Marathon Walking Starts With a Single Step…

Dear members,
I am a new oud player just started to learn how to play. I guess i have to start somewhere!!! I have to say that its not the easiest thing in the world to do, but i am very determined and passionate about learning how to play this beautiful instrument. I consider myself extremely lucky here, my instructor is the member Mav and i had Mike help me out to buy the oud. I recommend Mav to all new players; he is very patient which i think is a crucial point. For Mike, all I can say is thank you. He made the phone calls to Egypt and took care of everything. I just sent him the money with paypal and I had the beautiful oud few days after. The oud is sold by Maurice but its not a Maurice oud, the maker is Morad El Turki (Egyptian I believe). This oud is absolutely gorgeous, the bowl is made of a very dark redish elegant wood (it appears bright in the pics!!). I will attach pics for the oud.

P.S all the experienced members, please feel free to give any advice, i am sure I will need it all
oh and plz dont ask for sound files because i dont know how to play yet hopefully soon i ll be able to

Special Thanks to MatthewW , he gave plenty of valuable advice

Thanks everyone

Hi bibo.

Take a look at this thread http://www.mikeouds.com/messageboard/viewthread.php?tid=8978

I am sure if you search on this forum you will find a ton of advices for beginners.

Good luck

Trust me.. you'll find a lot more about temp and humidity on this forum than what I will tell you.

But I'll give you some general guidelines.. Humidity is the worst enemy to your oud. Rapid or sudden fluctuations or changes in the humidity and temperature levels will greatly affect you oud in negative ways. Low humidity levels will make the wood - and especially the face - drier than before so it will become more prone to cracks for example. High levels will make the wood expand and deform. Humidity and temperature affect the strings as well - different type of strings react differently, but you'll definitely hear changes in the sound of the oud. And frequent changes of temperature and/or humidity will rapidly and badly affect you instrument.

The optimal relative humidity is around 50%. Make sure your oud doesn't directly face the sun for example.. and keep it in its case - a hard case is preferred - when you are not playing it. If you know that the humidity where you level is too high or too low you'd better get a small humidifier (like this one for example http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Planet-Waves-Instrument-Humi... ) and put it in your oud's case to control the humidity level. Check out this: http://oudluthier.blogspot.com/2008/05/deserted-ouds.html . Temperature of course is much harder to control, but keep it in acceptable temperature levels and it should be good.

This issue is always a serious concern for players of wooden instruments such as the oud. Always take care of your instrument - and since you are so excited I am sure you will

thank you soo much Reda, God Bless you
i was really worried about temp issues, i guess no more
i ll keep searching the forum tho for more info

Taking Care of your Oud