Mike - 1-28-2004 at 08:48 PM
Hey everybody,
Check out a great new video provided by Oudman in the Oud Video Clips page. Amer Ammouri is an excellent oud player, and he is the main oudist for Sabah Fakhri's
orchestra. Thanks a lot Oudman!
Mike
mavrothis - 1-28-2004 at 08:51 PM
Thanks Mike!!!
I think you're spoiling us my friend! This is one
more great addition to an already great collection of videos on the oud.
Amer Ammouri is not just an amazing player, he shows us really how much he loves the instrument with this beautiful taksim.
Thanks again,
mavros
Zulkarnain - 1-29-2004 at 08:22 AM
Exellent stuff! Thanks Mike n oudman-
Jameel - 1-29-2004 at 10:18 AM
Love it.
So where can I get this video tape??
TruePharaoh21 - 1-29-2004 at 01:40 PM
Mikey, I'm at school right now and I was only able to watch the first minute or so, but lemme tell you... he's a great taqsim player. Big
thanks goes to oudman for sendin it to you, and a big thanks to you too, man. Keep the vids rollin.
TP21
P.S. I didn't see you the other night at rehearsal. I hope everything's fine with you, bro.
spyros mesogeia - 1-29-2004 at 04:41 PM
Wonderfull,
Mike I have a problem,when I try to save the target it downloads a quarter of the film ,and than or it stops,or it doesn't have any
sound.....
Not to all the videos,only in a few of them....
Do you have any Idea why that is happening?
Thanks
Regards
Spyros
Jameel - 1-29-2004 at 05:01 PM
Ok. I listened more carefully to this taqasim. I have one of Amer's albums, and like some of it. I am a die-hard fan of Farido, so I guess I can
be a little too critical of other players. Farido's taqasims have ZERO moments where the listener is found waiting for the next phrase, or bored
with the current sounds. I think players like Ammouri should stick to shorter taqasims where they can keep the interest of the listener. Listen to
5:07 to 5:09. I would like to hear all your opinions. IMO, you would NEVER hear notes like this in Farido's or Sunbati's taqasim. My father
(who is of the old-school very traditional music) when he heard this part said instantly, "he lost it". I would like to hear what others
think of this part.
mavrothis - 1-29-2004 at 05:50 PM
Hi. I don't agree. I think it's just a matter of taste. To me Mr. Ammouri seems in total control of the instrument the entire time. The
only thing I thought of towards the end of the taksim was "I'm playing this again."
Take care,
mav
Jameel - 1-29-2004 at 06:34 PM
I agree, Mav. It is a matter of taste.
However, my comments didn't suggest that Ammouri "accidentally" played those notes, as if he didn't have control of his oud. He is
obviously in control of his oud. But just because he can play well, does not mean he can compose well. What are your opinions of that part?
Mike - 1-29-2004 at 06:40 PM
Hey guys,
Personally, I loved the little slide move right after that part. Sounded very cool to me. I liked the taqsim a lot. Yesterday I got a cool video from
Wael with many short taqsims. Look for some new additions soon. 
Mike
Jameel - 1-29-2004 at 06:44 PM
Bring it on, Meeka. 
Thanks for all your hard work.....
mavrothis - 1-29-2004 at 07:00 PM
Well, I went back and listened to that exact part, and it just seemed he added a little different flavor, maybe western, maybe not. It's just
taste man. For me, he blew me away. If you ask me, it shows he's original, nothing more.
Mr. Ammouri can compose very well, and his virtuosity and originality are really beautiful. A lot of times, even with the greatest players, you can
pick out small mistakes or accidentally hit strings, which mean nothing. I didn't even notice any of that in this live taksim.
You just don't like that modulation I guess. I don't think that warrants suggesting that he can't compose well though.
take care,
mav
TruePharaoh21 - 1-29-2004 at 07:41 PM
It's a minor modulation that sounds a little like Western music, I agree. But it's just a different flavor. Each person plays differently. I
mean, if you want to compare people against Farid, then you'll get into big controversies. Though I consider Farid the most talented of players,
I try not to rate the others against him. Then it just becomes a competition rather than a feeling. The guy does taqsim not to compete but to express
himself. So be it if he puts some Western things in it.
If you use that argument against Western music, I guess you take away much of Arabic music in the mid-20th century. Abdel Wahab had a lot of Western
flavor in his stuff, yet still maintained the arabic touch to it. It's the same thing. Maybe it takes some people a bit more time to come around
to this.
I just hope this topic doesn't start a big feud and splits the forum in half.
Feel the oud.
TP21
David Parfitt - 1-30-2004 at 02:01 AM
Hi guys
This seems to raise some wider questions about music in general.
(1) How do we define a musician as 'good'? Does it depend on how many people enjoy listening to them (in which case, today's
manufactured pop idols beat the hell out of our oud players), or does time play an important role in sorting the wheat from the chaff? Everyone tends
to have their own idea about what they like best, but is a bit of guidance a good thing?
(2) Can you or should you mix Arab and Western music? I understand that in the 20th century a lot of Arab musicians embraced Western styles and
instruments and saw them as the only way forward, but is it now time to chuck 'em out and go back to the drawing board? The problem is that a lot
of what we would probably consider as 'traditional' Arab music was shaped by Ottoman influence (so do we abandon semais etc.?), and then we
could go back further to Abbasid or even Persian tradition (no more Rast, then).
From a personal perspective, I would rather listen to Amer Ammouri alone, without the Western string section of violins etc. But I don't mind the
odd Western innovation in his taqsims - if he gets too carried away then I just won't buy his CDs. (Munir Bashir experimented quite a lot with
Western ideas, but it seems that most people rejected it - will they do the same with Omar?)
Another thing that I have always been hesitant about is seeing the words 'oud' and 'jazz' in the same sentence. But again, that is
just my personal view (no offence, Norumba! 
), and there is obviously a huge
audience out there for artists such as Anouar Brahem etc. I must admit that I have a more open mind after I found out that one of my idols of
'traditional' oud playing, Muhammad Qadri Dalal, also plays in a jazz group!!!
Looking forward to hearing all your opinions.
Best wishes
David
Playing it again
sydney - 2-2-2004 at 04:38 PM
Hello Fine People 
I first would like to thank Mike for his great effort here.
Playing the same notes again in my opinion is natural and needed sometimes , Oum Kolthoum did repeat her words as many as she liked with some added
flavour and some times without adding nothing. If we apply this to what Ammouri did I believe it is to say " hey .. I get inspired or powered up
by this and I'll do it again" and because he is improvising , he did a bit of change to it which was hardly noticed but it means that he is
in full control.
I am not taking his side but I love the feelings he puts into his music.
Good luck
Emad