomann.de/cz/thomann_renaissance_laute.htm)

ali san - 10-12-2024 at 12:50 PM

Hello. You can find the best quality lutes at their prices, made by Luthier Kamil Gül, at this address.

https://theorientvalley.com/lute-lavta

coolsciguy - 10-12-2024 at 07:20 PM

Quote: Originally posted by yvestra  
Hey,

Thanks a lot for your answer ! What model did you get ?

I started playing the saz (my true love is oud but to hard to play without frets), so the lavta appears to be the best choice :) ! Is it hard to play ? There are not so much information online about this instrument. The frets seems to be particulary weird compared to saz, buzuq, etc.

Yves


Sure thing, I got the makam plus model and am fairly happy with the sound and playability.

Lavta is a unique instrument that looks similar to the oud but quite different in technique and sound. If your main interest is in the oud, just get one and learn the instrument. It's going to be harder in the beginning (compared with a fretted instrument) but you'll get the hang of it if you have interest and invest time.

yvestra - 10-13-2024 at 12:40 PM

Hey,

Thanks for you anwsers and advices ! I'm gonna go to a place where they sell both lavta and oud next week. It's gonna be easier to compare the sounds of these two instruments and see how i feel playing them.

moogri - 10-18-2024 at 09:51 PM

Around 300 euros ?

Well good luck, this is usually the "beginners' mistake" which is not investing much into an instrument. (like spending 50€ in on a Yamaha C40)

if the price are usually around 600 to 800 euros new
With 300 euros imho, do not expect anything musically outstanding unless it's second hand.

Sons de l'Orient sells at very fair price and doesn't make that much profit considering taxes, import taxes and you're certain any instrument from there is tuned and ready to play and doesnt have any flaws. It's exactly the same as buying a guitar online (no tuning, high action, saddle and nut untouched) and from a store with a luthier in the background. You also get the instrument directly from the store with no shipping cost and worries, no possible customs and with 2 years warranty.

I was very close to buy from there but found a professional oud second hand at a decent price. Ouds are far much easier to find second hand (a lot of people either have a lots of oud or beginners give up only after trying for a few months)

Though I can understand if you can't spend more, but I would consider saving and get something decent from there.