Oud: An Introduction

In this video I give you a short introduction to the Oud, a middle eastern string instrument that has a very long history, and which is the ancestor of the guitar.
INSTAGRAM: @dahlenbror / dahlenbror
FACEBOOK: / filipekholm
TWITTER: @FilipHolm9 / filipholm9
Link to previous video on the Duduk: • Introduction to Duduk
Link to video where I play electric Oud: • "The Field" - Oud Taqs...

[@edy819]

This was not expected from a western man to know all this information about maqamat and oud Much respect, keep up ⬆️

[@adnanm3656]

Man this is amazing I don’t how I found this video but I absolutely love every part. Oud has a big BIG audience here in my country as you can find most of the songs in an oud version/music I would guess like western singers putting out an acoustic version, personally I love the oud and hopefully someday I will learn to play it. I really can’t stress enough how good this video is the playing, the history, everything. Sending love your way all the way from Saudi Arabia

[@FilipHolm]

Wow thank you so much! I appreciate that!

[@EiadKasem]

You explained maqams better than any native arabic player. This channel is way underrated. Keep it up bro.

[@FilipHolm]

Thanks man! Appreciate it!

[@shortclips4267]

Did you check with all native Arab players before making this statement?

[@mycellphone4437]

​@@shortclips4267Yep, they did.

[@Bojanmarsetic]

You certainly deserve a much bigger audience. As a storyteller, teacher and musician. Thanks for the insightful clip.

[@FilipHolm]

Thank you for the kind comment!

[@Amal-qo6kx]

Absolutely beautiful.. shukran 🌸

[@FilipHolm]

Thank you :)

[@ThePapsforshort]

I'm humbled by coming across your love of the Oud, especially when watching your videos on another KZbin channel of yours on philosophy/religion which I've been very inspired by. Brilliant to see, Philip!

[@FilipHolm]

Glad you found your way here!

[@zovalentine7305]

OH! JOY! my Grandfather (who raised me) played Oud and several other instruments. Thank you⚘

[@mohammedbarhoum2713]

Amazing video! You've put such great effort in it. I'm learning to play the Oud myself, and I've learned some new ideas about Maqams from you. Cheers from Syria, mate

[@user-os4ho8xj2u]

Filip- this is truly beautiful- thank you!

[@akashveersingh528]

I dig your vibe bro . Your channel is awesome

[@fihrilkamal7296]

What an amazing video. I just learned oud about a year ago, it's really an amazing instrument.

[@blendoman]

Amazing video as usual ❤

[@chrishxb]

I'm so impressed of your skills and I'm very happy that you have also this channel. You are an amazing guy.

[@GlacierRain]

Your video was both enjoyable and informative. I especially enjoyed your take on the pronunciations. Thank you very much for making this. Much encouragement, love and appreciation to you from Saudi Arabia.

[@abdulaziz12a]

Wow you are amazing. The presentation and the historical information is ... just AMAZING I'm just speechless. I enjoyed the video and learned new things. and in the end, I like your playing in the maqam Alsaba it is my FAVORITE TOO. thank you from Saudi Arabia. شكرا من القلب

[@FilipHolm]

Very kind words :) Thank you very much!

[@PapaJupOfficial]

I just started playing oud after many years playing guitar. after hearing your explanation it give me confidence to learn more about playing oud and love it more. thank you very much for sharing the video

[@houssemeddinemhiri8909]

i loved this so much

[@FilipHolm]

Thank you :)

[@NoahfromEarth]

Great Video man ! i'm a guitar player thinking about picking up the oud. You have inspired me.

[@jorisArt]

Thanks! Am cellist buying oud today and appreciate all your great info! Thank you very much!

[@robfielding8566]

wow. i have been playing oud and quartertone electric guitar for a few years. your oud playing is really excellent. and your background knowledge too.

[@nedkelly8495]

Beautiful. Absolutely magical. And the history of the instrument is so fascinating. The presentation, the talk all so clear & interesting. Thank you. Shukran (frm NZ)

[@FilipHolm]

Thank you!

[@Fretliner]

Very nice video, and you play really great

[@vindknt]

This video is so much better than any article I could find on these topics. Maybe this really is an aural tradition for a reason.

[@dinam336]

Indeed it's very beautiful

[@someofmyvideos774]

Wonderful video. Thank you

[@MUSICBYOMAR]

This is awesome, thanks!

[@FilipHolm]

Thank YOU!

[@HaharuRecords]

I loved Spanish guitar so much, whithout knowing really Oud, and when I found Oud. Damn..holy cow this is it...forget about the beautiful chord progressions but feel the pure bright tone of a single ornamented note....

[@jordanianchristian8387]

Very interesting! I really want to play it but I live in a small town in Indiana, so their is no lessons except online.

[@FilipHolm]

That was the problem for me too! Not a lot of people who play Oud in Sweden!

[@jordanianchristian8387]

Filip Holm the closest big city for me is Chicago, but it is a 45 minute drive away. They have lessons in Chicago, but it would be to much of an inconvenience for my family.

[@FilipHolm]

Some day hopefully!

[@faithclarke7721]

@@FilipHolm its worth it.

[@RoNiminal]

@@jordanianchristian8387 When there's a will, there's a way.

[@zeezee9670]

I love that you managed to strike the right "softness" of Oud in your stikes, even though Arabic music audibly still lies in your "discomfort-zone".

[@MrMelissa86]

Keep up the good work ! May God bless you !

[@fathymabrouk67]

Great work amigos, keep it up.

[@FilipHolm]

Thanks a lot!

[@antoninos4933]

What a wonderful and informative video about such a fascinating instrument! Loved it, subscribed instantly

[@JonathnAlfi]

Please make a series about all the arabic maqamat, never heard an explanation better than yours

[@carlosacta8726]

Filip Holm should do a Master Class on how to do an Introduction to any subject!!!! Alf Mabrouk!!!

[@haticekubrasamiloglu6363]

why am I watching this while eating iftar by myself, I don't know. But definitely enjoyed it

[@Zeagods-CyberShadow]

Good

[@muskegmudsuck]

Excellent video. Your scholarship as well as musicianship is fantastic!

[@raulcordero714]

Great lesson 👍 ty

[@zaki8361]

Awesome

[@vincentvalentinevivace]

Wow! Amazing video. I’m only just discovering the wonderful history of this instrument. Is the piece played at 0:20 an improvisation or an actual song? Id love to know. It sounds beautiful.

[@kim-thunguyen1712]

Thanks!

[@minayuen4775]

I am not sure how I found this page, but, you are highly knowledgeable and I am so glad that I did! I just bought a Godin electric multioud 2 months ago and am taking bi-weekly lessons in Washington DC, lucky for me I don't live too far away from there. You are very skilled, in a lot of instruments ( I see the Duduk, gosh I love the Duduk too!). How? Are you some kind of musical genius? Or did you go to music school? The oud is my first ever instrument at the ripe age of 31, so learning and finding good youtube videos that are in English is a little difficult. Luckily there are lots of books, and ofc my bi-weekly leasons...Again, thank you! I see I am a bit late to the 'party', so hopefully, you still get/see my comment. I saw that you said that you live in Sweden! That is awesome, you are very lucky, are there other oud players there or are you basically the only one?

[@FilipHolm]

That's awesome that you're learning the Oud. It is a wonderful instrument. There aren't a lot of Oud players in Sweden, but I'm not totally alone! There are a few really wonderful musicians, which is a blessing of course, but I am mostly self-taught. You should also check out "Oud for Guitarists". He has some great lessons similar to this video on KZbin and on his website.

[@minayuen4775]

@@FilipHolm Hi, there! Navid is actually one of the main reasons why I decided on getting my mutlioud and why I am now taking lessons in my area. He was very helpful. That is amazing that you are sell taugh! You are so knowlandable! Do you play shows out, pre-covid that is? Or is this just something you like to do at home? Thank you for responding, and thank you for this video!

[@FilipHolm]

@@minayuen4775 Great! Navid is fantastic. I did play a few shows here and there pre-covid. Never as a solo oudist though. Look forward to getting out there again soon!

[@rubeegeorgealset6412]

الله عليك😍😍😍

[@HawaiianGuitarCrossroads]

Very interesting

[@gombakhillbillies]

Great video and playing Filip. However, you don't seem to be aware that in Malaysia we have a version of the oud. We call it gambus and it's a huge tradition here. Do check it out. Lots of videos on that on KZbin.

[@Zeagods-CyberShadow]

The Oud is my favorite instrument

[@zeezee9670]

@02:30 _One of the famous ealry Oud players was a man by the name Ishaqq Al/Mosily._ Correct & my hat of to your diligence. Allow me still to introduce more about this great pioneer of language, poetrey, music & song. He was known by the name *Is'haq bin Ibrahim bin Mahan bin Behmen Al-Mosily.* Bin means son & *Is'haq* like most of the biblical names, originates there & is the origin of the the well known name *Issac,* but pronounced differently by the related Semetic languages (Ish'haq in Assyrian & Hebraic & Issac in English for instance). He was taught by the well-known luthier Haithem bin Bashir Al-Kisa'i & then by one of his students by the name of Mansour bin Zelzel. He also learned a great deal of litterature & history from Al-Asma'i & singing from A'ikah bint Shatha. He served in the courts of 4 Abbasid Califs: Al-Ma'moon, Al-Rashid, Al-Mu'tassim & Al-Muwaffaq. The amazing thing about this historical period is the fact that long periods of tolerant & open governance lead to exploration of science & arts from multiple nations. Note that Is'haq is a Hebrew Jew (mind you there were Arabs that were jews), his teacher Al-Asma'i was Persian (like most Arabic litterature/grammar researchers from this periiod). His other teachers were an Arab Muslim (Al-Kisa'i) & a Christian Syrian woman (A'ika).

[@alexgabriel5423]

The Turkish lute is smaller...the Arabic oud is tuned a tone lower than the Turkish oud. The barbat has steel.strings and is even smaller than the Turkish oud. Thank You for your beautiful presentation of this great instrument!...

[@hamzehatasheneh4356]

Great intro and nice playing, 2 slight comments 1- Ishaq pronounced Is'haq s and h, it is the same similar name as Issac or Isac 2- the skin version miz'hir and barbat existed at the same time, Oud is kinda the grand child of both

[@Fretliner]

Very cool thank you. What is the tuning for your Cumbus?

[@sav8759]

I watched the whole video and it was very educational and good thank you , i had always wondered why all oud players close there eyes and shake there heads when they play you did that too 😂😂 that’s got to be a oud Feature 😂♥️

[@sav8759]

Woooooooooow your playing is so AMAZING ♥️♥️

[@FilipHolm]

I'm glad you like it! Haha that's true! For me, closing the eyes helps with getting cleaner notes, using only my ears to play without looking at the fretboard. The shaking of the head, however.. I have no idea. I'm gonna say its a result of concentration and being "one with the music" :)

[@persiangulf3111]

it was great it is true that oud (barbat) is an iranian (persian) instrument but it is less used in iran and has more to do with Arabic culture. can you making a video about original iranian instruments such as (tar / setar / tonbak, etc.) thank you very much

[@Teerapatch88]

hi i play oud too, could you recommend books about oud, music by al kindi, al farabi, ibn sina or something you reading . thank you

[@Teerapatch88]

where can i find the book of safi al din urmawi

[@o-k9267]

I was searching and couldn't really find an answer to if the european composers of the 17-19 century did come in contact with these instruments or eastern tonality in general.

[@muhdzafri7551]

Even after a year, no dislikes! Nice

[@jonathannadeau6218]

I wonder if maqam is similar to raag ?

[@fanouth06]

Filipp you are very talented. I love your channel let's talk religion and just discovered your music channel. How did you discover and learn the Oud? I found very interesting how as a northern guy you have such interests on islamic/arabic world. Maybe a parallel can be made between maqamat and indian ragas?

[@FilipHolm]

Thank you! I've always been listening to middle eastern music since I was a kid. And the Oud always stuck out to me.

[@user-jg3gf7uk3r]

❤

[@JS-xs5hq]

Wonderful video. Thank you. Some scholars believe that the earliest ouds long predate the lute by roughly 4,200 plus years. The early ouds had an animal skin top, which was eventually replaced by a thin wooden top. Scholars also believe that the word "oud" is an abbreviation for its more organic name of the "wooden oud", meaning the oud with the wood top. Hence, etymologists ascribe "wooden" to the meaning of the word oud. It was the Moorish Sarazen pirates who introduced the oud to the Greeks, Italians, and Iberians during the Moorish occupation of those lands. Supposedly, the lute exists from the desire to replicate the ouds give to the western Europeans by the Sarazen. Etymologists also believe that the word lute is a phoneticization of oud.

[@FilipHolm]

I think it all depends on how widely we define the term

[@JS-xs5hq]

@@FilipHolm @FilipHolm Filip, I have to agree with you. I am sure that you know that there exists the strong temptation in academia, to string together disarticulated facts separated by periods of time. A reality found in various disciplines. I mentioned previously what "some" scholars believe, contrived from sparse artifactual evidence. I appreciate your general account of the histories of the lute and its predecessor the oud, as you refrained from taking gross liberties by not filling in the blanks of the unknown. A very well done video. Much appreciated. Cheers.

[@heikoweise9679]

Hi! your explenation are great, thanks for all your infos it helps a lot . are you selftought or do you have or had a teacher to start whit the oud?and who is the maker of this arabaic oud in the video that you play? thanks again you doing a great job whit your videos and also your playing is big inspiration .

[@FilipHolm]

Hello! Thank you! I am basically self-taught. This oud was made by Maurice Shehata in Egypt! He and his team make great Arabic Ouds at beginner-intermediate price-ranges (as well as "professional" ones when that becomes relevant).

[@heikoweise9679]

@@FilipHolm thank you

[@Orthodox_American]

I saw you cross promote this channel on Let's Talk Religion and checked it out. I didn't know you were an Oud player, I always found your religious content interesting, and just this week I started gaining interest in the Oud, so this was a rather interesting find for me.

[@alexgabriel5423]

Please see Lavta Seminar/ Periklis Papapetropoulos

[@tummyhawk9274]

I ordered my Oud a week ago and itll be the first instrument i learn. any tips on where i should begin to learn?

[@FilipHolm]

If it is your first ever instrument, you'd always do good to find some kind of teacher. Otherwise, there are tutorials and helpful websites online. Don't know how active they are now, but the forums over on mikeouds.com are always very helpful.

[@ErickAJobim]

🤩

[@Azerbaijani4154]

Greeting from Azerbaijan ❤

[@a-man2246]

Would genuinely love to see some improvised maqam music by you, perhaps we could have some of that soon? :)

[@FilipHolm]

I have put out some taqsim music before!

[@a-man2246]

@@FilipHolm damn i wasn't expecting a response to a comment on a 2 year old video. I posted the comment before i realized the channel is pretty active (KZbin notifications being what they are) happy to see i got tons more of your content. I genuinely enjoy your vids AND music. you're one of those rare KZbin gems that deserve way more exposure, keep up the good work :)

[@gombakhillbillies]

Hey Filip, I know you're more focused on the Let's Talk Religion channel, but I hope you don't stop posting music on this channel. You play the oud very well. Enjoyed your cover of George Harrison as well.

[@FilipHolm]

Thanks! :) I will keep making music!

[@gombakhillbillies]

@@FilipHolm great to hear that!

[@alexgabriel5423]

Outi politiko is the lute of the Greeks of Constantinople..the Polis( the City). It s in use and sounds higher than the Turkish oud. Its neck is marked by ligatures...plastic fishing line. It has a longer neck than the Turkish oud. Rapakousios makes them.

[@randyhendrickson4735]

At 10:52 Safi al-din Urmawi's Oud is fretted.

[@muratisik8880]

Nice video, may i ask from where you bought this Oud from?

[@FilipHolm]

Thanks! It was bought from Maurice Shehata in Egypt :)

[@muratisik8880]

@@FilipHolm Nice, it sounds amazing

[@johnwallace2319]

how do you store this? hang it backwards on the wall?

[@FilipHolm]

I use a stand for this one. Or keep in in its case.

[@TarekMidani]

is-haaq is from isaac 2:34. I enjoyed the last piece using the Sab'aa (seven) a lot. Basically if I closed my eyes I felt I was drifting into a meditative state

[@pokerface7840]

The name of the Maqam Saba is not Sab'aa which means seven. "Saba" is an Arabic word which is difficult to translate, it signifies a kind or degree of love. The word is from the same root that gives Sabi (boy, youth) so it probably refers to passionate, intoxicating love (like you experience when you are young).

[@TarekMidani]

@@pokerface7840 ohh that makes sense. so it's the thicker S. That changes the whole meaning

[@pokerface7840]

@@TarekMidani Exactly

[@a.hammad9194]

@@TarekMidani two letters are different, not just the thicker s. the apostrophe in sab'aa represents a ع.

[@alexgabriel5423]

There s some confusion between the Arabic and the Ottoman makam system. Makams with the same name sometimes differ. Other times Makams with different names are the same. The tonal systems are different as heard immediately on the kanun.that has more levers under each triplet of strings-- 10 mandals/levers on the Turkish kanuns.

[@thedailymaqam]

It's more of a product of 20th century practice that created most of these differences. First of all, EVERY Maqam system from Morocco to Uzbekistan and even Uyghur maqam was damaged in some way and to varying degrees by contact with Western music. Maqam was always a language with many dialects and a product of cross cultural collaboration. Nothing exists in a bubble. With that said, in Egypt after the Arab Music Congress in the 30s, for various reasons, the tonal system was simplified to 24 tones as a convention (often not accurate to practice) and many of the maqamat also collapsed into a smaller number due to simplification of some aspects of theory like tonal centers, path, etc. But there were dissenters as well who stuck to older practice. The Tunisian and Aleppo system, for example, use the koma system similar to Turkish. Additionally, it's a bit of a red herring to assume that Turkish is somehow "purer" to Ottoman practice. In some of these places, like the Syrian or Iraq maqam, there are even sometimes ideas or Maqamat which were lost in Turkish practice. As for the Qanun, it didn't even have levers until basically the late Ottoman period anyway, and even still many advanced players use their nails/fingers to produce more accurate tones and effects. Anyway, this might be a good subject for a video sometime....

[@alexgabriel5423]

@@thedailymaqam the Arabic ney differs from the Turkish...just compare the placement of the holes! So, a physical difference of the instruments that is Measurable. Second, the Arabic qanun has less mandals than the Turkish kanun that has 10 or 11 per triplet of strings. Bottom Line>> the keyboards available have Arabic pitches but do not allow playing of Turkish pieces without Pitch Bend wheel tweaking. The tanbur that has 34 sounds in the first octave is not used by Arabs but has been used in Turkey. This instrument allows Byzantine music playing, wrote Rauf Yekta Bey in the 1800s in his article included in the Dictionaire du Conservatoire, Paris 1922. Is it believable that musical practice can change just because of the Congress in Cairo? Why isn't the tanbur seen in the Classical Music of the Arabs?

[@thedailymaqam]

@@alexgabriel5423 the organology is not a really good indicator of theory my friend. Arabic and Ottoman maqam are from the same source. The theory prior to the 20th century was the same and they both used the Koma system (each semi tone is divided into 9 tones). And also, in the Ottoman conservatory there were even many Arabs teaching, composing, etc. (even documented by Cantemir) There's more to Arabic music than just Oum Kulthoum. Some Arabic speaking areas have preserved some aspects of Ottoman music better than in Turkey. For example, rekb makamı is considered a "lost" maqam in Turkey with no pieces on repertoire....but you will find the maqam in Aleppo. The same is true for some Iraqi maqamat like mukhalif etc. Arabic and Turkish nays are essentially the same, the only difference is the hole for the note segah on Turkish is slightly higher. Both Turkish and Arabic nay have six holes on the front and one thumb hole and are played by the same method. Even on Turkish you have to bend and half hole to get the correct intonation for some maqams. There are over 20 Arabic speaking countries so if you think it's all one giant amorphous cultural blob without any variation, then we have a racism problem and not a musicological one

[@alexgabriel5423]

@@thedailymaqam your comment is illogical. I m referring to.organology and Musical Practice. Byzantine music can be played accurately on the tanbur...although Byzantine music is mainly sung in the Greek church. Some secular repertoire survived and the Lavta/ Byzantine lute has also survived; it has a longer neck and has ligatures to mark the divisions. The ud players in Turkey use glissando to go through pitches that are not exactly marked...the spaces would be too many. It is interesting to know that there was an attempted suppression of Turkish music in Turkey, with brutality described by Orhan Gencebay, the famous saz player & film actor. In Greece there was a closing of recording opportunity for Rebetiko music, described by George Dalaras the famous singer in an interview on KZbin. SO, suppression of non-western music. Turkish folk music, classical Ottoman music and Rebetiko music survived!

[@thedailymaqam]

@@alexgabriel5423 ok by your logic Arabic music should have infinite tones because the theoretical instrument is the oud which has no frets or perdeler. Also, Rauf Yekta Bey was at the Congress and he also taught my teacher's teacher's father. They come from the same source. Let's consider some of the main sources on maqam... Isfahani's Kitab Al Musiqa al Kabir was composed in Aleppo. Al Farabi worked in Damascus after Baghdad. Interestingly, al Farabi himself had a tonal system which was microtonal but didn't agree with either of the modern standards.

[@iunknown563]

You are an old soul!

[@FilipHolm]

Is that good?

[@iunknown563]

@@FilipHolm I think it opens gates to deep perception and abundant wisdom as the soul traverses the ages. Not to be confused with re-incarnation though ☺...

[@100monotheist-fkeroffalseg8]

Do you have any spotify account for oud?

[@FilipHolm]

Look up "Filip Holm" on Spotify. It isn't just dedicated to Oud, but there us an album called "Division", which is all Oud recordings

[@el_raqa]

🍻🍻🍻🎶💕

[@TehMuNjA]

8:00 two full octaves, right?

[@FilipHolm]

Yep! Mistake on my part!

[@Zeagods-CyberShadow]

I love the Oud but it also leave marks on you forarm and thigh

[@touhoulinuxfan8399]

8:39 it scares me how this lute looks like a japanese biwa, even it's "sad eyes". And the painting doesn't even look japanese. Wow!

[@alexgabriel5423]

LAVTA is the Name of the lute of Constantinople...sorry for the earlier given name.

[@BcClarity]

Quarter *tones not quarter notes. Minor correction you mixed frequency with meter.

[@FilipHolm]

You're right! Thanks!

[@baselkhadem3441]

your Arabic pronounce is very impressive.

[@ultrasignificantfootnote3378]

I have interacted with hundreds of Muslims here on YT that will claim that in their religion of Islam the use of musical instruments is absolutly prohibited.

[@FilipHolm]

Well, that is a huge oversimplification and does not represent all of the Islamic religion and its relationship with music.

[@hdd1977m7]

But I speak Arabic and pud doesn’t exactly mean wood

[@royghosn18]

Isn’t this the religion guy?

[@a.s2205]

One thing about "golden age of Islam" it's funny that these barbarians who lived in tents invaded one of the biggest cultures and empires at the time and claimed all the achievement of that culture as islamic golden age

[@broximus4550]

I really can't help but feel bad for your worldview, you intentionally ignore so much beauty/culture/history that is central to the world just out of spite and hate.

[@a.s2205]

@@broximus4550 please prove one thing I said that isn't true. How can you invade a population and then take credit for their culture and inventions?

[@broximus4550]

@@a.s2205 Your whole premise is wrong, who invaded, took inventions and from who they took it. You know not All Arabs are Muslims and not All Muslims are Arabs? Yet most of these inventions were invented and cuitures/Arts came about and thrived under Islamic/Arab Empires. So related to this video, the Maqams and jins are an Arabic Music Theory... The Idea that desert dwelling people from Arabia had such impact on Culture/literature/Art/Religion/Science that their influence/Civilization went from Indonesia to Spain...Is nothing short of Amazing and awesome feat.

[@a.s2205]

@@broximus4550 lmao first of all, how is the premise untrue? Persia already had all these sciences, arts, architecture. Muslims lived in tents with no education, science. They drank camel urine as medicine and wiped their ass with 3 rocks. What are you talking about? How do you invade someone and take credit for what was already in that region? Makes no sense.

[@a.s2205]

@@broximus4550 nothing about music theory is Arabic. It already existed in Mesopotamia, Greek and Persian empires. Arabs gave it an Arabic name so now it's Arabic. 🤣🤣 Arabs gave a name to barbat, now it's Arabic oud. You don't think it's pathetic?

[@Ohad_musical_instruments]

🇮🇱🇮🇱👍👍

[@eg2516]

I second what @edy819, you got my permission to go and teach :)

[@TheLaceySocks]

Thanks!

[@FilipHolm]

Thank you so much!

[@user-jg3gf7uk3r]

❤