This is a question I get regularly, and it’s one that me and everyone go through from time to time. I would recommend practicing creating simple phrases, and trying different ways of saying the same thing. Different stroke pattern, different number of notes, or stop on a different note, make a daily habit out of practising and taking some risks. Play something that doesn’t make sense. See what you can…
Read MoreThere’s no manual on how to play a taqsim…
Part 1 of 3 There’s no how-to manual on how to play a taqasim. Most students get thrown to the wolves when they learn taqasim with their teachers telling them to “just feel it”, “create your own melody”, etc, etc, etc. AND, very few teachers know how to teach melody creation, or how to go about playing a taqasim. This is one of the plateaus we reach when learning Oud…
Read MoreLe Trio Joubran Sheet Music – Masar
Download the sheet music here: https://www.oudforguitarists.com/le-trio-joubran-sheet-music
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 MoreMaqam Ear Training
I always had a hard time understanding Maqam Lami. It sounded so strange to me, and I didn’t find it interesting. I knew some well known songs in Maqam Lami, but it still wasn’t sticking. Fortunately, Simon Shaheen used Maqam Lami in one of his ear training sessions at the Arabic Music Retreat… Then it all started to make sense. I took what I learned from his method and created…
Read MoreArabic Music Retreat 2016
It’s been about two weeks since I’ve returned from the Arabic Music Retreat. Man… I have a lot to share with you, so I’ll probably be creating a few blog posts about different things over the next few weeks. It was a great experience I’ll never forget. The faculty are all heavy-weights of Arabic Music, so you can imagine how nice it was to be in their company for seven days,…
Read MoreJamil Bashir Oud Method Exercise
Here’s an exercise from Jamil Bashir’s Oud method. This is a beginner level Oud lesson for practicing 16th notes in G major scale. The tuning you need to use for this lesson is (low to high string) C G A D g c. Free Beginner Oud Lessons Course Next week I’m starting a brand new free email course for bare beginner Oud players. This course is…
Read MoreSuper Oud Tremolo Exercise
Tremolo is one of the most challenging techniques for Oud learners, but it’s so essential to Oud playing. It takes time and discipline. In this video, you’ll learn an exercise that will help develop your Oud tremolo. Let me know what you think about this Oud lesson. Comment below or email me at support@oudforguitarists.com. Tomorrow, Oud for Guitarists is offering a limited time Premium Oud…
Read MoreEverything you need to learn in one song – Doulab Bayati
Learning the subtleties of Arabic music can take a long time. When I was learning Arabic music, I was listening to lots of music so I could hear examples of everything and absorb all the melodies and nuances of all the different maqamat. I was copying these melodies on the Oud and trying to bring them out. It was a very long process, and I became very good…
Read MoreThe Ultimate Guide to Persian Music
Persian Music is EASIER to Learn Persian music is definitely not as popular among Western peoples as is Arabic and Turkish music. There could be many reasons for this, but I think the two biggest ones are: 1.) The political climate of the last 30 years has closed off Iran’s cultural heritage to the world to only a select few with the tenacity to pursue it. 2.) The music itself rather introspective,…
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