arab 'ud players

Abdelaziz Abdellah (Allah)
Known by his nickname "Alla", is a self-taught Algerian 'ud player who developed his own style of improvisation and became known as an unusually creative virtuoso who improvised in a very different style of 'ud than other players.

Abdel Gadir Salim
His concerts and record releases abroad have made him one of the most familiar Sudanese singers for western listeners. He was born in Dilling, in the Nuba Mountains, and studied European and Arab music at the Institute of Music and Drama. He shifted in 1971 from composing "Khartoum City Songs" to folk songs, and had a hit with "Umri Ma Bansa" (I'll never forget you), which is still part of his set. His home area of Kordofan and Darfur has its own unique rhythms and beautiful songs, with which he has incorporated in his own music.

Abid El Bahri
Born in Morocco and moved to Belgium with his family. He studied at the Brussels Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts. As fo 'ud, he is self-taught. His first group Ahl-el-Hijra took him to a variety of venues in Belgium, but it is with Weshm that he established his reputation, both in purely Arab as in poly-cultural projects.

Adel Salameh
Adel is Palestinian, born in Nablus in 1966. He began by teaching himself the 'ud, and then went on to study under Professor Mu'taz Mohammed Bayati at the Music Institute in Baghdad. He made several recordings with various world musicians, including his own for solo 'ud.

Adib Sha'ban
Adib is a Lebanese 'ud player and maker. Adib plays classical 'ud and is player of Arab maqamat.

Ahmad Al-Khatib
Ahmad Al Khatib was born in the Jordanian town of Irbid. He began studying the 'ud at an early age. He participated in numerous performances as a solo musician and also in the Yarmouk University Oriental Ensemble.

Ahmed Mukhtar
Ahmed Mukhtar has studied 'ud in Iraq, Syria and the UK. Most notably, he studied under Munir Bashir in Iraq. He is now resident in the UK where he teaches and performs regularly.

Alaa Azzam

Ali Al-Asi
Ali is a Lebanese living in Germany. He is a performer with Takht Ensemble developed 1997 collaboratively with the Tarab Ensemble.

Ali Ashk'uder
Ali Ashk'uder was born in 1968 in Bayanon, Syria. He is a multi-instrumentalist who studied music between 1980 and 1989. He moved to Holland in 1993.

Anouar Brahem
Anouar Brahem was born in 1957 in Halfaouine in the City of Tunis. Encouraged by his father, he began his studies of the 'ud at the age of 10 at the Tunis National Conservatory of Music, where his principal teacher was the 'ud player Ali Sriti.

Charbel Rouhana
Charbel is a Lebanese 'ud player born in 1965 in Aamchit (a town north of Beirut). He pursued studied music at the Holy-Spirit University in Kaslib and obtained his Diploma in 'ud performance in 1986 and his M.A. in Musicology in 1987.

Dhafer Youssef
Born in Teboulba, Tunisia in 1967, composer, singer and 'ud player Dhafer Youssef has been living and working in Vienna, Austria since 1990.

Eliea Khouri
Eliea is a performer with Nawazen, a Jordanian musical group.

Farhan Sabbagh
Born in Syria in 1948, and he first became acquainted with music through Sufi brotherhoods. He took up the 'ud and became a student at the Institute of Instrumental Techniques in Damascus. In 1972, he was to become director of the same Institute. He lectured and performed throughout the Arab world and Europe, and wrote a doctoral dissertation in West Berlin, where he settled.
http://www.geocities.com/risheng99/artists/sabbagh.html

Farid al-Atrache
An exceptionally gifted 'ud player and composer whose technique is perhaps the most developed of all 'udists of his generation. Throughout his vocal and instrumental compositions, irtijalat, and taqasim, he introduced maqam in such unique, original and innovative way. Although he grew up and worked in Egypt, he kept true to his Syrian roots and articulated these influences in his music. Despite the fact that he often highlighted virtuosity and technique as apposed to calmness of the old school, he remained intact with regards to the tradition of maqam, and brought 'ud soloing to a much wider audience. His tarab penetrations throughout his vocal repertoire were particularly elite and superior. His favorite maqam is Baqati, both in composition, irtijal, and taqasim, and it's the maqam that bares much of his music.

Fawzi Sayeb
Fawzi Sayeb is of Tunisian origin. He began his career as an agricultural engineer, before devoting himself to the 'ud full time. He is entirely self-taught.

Fawzy al-Aiedy
He studied at the Music Institute of Baghdad the oriental traditional music: lute and classic oboe. He settled in France in 1971.

George Abyad
George Abyad is a Lebanese 'udist, classical repertoire interpreter, executor, and bandleader who worked with top Arab musicians.

George Ziadeh
George was born in Birzeit, Palestine, and pursued music from a young age. He moved to the United States in 1986 and studied 'ud with Simon Shaheen, a Palestinian 'ud and violin player, and classical singing and voice with Youssef Kassab. George's knowledge in maqam and Arab classical repertoire in tremendous, and considered an authority in this field and is also acquiring wide recognition.

Georges Kazazian
An 'ud player grounded in both classical and popular Egyptian instrumental music. He was featured in the CD Nafass.

Habib Guerroumi
Born in Marseilles in 1958. He began his training in Arabo-Andalusian music at the age of eight with the Algerian association al-Djazaizia al-Mossilia, directed by Benmerabet Ali. In 1995, he recorded his first CD with Playasound (PS 65144 - Arabo-Andalousian music).

Haytham Safia
A Palestinian born in Kufur Yasif in 1980. He started to playing the 'ud at an early age. In 2001 he made his debut as a performer in The Netherlands, where he acquired a fixed position in the musical ensemble accompanying the Galili Dance Group, they toured in several countries in Europe. In 2002 he graduated with distinction from the Academy of Music and Dance in Jerusalem. He was recently featured with as soloist with the Holland Symphonia in the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. In essence, Haytham is a Classical Arab musician, however, he also played with several groups presenting various musical traditions such as The Balkan Ensemble. He established his own group, The Haytham Safia Quartet, which consists of four musicians from different backgrounds, a Dutch, German , and an African. The group performs Haytham's original compositions that encompass both his performance experience and academic training, while still true to his Arab roots. Click here for the cover of the Quartet. Haytham's latest work has been recently released on CD, it's titled ‘Tawasol.’

Husain Sabsaby
Husain was born in Syria, from a well-known family of musicians. His father gave him his first lesson in music at the age of six. Husain joined the Arab institute of music located at Halab.

Hussein el-Masry
Born in Cairo, Egypt in 1952, He is a composer, 'ud player, and singer. He studied at the Institute of Arab Music in Cairo. In 1977 he moved to France.

Idriss (Drees) El Maloumi
Idriss is a Moroccan 'ud player who incorporates tribal, Berber, Eastern and Western elements in his music. http://www.maroctunes.com/maloumi.htm

Issa Boulos
At an early age, this Palestinian ud player, composer and teacher showed extraordinary talent in singing Arab classical repertoire. Now based in Chicago, Issa has a deep theory of Arab music, he blends tradition, innovation and forges important musical links between the Arab world and the West, from traditional Arab compositions and arrangements to jazz, film, orchestral and theatre scores. He's become a major local proponent of Arabic music and continues to be involved with several different projects: his quartet's original music straddles Arabic music and jazz, the al-Sharq Ensemble focuses on a traditional Arabic folk and art music; and this year, he founded the Arab Classical Musical Society.

Jamil Bashir
Jamil Bashir was born in Mosul, Iraq in 1921.He started his 'ud studies at age six. He later enrolled in the Iraqi Music Institute that opened in 1936 and studied 'ud with Sherif Muheddin Haydar (Serif Muhiddin Targan, 1892-1967), and violin with Sando Alio. Jamil was greatly influenced by his teachers and pursued a modern approach to Arab 'udism when compared to traditional styles of Egypt and Syria. He wrote a two-volume 'ud method, and died in London on 27th September 1977.

Kamel Ferjani
He studied the art of the 'ud in Tunisia, and later obtained a PhD from the University of Strasbourg, France. He is the founder and the director of the Tunisian orchestra "Ensemble de Musique Méditerranéenne.' At present, Kamel Ferjani is the Head of the Studies and Training Department in the Higher Institute for Music of Tunis where he teaches the 'ud.

Khaled Jubran
Khaled is a Palestinian musician born in Rama village to a father who is also a musician and a craftsman of Arab musical instruments. He studied composition and theory at the Rubin Academy of Music in Jerusalem and was one of the founders and developers of the National Palestinian Conservatory of Music in Ramallah and its branches in Jerusalem and Bethlehem and served as head of the department of Arab music and theory. He plays 'ud and buzuq. Khaled founded al-Urmawi, a center for Arab music in Jerusalem.

Khamis el-Fino
Khamis was born in al-Rami, Alexandria, Egypt. He graduated from the Cairo Conservatory and has taught at conservatories in Cairo and Alexandria.

Marcel Khalife
Marcel is a Lebanese born in 1950 in Amchit, Lebanon. He studied 'ud at the National Academy of Music in Beirut and taught at the National Conservatory of Music and other institutions from 1970 to 1975. During that time, he performed solo concerts throughout the Middle East, North Africa, Europe, and North America. His original compositions and songs are widely known and acknowledged throughout the world. He is considered one of the most respected musical figures of his generation.

Majed 'Ajamia, 'ud
Majed studied 'ud in Jerusalem with William Hagopian. He moved to the United States in 1990 and has been musically active since then. His experience extends from the performance of traditional repertoire of the Middle East, to research of Arab influences on various Western musical styles. As a bandleader, Majed has produced many concerts and Middle Eastern educational programs. His musicality and research skills made him one of the most promising young Palestinian musicians of his generation.

Mamdouh Al Jabali
Born in Wad Medani, central Sudan, in 1943, he began learning the 'ud at the age of 11, taught by the well-known professor Mohammed Fadl. He wrote his first composition at the age of 20, and went on to become honorary president of the Sudanese Artists' and Composers' Society. He has a majestic voice, and superb 'ud playing and compositions. This near-blind and reclusive old revolutionary is considered a folk-hero for his role in provoking the military dictatorship of Ja'far al-Numairi. He was jailed by al-Numairi's regime in the 1970s, and moved to Cairo after 1989 to avoid similar run-ins with the National Islamic Front. He returned to Khartoum in 1994 and kept a low profile.

Mohammad Gomar
Mohammad is an Iraqi, born in Diala. He received his diploma of musicology from the University of Baghdad. For the past few years, he settled in Utrecht (Netherlands). Considered as the successor to the greats, and reveals his mastery of the jôza, a very difficult instrument to play. The instrument has an acid and nasal sound that is inimitable in the maqâm, and helps the singer to always find his voice in the mode, Mohammad is also an 'ud player.

Mohammed Saleh Lelo
Mohammed Saleh Abd al-Saheb Lelo was born in Iraq in 1969. He received a degree in music from the Faculty of Fine Arts, Baghdad University, with a major focus on the 'ud and qanun. He worked with most of the leading Iraqi vocalists. He is currently the principal 'ud and qanun player for the Qatar Vision Advertising and Media Production Agency.

Mohsen Subhi
Mohsen Subhi is a Palestinian composer/'ud player born in Ramallah in 1964. He wrote composed music for films, plays and television. He worked for many yearson 'ud, buzuq and percussion with various local groups. He arranged al-Funun's latest work Zagharid.
He settled in the United Satets in 2001.

Mourad Sakli
Dr. Sakli is a professor of music at the National Institute of Music in Tunisia. He is also the director of the Arab and Mediterranean Music Center of Tunisia.

Muhammad Abd al-Wahab
Egyptian composer Abd al-Wahab is one of the most influential composers of the 20th century. His works are known for having interesting melodic lines and new approaches to maqam and rhythm. Primarly, he used the 'ud as tool of composition.

Muhammad Al-Qasabgi
This renowned ud player represents an older school, and there are very few recording that we know of that are publicly accessible. His style shows a remarkable understanding and mastery of the maqam tradition which very evident in both his vocal and instrumental compositions, although they are more on the modern side.

Muhammad Qadri Dalal
He is a highly skilled musician and member of the Al-Kindi Ensemble in Aleppo, Syria. He received the highest acclaim in Syria and the near East for his solo performances on the 'ud.

Munir Bashir
Munir Bashir was born in Mosul in northern Iraq into a musical family. He studied 'ud in Baghdad and then moved to Hungary, where he gained his doctorate. He is highly respected and considred one of the most influencial and prolofic'ud players of the 20th century. Munir Bashir died in 1997.

Naseer Shamma
Naseer Shamma was born in 1963 in Kut, a village on the Tigris River in Iraq. He began studying the 'ud at the age of 12 in Baghdad, following in the footsteps of Jamil Bashir and his brother Munir. He received his diploma from the Baghdad Academy of Music in 1987. He began to teach 'ud after three years at the academy, as well as continuing his own studies. Shamma has composed music for films, plays and television. Between 1993 and 1998 he taught 'ud at the Higher Institute of Music in Tunisia, and in 1999 he took the post of Director of the Arab Center for the 'ud in Cairo. He also has a website.

Omar Bashir
Born in Budapest in 1970 and began playing the 'ud at the age of five. He was tutored by his father Munir Bashir and went on to study at the Conservatory in Baghdad. He later returned to Budapest, where he taught at the University.

Omar Metioui
Omar Metioui was born in Tangiers, Morocco in 1962. He initially studied pharmacology in Brussels, before returning to Tangiers to study solmization, Andalusian singing and 'ud at the Conservatory of Music and Dance. Between 1976 and 1980 he sang and played the 'ud with al-Arbi S-siyyar, the main Andalusian orchestra in Tangiers. He is currently the prinicipal 'ud player at the Conservatory Orchestra, and continues to perform throughout Europe and the Arab world.

Rabih Abou-Khalil
Lebanese 'ud player and composer Rabih Abou-Khalil is one of the most fascinating and consistently successful composers working at the crossroads of indigenous and experimental music. Although his 'ud skills are modest when compared to many others, he has become one of the most successful names on the international jazz scene.

Rahim al-haj
He studied the 'ud at the Institute of Music in Baghdad under Munir Bashir and Salim Abdul Kareem. He graduated from the conservatory in 1990 with a diploma in composition. At the institute, he won awards for composition. Rahim also holds a degree in Arab Literature from Mustansiriyya University in Baghdad.

Riyad al-Sunbati
Riyad al-Sunbati is an Egyptian 'ud player who belongs to the old school. There is only one recording issued by Sono Cairo of his taqasim. These represent deep understating of the aesthetics of the old school of composition and traditional Masalik Maqamiyyah. His compositions for Um Kulthum are by far the best example for his mastery of maqam and sophisticated understating, innovation and penetration.

Said Chraibi
Morroccan 'ud player and composer Said Chraibi was born in Marrakech, Morocco. He began playing 'ud at the age of 13. He is renowned as an accompanist of Arab singers, as well as a composer and a superb solo artist in his own right.

Sakher Hattar
'Ud player Sakher Musa Hattar was born in Amman in 1963 and grew up in the nearby town of Fuhais. In 1984, he obtained a diploma in Architectural engineering from the Arab Community College. Ten years later he obtained a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Music, with a major in 'ud, from Yarmouk University. He is currently the Head of Arab Music Section and 'ud Instructor at the National Music Conservatory/Noor Al Hussein Foundation of Jordan. He is awarded with the 1st prize at the International Competition for 'ud, Cairo (1993) He has participated in many local, regional and international conferences and festivals.

Salem Abdul-Karem
Salem Abdul-Karem was born in Iraq in 1953. He started studying music in 1973 at the Iraqi Institute for Musical Studies and finished in 1978. His 'ud studied were under the supervision of Palestinian composer and 'ud player Rawhi Al-Khammash.

Saliba al-Qatrib (1904-1994)
This Lebanese 'ud player, composer and singer was born in Tripoli, Lebanon, and became particularly famous around the middle of the last century. He belonged to the traditional school of Zakariyya A`hmad. He gained wide fame in Egypt, the Arab countries and Europe, and worked with the pioneers of that period such as Mohammad Abdel Wahab and Farid al-Atrash. He was an excellent singer of Muwashahat, Adwar and Qasa`id.

Samer Totah
Born in Ramallah, Palestine in1972. This Palestinian 'ud player, composer and teacher began to study 'ud with Issa Boulos at a relatively young age. He showed extraordinary talent in performing classical maqam repertoire, and later entered the National Conservatory of Palestine in Ramallah to pursue the study of the 'ud and maqam theory with Khaled Jubran. He graduated in 2000 and continued working with several groups including Sariyyat Ramallah Dance Group, al-Funun, and Nawa Ensemble. While offering classes at Birzeit University, Samer accepted a full-time faculty post at the National Conservatory of Palestine where he graduated and founded his own group and is preparing for a CD release of his own compositions. His music sustains intimate links to the maqam tradition and he continues to treat his original pieces and executions with delicacy and innovation. He is currently considered one of the best 'ud players of his generation. Both his performance and compositional styles stand uniquely and impressively forward-looking.

Samir Tahar
Samiir Tahar was born in 1940 in Mostaganem, Algeria. He came from a family of musicians, and attended the El-Masrah Essaidia School of Music, where he was taught the rudiments of traditional Arab-Andalusian singing and how to play 'ud. He then went on to study music at the Institute of Arab Folk Music in Oran, where he was introduced to the art of taqasim. He has played 'ud at music festivals in the Arab World and Europe, and given a number of lectures.

Sayyid Makkawi
He is a religiously trained sheikh who turned to music and became one of the most renowned Egyptian composers of the 20th century. He followed the path of the old school and managed to develop his own original sound.

Simon Shaheen
A Palestinian born in Tarshiha, Galilee, in 1955, Simon Shaheen grew up surrounded by music. His father, Hikmat Shaheen, was a renowned musician and a master 'ud player. Simon began learning the instrument at the age of five, and a year later began studying violin at the Conservatory for Western Classical Music. He moved to the USA in 1980 and began studying at the Manhattan School of Music and Columbia University. He performed all over the USA and Europe and considered one of the best 'ud players, interpreters and executors worldwide.

Taiseer Elias
A Palestinian 'ud player born in Shfa'amr, Galilee, Taiseer Elias is considered one of the finest 'ud players in the Middle East. He is the founder of the Orchestra of Classical Arab Music in Israel, and has performed throughout the world both as a soloist and with different ensembles. He is Ziryab Trio's musical director.

Tarik Banzi (al-Panzi)
He was born in Tetuan, Morocco and grew up immersed in the Andalusian tradition. He composes and performs music for cinema, theater and television. He is also the artistic director as well as the co-founder, composer and performer of Al-Andalus.

Wasif Jawharieh
Wasif was born in Jerusalem in 1887 and received his musical education in the company of Jerusalem's top 'ud players and composers, and in 1915, he had the opportunity to learn at the hands of the Syrian composer and 'ud player Omar al-Batsh. Al-Batsh taught him how to perform the classical Muwashsha`hat. His music tells us many things about an unknown aspect of Palestinian life prior to the loss of Palestine in 1948.

Yazid Fentazi
Yazid is an Algerian 'ud player and composer. He is a prominent musician in the Algerian music scene, backing not only but also Chaba Fadela and Cheb Sahraoui, touring with the Turqui Brothers in Morocco and Fateh Ben Lala.

Zafer Tawil
Tawil is an accomplished Palestinian musician based in New York City, who has played with a wide range of musicians from pop star Sting to numerous Arab music virtuosos to avant-garde composer/performer Elliot Sharpe, Simon Shaheen, George Ziadeh, Bassam Saba, Sting, Chad Mami and many others.

Ziad Rajab
He was born in Aleppo, Syria and was given his first 'ud lessons by his mother, before going to study with Bahchad Durmash. He was also a member of an orchestra that performed Arab classical music, and from 1984 to 1988 he taught 'ud at the National Conservatory of Aleppo and in private music schools. In 1988 he moved to Greece, where he currently lives, and since 1994 he has made his own 'uds. Between 1994 and 1996 he undertook a series of concerts and recitals to spread the knowledge of Syrian music, and he has since performed and recorded with numerous prominent Greek musicians.