Orahim1
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Is this instrument in the video a laouta?
I am interested in the instrument that the person to the right of the right, up front on stage has. It looks like a flat-back oud, but I know it's not
because of the peghead area and the frets. So, does that mean that the instrument is a laouta? If it is, where can one purchase a decent instrument
like that? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
P.S.-That's one of my favorite songs.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuPhCmmfKiE
Here's another one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoFTUsVtNmQ
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dubai244
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Hi Orahim,
You are correct, it is Laouta. The reason why it has Flat back, because it is electric as far as i know. Oud maker, for example, they make the
electric oud with flat back for easy holding on the stage when they playing and it looks more modern, suits the nightclub and parties enviorments.
Here a web where you can order it. But i dont know the guy and i never ordered any thing from him. The only thing i know is his web. But it seem to me
that he is a good maker, i dont know really ..
http://www.dimitrisouds.com/other_traditional_instruments.htm
Cheers
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Lintfree
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There is an instrument played in North Africa that has metal frets, 8 strings that is a relative of the laouta and the Spanish laoud. I have a C.D. of
a guy from Tunisia playing something very similar to the second YouTube selection you show and it is fretted like a guitar or bouzouki and all four
pairs are wound steel strings, no plain steel strings. The giveaway is the soundhole which is diamond shaped. (I will look and see if I can find that
C.D. because it is quite good and the guy can really sing.) There are all kinds of variations and stringings; 8 strings, 10 strings. There is also the
arch-laoud that Xavier Mas of Barcelona plays that is like a big loaud that has 12 nylon strings in pairs that are tuned in unison. Then there are
custom instruments that are one of a kind which is what I think Rashid Taha's oud/laouta/laoud player is playing. But Dimitris is right about both
YouTube entries being laoutas.
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Melbourne
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Neither of the instruments in the youtube videos are laouta. The laouto is a very Greek instrument and to my knolwledge is not played in any other
countries. It somehow has a saz like sound but much bigger and has adjustable wire frets. It is used as an accomapy instrument in "nisiotika music",
not as common as solo instrument. There is the mainland lauto, and the kritiki laouto, but I dont know the difference, perhaps someone can elaborate.
But definitely the clips above Orahim1 are not lauto. Heres a link to a laouto clip...beautiful mysterious sound.....
cheers.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jr0GzOlXEe8
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Melbourne
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While on the topic of Crete, the place has such an amazing landscape that's soo reminiscent of my father's village in Lebanon. There's this Greek
story that when God created the earth, there was a whole heap of leftovers which He put together to make up Greece! But I don't think that's the case
with Crete - it must've been sliced off Lebanon 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHqrZfZGW_A&mode=related&sea...
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Greg
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In the first youtube clip, I think the player may be Hakim Hamadouche and, if so, the instrument is an electric mandoluth.
Regards,
Greg
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zoukboy
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It's a North African instrument called a mandol. 10 metal strings, metal frets. not related to oud.
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excentrik
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Yes Zoukboy- it is a mandol, but it is related to the Oud- it was converted (acording to a famous Mandol player, Moh Ali Leche) to fretted, machine
tuned version in not-too distant past- The original versions were something close to the Oud, but not an "oud" per say... It sounds very much like an
oud and is sometimes mistakingly called an oud by some North-African record labels.
Moh Ali Leche once told me "I switched to this from the oud because the oud is such a pain in the ass!" hahahaha! see what we all got ourselves into?
tarik
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dubai244
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Hi guys,
I agree with Moh. Ali, if the oud is bad quality, then yes, it is pain in the ass
Cheers
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Microber
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I also think it's a mandol.
See the booklet of the CD of Omar Benamara. He is Algerian.
This one seems to have 10 strings.
Robert
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Orahim1
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Thanks for all the replies and info. That is definitely the instrument in question (the one in the CD pic). Here's a silly question, the name Mandol
is not that far removed from the name Mandolin, I'm assuming (though I could be wrong) that there is some connection there.
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Melbourne
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Mandol, and Mandola are bigger sizes of instrument in the mandolin family...though not as common.
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Arto
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"Mandol" is not quite a mandolin family instrument by that name in the west, but the relation seems quite clear. The instrument in the photo
corresponds by its size to mandocello, that is known in many European countries as mandoloncello (see the connection?). A typical mando(lon)cello has
four courses of metal strings tuned CGda. There´s a pretty rare 5-course variant of the latter known as liuto, liuto moderno, or liuto cantabile that
is tuned CGdae´.
I don´t know much about Maghreb music, but if I remember right, even a typical bowlback Neapolitan mandolin has been used in Arab music at least
sometimes.
A Turkish lavta, a near-relative to Greek laouto, can be seen here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnQqnluPqHg
best wishes,
Arto
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Melbourne
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thx for the clarification Arto
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radixfc
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Hi! a bit late, but I also agree it´s a mandol. In spain there´s also an instrument called mandola (more similar to irish bouzouki), but spanish
modern lute (laud) is very similar to this mandol... I post a photo of mine (manufactured by alhambra)
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radixfc
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a pic of spanish mandola
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radixfc
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and another pic of spanish modern lute (other style of soundhole)
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Monty88
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hi all,
i'm in crete right now, someone asked to elaborate on the laouto, so i will do this briefly as it is one of my primary instrments along with oud and
saz.
basically you have 3 types oflaouto, the first is called steriano laouto, from mainland greece. it has a body about the size of an oud, bowl back, and
a longer neck with tempered nylon frets. 8 strings in pairs of 2, 3 of whichare octaves. the tuning (from low to hi) is Cc, then down a fourht to Gg,
then up in fifths Dd and aa.
soit is Cc Gg Dd AA. This is used in mainland greece, from thraki, epirus, peloponnesus and other places. also they use the same on in many islands
except they refer to as nisiotiko laouto. plays mainly chords, little melodic work (great rhythm instrument).
The laouto onCrete is the Kritiko laouto, which is essentialy the same as the mainland laouto, but much bigger and tuned exactly one fourth lower, so
it is Gg Dd Aa EE, like mandolin but very very deep. this insturument has a completely different playing style, accompanying the lyra. there are
usually 2 laouta playing with the lyra, one playing solo, following hte lyra, and the other holding a simple chord and rapidly strumming up and down
with a plastic plectrum creating a very percussive sound, this is called "vourtsa" which translates literally into "sweeping". they use a similar
style of laouto on small neighbouring islands, like karpathos.
then last you have hte politiko laouto, also known as lavta. this is a slightly modified oud, it has very similar construction and sound qualities to
the oud, except a narrower body, longer neck with many microtonal frets like a tanbur, and only 7 strings in 3 pairs and one single bass, tuned D A D
A (low to hi). This also accompanied the politiki lyra in Istanbul, so the principle is not hugley unlike the cretan laouot, although now it is a
strong solo instrument that plays tanbur and oud repertoire.
if anyone has questions about the instruments, they are one of my main focus, so don't hesitate to send a message!
pad
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Arto
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Thanks Pad, very interesting. Is mainland laouto tuning re-entrant, that is the fourth string C is higher than the next third string G? Is Cretan
laouto tuned the same way, or is it "all-ascending-fifths" GDAE, similar to mandolin? (I´m originally a mandolin player, with a long-time distant
love affair with oud and tanbur, so I find this interesting!).
All laoutos and lavtas are played with a plectrum? What kind of plectrums?
Have I understood right: mainland and Cretan laoutos are strung with metal strings, and politiki laoutos/lavtas with nylon strings?
thanks, Arto
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Melbourne
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Hey cheers for the info Paddy! I got some baglama saz qestions, but I'll save those for later and send u a u2u!
I did notice different size laouta but never made the connection that it may be a diff type with a different tuning...
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Lintfree
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Mandol. That was the instrument I was trying to place. The Spanish variations are cool. I would also imagine that a mandol with its flat back and
machine tuners would travel better than an oud as far as cases go too.
I had a flat back oud made once with machine heads made with a cypress back and sides and an old European spruce top. It sounded awful, a real dud. So
I went back to a real oud because the flat back thing was a pain in the ass.
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zoukboy
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Arto
Is mainland laouto tuning re-entrant, that is the fourth string C is higher than the next third string G? Is Cretan laouto tuned the same way, or is
it "all-ascending-fifths" GDAE, similar to mandolin? All laoutos and lavtas are played with a plectrum? What kind of plectrums? Have I understood
right: mainland and Cretan laoutos are strung with metal strings, and politiki laoutos/lavtas with nylon strings? |
They are both re-entrant.
The mainland is tuned:
C3C4 G2G3 D3D4 A4A4
and the Kritiko:
G2G3 D2D3 A2A3 E4E4
I find using octave numbers is a little clearer than upper and lower case.
Laouto players tend to use long, thin light plastic picks held between thumb and index with the "tail" leaving the hand between the index and middle
fingers. Lavta players often do the same but many use the same pick grip as the oud.
And yes, laoutos have metal strings while lavtas are strung with nylon.
Roger
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Lintfree
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The instrument in question is definitely a mandol, not a loauta and I found the C.D. I was looking for that features the mandol. The artist's name is
Maestro Omar Ait-Vimoun and the C.D. is titled Assaru U Stekhvar. The style he plays is called Music Andaluse. He is credited, according to the liner
notes, with the in-depth development of the mandol. The C.D. is well worth buying. I found myself playing several of the melodies on this C.D. on the
oud.
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AGAPANTHOS
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This instrument does't belong to the world of modal music/instruments. It is definitely a part of the strong musical tradition built up after the
european renaisance period in the southern europe and mostly in the most of the islands of the Mediterrannean sea (Corse, Malta, Sardegna,Sicilia,
Ionian,Crete). The establishment of this tradition is due to the maritime presence of Venetians and Genoveze in the Mediterrannean.
The instrument belongs to the family of the Mandolin and it is propably a kind of Mandola.
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zoukboy
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| Quote: | Originally posted by AGAPANTHOS
This instrument does't belong to the world of modal music/instruments. It is definitely a part of the strong musical tradition built up after the
european renaisance period in the southern europe and mostly in the most of the islands of the Mediterrannean sea (Corse, Malta, Sardegna,Sicilia,
Ionian,Crete). The establishment of this tradition is due to the maritime presence of Venetians and Genoveze in the Mediterrannean.
The instrument belongs to the family of the Mandolin and it is propably a kind of Mandola. |
Yeah, that jives with what I know of the instrument. The group Nass Marrakech has a member who plays one.
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