CordaTesa
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What to look at when buying a new Oud
Hi everyone!
I've just joined this wonderful community and I'm so happy to be here. My name is Rodrigo and I'm writing from Rome, Italy.
I'd like to ask you something:
What are the main characteristics one should pay attention to when buying a new oud? I mean, an instrument that would suit the beginner as well as the
intermediate player.
Thanks in advance.
Cheers!
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Aymara
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Hi,
welcome to the forums!
Then you have the same problem, I had last fall: It's not easy to get a good oud in Western Europe. Most ouds I found in European online shops were
cheap ones, that were more useful as decoration objects, than for playing.
Look HERE ... Igor from Germany had the same problem. And HERE you'll see, which oud he finally bought.
| Quote: | | What are the main characteristics one should pay attention to when buying a new oud? |
HERE you'll find a list. But as mentioned before, I bet it's similar in Italy as in Germany ... it's not that easy to get the chance to test an
oud before bying.
A further question is, are you looking for an Arabic or a Turkish oud? Check Igor's thread about oud types. And where did you plan to buy? Maybe a
trip to Turkey? Or an online shop?
Greetings from Germany
Chris
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CordaTesa
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Hi Aymara, thanks for answering!
The links you indicated are very useful and definitely appreciated.
I was looking for an Arabic Oud or a Turkish one but with Arabic tuning.
A couple of people are selling theirs privately in Rome: one instrument was made by Ismail Nacir of Tunis, but it's an amplified version; the other is
from George Baytar of Beirut and it's a regular acoustic one.
Here are the links:
http://www.mercatinomusicale.com/mm/a_liuto-arabo-oud-roma_id144497...
http://www.mercatinomusicale.com/mm/a_vendo-oud-liuto-arabo_id70846...
If you were so kind as to take a look at both of them, I'd be very grateful to hear your comments. Thanks. Bye.
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Sazi
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Hard to tell just by looking, pity theres no sound files, I like the look of the cedar topped Lebanese one myself, if they are local you'll be able to
try them both out and see how they feel to you, they might be different scale lengths for instance, and you may prefer one over the other.
G oud luck
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Aymara
Oud Junkie
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Hi again!
I think it would be better to look for an Arabic oud then, which will have more bass than a downtuned Turkish oud.
| Quote: | | A couple of people are selling theirs privately in Rome ... |
That has the advantage, that you can test them yourself ... try to record sound files while testing them and post them here, before you buy. At first
sight, I would prefer the second one because of the longer fingerboard ... I'm a former guitarist  On the other hand I prefer ouds with 3 soundholes ... which usually results in more balanced sound characteristics.
BTW ... do you have any experience with other string instruments like guitar or maybe mandoline or even lute? That would greatly help to find out the
quality of an oud while playing it. For a totally beginner it's hard to tell, how good an instrument is.
Greetings from Germany
Chris
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CordaTesa
Oud Admirer
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Good evening everybody!
To answer Aymara's question: I've been trained in Western classical music since I was a little kid. I play the Violin, so I'm kinda familiar with
fret-less fingerboards
In the past years I've also been playing the Guitar, mostly Flamenco one. There are different "palos" (styles) in Flamenco that are strongly
influenced by Arabian music, Zambra Mora in particular.
In my spare time I enjoy making Bamboo flutes for Irish music as well as for other different musical cultures.
See you next time!
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Aymara
Oud Junkie
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Hi again,
sounds as if you should be able to check out the quality of an oud, when you play it
So maybe start checking out the offers in Rome ... and search Youtube for oud videos to get a feeling for the sound characteristics of different oud
designs.
Greetings from Germany
Chris
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CordaTesa
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Thanks Aymara, you've been very kind.
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Aymara
Oud Junkie
Posts: 1162
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Location: Germany / Ruhr Region
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Like eveybody else in these forums ... without these forums I wouldn't play my own oud
I bet you'll be the next one, who will say this some day.
Greetings from Germany
Chris
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Danielo
Oud Junkie
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Hi Rodrigo,
and welcome!
you should try contact Lazzaro who is a valued member of this forum, located also in Rome. He may have some oud to sell, or he may help you to find a good one!
Dan
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CordaTesa
Oud Admirer
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Thanks for your suggestion Danielo, I'll bear it in mind.
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