Umm Kulthum is one of the most challenging artists to really understand as an Oud learner, especially if you’re learning Arabic music as an outsider to the culture. BUT, she’s also one of the most important Arabic artists in the 20th century, and one of the most well-known in the world. Let’s explore how Umm Kulthum is challenging as well as essential to learn. You may recognize many of the…
Read MoreMohamed Al Qasabji – Learn Dhikrayati on Oud
Mohamed Al Qasabji was one the most influential Oud players and composers in Egypt during the 20th century. Learn one of his most well-know compositions right here. I have a new tutorial for you to try out where you can learn this well-known tune called “Dhikrayati” (Zikrayati) by Mohamed Al Qasabji. This video is an section from a full course of Egyptian music for Oud. I chose this piece to…
Read MoreMaqam Daad o Bidaad Workshop
Scroll to the bottom for event details. We’re going to study a maqam that you’ve likely never heard before. It’s very unique, and was actually invented not more than 25 years ago by one of the most famous Persian Tar players in the world, Hossein Alizadeh. Maqam Daado Bidaad This maqam was first released in the album “Raze No”, in 1999. “Raze no”, means “Novel Mystery”. Novel meaning, “new” in…
Read More5 Egyptian Songs You Need to Play on Oud
A few weeks ago I shared some Egyptian songs, and we explored some of the “classic” composers and singers that are dear to Egyptians. We mentioned the likes of Umm Kulthum, Riad Al Sunbaty, and Mohamed Abdul Wahab, and Said Darwish. There was something missing from that post. Where was the Oud element to all that? How do you explore this music on Oud? The task is fairly difficult. For…
Read MoreThere are many ways to learn a maqam…
Learn a maqam. Here’s how… Alright, I’ve been going on about this free Ear Training session for a while now, and I’m sure you’re getting tired of it. But seriously, get all the details here and mark your calendar so you don’t miss it. I also promised yesterday I would discuss many ways to learn a maqam, to learn music, to learn how to improvise in the framework of a maqam. Okay,…
Read MoreWhat is Ear Training?
As I mentioned the other day, I’ll be doing a free Ear Training session live on YouTube. Ear Training sounds really boring doesn’t it? What really is Ear Training? And why should you do it? Let me put it this way… Ear Training are essentially exercises that help you internalize and absorb the nuances of a maqam in a natural and innate way. It’s like Monkey see… Monkey do… Or…
Read MoreNavid’s Top 5 Recommended Egyptian Songs
How does an Oud player go about learning more Egyptian music? How about a little crash course in Egyptian music… Well, this is the highly abridged, and terribly concise Egyptian music crash course. For the simple reason that this is a huge subject… But I’ve condensed all of Egyptian music to 5 tunes/songs that I believe can be your meze platter which I hope will entice you to learn more and…
Read MoreThe truth about Farid Al-Atrash… Learn Egyptian Oud
What comes to mind when someone says the words, “Egyptian Oud” or Egyptian Music? Do you think of belly dancers? Or do you think of the diva Umm Kulthum? Or do you think of this cool dude Amr Diab? Maybe all of these come to mind… But what about Farid Al-Atrash…? A long time ago someone corrected me when I said that Farid Al-Atrash was Egyptian. He’s associated very much…
Read MoreOnline Oud Workshop – Learn Aziza by Abdul Wahab on Oud
We’re going to have an Oud Workshop at OudforGuitarists all online. In this Oud Workshop, we’re going to take a look at some exercises that will allow you to play Abdel Wahab’s “Aziza” in an advanced way with ornaments and embellishments. We will then learn how to play Aziza in a basic way, and show you how to add the ornamentation learned in the exercises. Notation will be provided for…
Read MoreLearn Arabic Oud – Alf Leila we Leila (Intro) Part II
Learn Arabic Oud here with Oud for Guitarists. In case you haven’t already seen it, check out Alf Leila we Leila Part I here. Now you can also check out Part II below. You can learn Oud from a bare beginner level all the way up to an advanced level with Oud for Guitarists. Are you looking to learn the ornaments and embellishments I added to this piece? You might…
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