Mada Mix: 5 progressive oud players working now
 
 
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There is some uncertainty as to when exactly the oud emerged. Some say its European relative, the lute, was first seen during the Bronze Age in Mesopotamia (now Iraq). Others believe an earlier, four-course version of the oud was used in the Arab region around 1,500 years ago.

Either way, the oud is anchored in ancient traditions. And it can feel like it is trapped within them, despite the past century of modernization by Mohamed Abdel Wahab, Sayed Darwish, Farid al-Atrash and a handful of others.

I spent a week asking people what they visualize when they think of an oud player. For the most part, their responses referred to the above-mentioned musicians. When asked about the oud nowadays, most responded with similar answers, which can be summed up by a melancholy man playing melodramatic classical music.

Artists argue that the oud is actually as versatile as the guitar or violin. Its pear-shaped body makes it warmer than the former, and like the latter it is fretless, giving the musician freedom to slide across the fingerboard and play microtones, sometimes referred to as “quarter-tones.”

But having recently come across a clip of Syrian oud player Atrash shredding the pear-shaped, fretless string instrument with rapid, concise notes, I fell into a sort of panic over its future. If it’s so versatile, why does it often sound the same now? How can it progress when arguably its greatest artists died almost a century ago? And why is it, until this day, usually represented by a sad man playing even sadder music? Or even worse, by uber-cheesy Lebanese musician Marcel Khalifa.  

After digging a bit, I found some reassurance about the oud’s future in a large handful of very progressive Arab musicians. Below is a brief blurb and video on five progressive oud players you should listen to if you also worry about the future of what might be the most important instrument in Arab world. Because it’s difficult to choose, I added a list of five more at the end.

Born in 1963 and the daughter of Elias Jubran, a Palestinian instrument maker, Kamilya Jubran is often accredited with inspiring a new style of Arabic song, charged with a resistance heard through the tension in her oud and vocal style. She was lead vocalist and qanun player in the creative Palestinian ensemble Sabreen, in which she served from 1982 to 2002, in addition to her continuing impact on younger performers.

Born to Palestinian parents in Lebanon in 1982, singer-songwriter Hoda Asfour released her debut album, Jay wa Rayha (Back and Forth), in 2012. Also a student of Jubran, and a collaborator with Tamer Abu Ghazala in the band Jahar, Asfour has created a unique style by means of the electric oud. It has a distinct resemblance to a traditional oud, but the electric component is an exciting new direction for the ancient instrument. There is no telling the boundless possibilities of the oud’s microtones charged by distortion and effect pedals.

Known for Eka3, his Cairo-based agency, label and magazine for Arabic music, Palestinian composer and arts manager Tamer Abu Ghazala plays the oud like a rock star. I’ve never seen anyone play it so freely and aggressively. Born in 1986 in Cairo, and later returning to his family in Ramallah, Abu Ghazala studied oud, buzuq, music theory, orchestration and performance under Jubran at the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music. He lives between Egypt and Palestine.

Born in Syria to Iraqi parents in 1981, Khyam Allami’s musical origins lay in rock drumming. He later turned to the oud, and is known for having a pensive and minimalistic style of play. He’s also a student of Jubran and a member of the Palestinian Trio Jubran Show. His debut album is full of interesting ideas and directions for the oud.

Born in Teboulba, Tunisia in 1967, Dhafer Youssef is a composer, singer and oud player is known for fusing Sufi music, jazz and other world music. The six studio albums he has produced with his ensemble show his unmatched vocal style and oud playing.

More contemporary progressive oud players include Nassir Shamma, Mustafa Said, Sam Shalabi, Ziyad Sahhab and Yasmine Baramawy.

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Maha ElNabawi 
 
 

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