Mike's Oud Forums

Ali Khalifeh ouds

Oud student - 11-19-2007 at 06:01 AM

I have recently aquired an Ali Khalifeh oud, made in damascus. I bought it second-hand from a professional musician in Jordan after I saw him playing it and want to learn on it. I know that there have been some negative comments about this brand of oud, since Ali's nephew took over the business a few years aog. Now, I don't know ho old this oud is (my Arabic wasn't good enought to ask) but inside there is a label waying 'Ali Khalifeh and Sons' and a picture of a middle-aged man (Ali?) with a moustache - a very old-fashioned looking picture. How can I tell if this oud was made by the uncle or the nephew? Will it be OK to learn on (it sounded good when I heard it played)? Many thanks!

zalzal - 11-19-2007 at 11:04 AM

send photos of oud and of label

Oud student - 11-20-2007 at 02:10 AM

OK, will do. The only problem is the label is inside the oud and you can only see it by shining a torch through the strings so it may be difficult to get a photos of it. But I'll try! Many thanks for your interest.

Oud student - 11-20-2007 at 08:14 AM

Here are a couple of photos of the od and label )as far as I could see it!) The frond of the oud is a very pale colour, almost white (though it looks yellow in the photo) and the decoration round the edge goes right up to the pegs. Hope this helps!

Khalifeh oud

Oud student - 11-20-2007 at 08:17 AM

And here is the second one...

SamirCanada - 11-20-2007 at 08:50 AM

the plastic rosettes and the overall look indicate that this oud is made by his nephews... ( or his sons)
its not old enough it doesnt seem to be Ali the father's work but just so you know the date of fabrication is writen on the bottom right. but I cant read the numbers since they are hidden.

if the action is good on it and its easy to play. it can be a very nice oud to learn on. Eventhough the workmenship isnt the best. perhaps 1% of them can have a really nice sound and if you heard it before you bought it. you probably liked the sound.

Oud student - 11-20-2007 at 09:07 AM

Hi there - thanks for this. I bought it from a professional Jordanian musician, and heard it being played. It sounded good to my (untrained) ear and I really only want it to learn on. If I ever get competent I might invest in a better, more expensive one...

Most of the label is in Arabic and I can't read the date! But if I write it down perhaps you can help me tranlsate it? Very many thanks for your input.

Oud student - 11-21-2007 at 06:25 AM

Re the date on the lable - Tthese are the squiggles I can see on the bottom right-hand corner of the label. They go soemthing like this:

..G . V / \ / \

Does this mean anything to anyone??