In the last post I told you a story about my “avant-garde genius” Oud playing skills.
Basically, my point was that everyone starts out playing a taqasim not knowing what the hell they are doing.
Not being able to play a taqasim is going to make you feel like a Oud beginner forever.
You’re going to yearn for those times where you can just grab your Oud and make beautiful melodies.
I want you to help you get there.
Today I want to tell you 3 things people are doing that sabotage their innate taqasim skills.
- Thinking too hard
- Trying to do flashy stuff
- Not singing in the shower
Let me explain…
The ultimate form of music is in the creative aspect of inventing melody. You’re sabotaging yourself by…
1. Thinking too hard.
The best performers of taqasim do not think about what they are playing. The melodies flow through them. The planning happened way before the performance, during those years of practice. Usually it’s completely spontaneous.
Spend some time noodling. Put notes together in any way you want. You might like something you play, and you might not.
This fooling around and noodling on the Oud is part of my daily creative process. Make it part of yours too.
2. Trying to do flashy stuff
Seriously, you don’t need to be a virtuoso soloist to make your audience swoon.
Those guys who throw 100 notes per second in your face sacrifice beautiful, high-quality tone for noisy fireworks.
Instead, simplify your melody and add swagger and charm to your simple melodies.
A few well-timed, silky notes on the Oud is enough to melt anyone’s heart. That sound is probably what you heard when you fell in love with the Oud, is it not?
Next time you hear a riff or lick you like, reduce it down to the bare minimum notes and see what you can do with it. Sometimes less is more.
3. Not singing in the shower.
Are you singing in the shower?
If not, you’ve got work to do.
One of the most creative moments throughout the day is when you’re taking a shower. Cognitive Scientist Scott Kaufman found that showers appear to provide a safe, relaxed environment that releases dopamine in the brain, and allows the brain to run free from mundane tasks.
Since I was a teenager, the shower was always where a new melody would pop into my head that I never heard before. It still happens to this day. I have a stash of recordings on my phone that I made after I got out of the shower. These are my compositional sketches.
Where does melody come from? It just happens. It comes out of nowhere.
So next time you have trouble working on the intonation of the notes in a maqam or need inspiration for a melody, start singing in the shower. Put on a recording of that song you’re working on, or let the next melody that pops into your head be the start of your next taqasim.
Not convinced?
There is hope.
Ayad was able to play his first decent taqsim after playing Oud for two years.
“Your taqsim video lesson was awesome! For the first time in my 2 years playing Oud I can actually put together a decent sounding freestyle taqsim with the help of your template and audio demonstration.”
In the next post, I’m going to share with you a video that will help you start building your ability to create melodies with guidance.
This video will give you a framework and formula for playing a basic taqsim in maqam bayat.
Until then, have you signed up for the newsletter? It’s worth staying in touch. Click here to get started.
