The Arabic Oud House () is a music school for the traditional Arabic lute called

oud , image=File:oud2.jpg , image_capt=Syrian oud made by Abdo Nahat in 1921 , background= , classification= * String instruments *Necked bowl lutes , hornbostel_sachs=321.321-6 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded with a plectrum , ...

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

, Egypt. Founded by Iraqi oud player

Naseer Shamma Naseer Shamma ( ar, نصير شمه) is an Iraqi musician and oud player. He was born in 1963 in Kut, a city on the Tigris River. He began studying the oud at the age of 12 in Baghdad, following in the footsteps of Jamil and Munir Bashir. He re ...

, the school has trained a new generation of oud players and subsequently opened branches in the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Algeria and Sudan.

History

The Arabic Oud House was created in 1999 in

by Iraqi

player and composer

. Shamma, who graduated from the Baghdad Academy of Music, is a

UNESCO Artist for Peace UNESCO Artists for Peace are international celebrity advocates for the United Nations agency UNESCO. This category of advocate is intended to heighten public awareness in addition to the categories UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador UNESCO Goodwill Amba ...

and has been distinguished by other organizations like the International Red Crescent and Red Cross Societies as goodwill ambassador. It is said to be the first music school exclusively dedicated to teaching

as a solo instrument, which is a relatively recent development for the instrument. Initially based at the

Cairo Opera House The Cairo Opera House ( ar, دار الأوبرا المصرية, ''Dār el-Opera el-Masreyya''; literally "Egyptian Opera House"), part of Cairo's National Cultural Centre, is the main performing arts venue in the Egyptian capital. Home to mos ...

, it has since moved to an historical building in the old city of Cairo. Since its beginning, it has gained an international reputation as an oud school. Oud players like Yurdal Tokcan from Turkey or Saïd Chraibi from Morocco gave masterclasses there, and several oud players of a new generation graduated from it, such as

Tarek Abdallah Tarek Abdallah is an Egyptian oud player, composer and musicologist who lives in France. Biography Tarek Abdallah was born in Alexandria in 1975. He had been attracted to the oud since his childhood, after having seen a comedian playing the in ...

, Ghassan Youssef, Hazem El Shahin or Nehad El Sayyed. In the following years, the Arabic Oud House opened branches in

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the capital and second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the centre of the Abu Dhabi Metropolitan Area. ...

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...

, Baghdad,

Constantine Constantine most often refers to: * Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I *Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria Constantine may also refer to: People * Constantine (name), a masculine given name ...

and

Khartoum Khartoum or Khartum ( ; ar, الخرطوم, Al-Khurṭūm, din, Kaartuɔ̈m) is the capital of Sudan. With a population of 5,274,321, its metropolitan area is the largest in Sudan. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile, flowing n ...

. The music school in Khartoum also teaches the stringed instrument qanun and has trained craftsmen in the production of the oud. Further, it aspires to become a center for oud players all over Africa.

In literature

The novel ''Le Traître'', by Pierre Cormon, is partly set in the Arabic Oud House, where it is called 'Arabic Lute Institute'."Le traître" guide les lecteurs sur les pistes sinueuses du Moyen-Orient, ''

Tribune de Genève The ''Tribune de Genève'' (English: ''Geneva Tribune'') is a Swiss French-language, regional daily newspaper, published in Berliner format by Edipresse in Geneva. History and operations The ''Tribune de Genève'' was first published by Jame ...

'', 7 August 2010

References

External links

Official website

Official website of the Arabic Oud House in Abu DhabiYouTube channel of the Arabic Oud House in KhartoumVideo of Bait Aloud/Arabic Oud House Khartoum and Naseer Shamma at Expo Dubai 2000
Music schools in Egypt Music organisations based in Egypt Music organisations based in Algeria Music organisations based in the United Arab Emirates Music organizations based in Iraq

History

In literature

See also

References

External links