Could you recommend any good places to visit for the oud music to hear, or, maybe, even practice/jam a bit?
Alas, I don't know a thing about the musical life in the city as well as the current situation on the streets.ahmed_eissa - 1-4-2012 at 08:19 PM
I will soon be going to Egypt as well! Through some research, I have found out that Muhammad Ali Street in Cairo is the main musical quarter of the
city. Apparently, there are a lot of street musicians there, as well as luthiers/oud makers/instrument stores.
I would also love to hear what anyone else has to offer so I can make sure to hit the best spots.urus - 1-4-2012 at 10:36 PM
Well, once I visited Muhammad Ali's, it was a few years ago, and I won't say it impressed me.
Cheap ouds and crappy darbukas was all I saw.
But maybe I just don't know the right spots or the right people.
Any good cafes / venues?spartan - 1-4-2012 at 10:59 PM
I'm not a Cairo specialist, I ve been there few years ago...
To hear some good music
The Cairo Opera is a good option
Also you can try the so called Naghib Mahfuz cafe in the Al Khalil bazaar near Al Azar.
This is a nice cafe that they play live music.
In the same district there is also a very old cafe called El Hifnawi (or something like that) , nice ambience also.
On the other side of Cairo, at El Zamalek district and near the Nile river there are also some places
There is a small Cultural Centre (but i dont remember the arabic name, it's translated like The Cycle i think)
They play good arabic music also.
I think it's better to avoid catchy tourist trap places like belly dancing venues on the river banks etc.
For buing a good oud I think a great option is Maurice Shehata.
You can contact him by phone as you arrive or take a taxi to the adress mentioned.
Personnaly I have one of his ouds, excellent sound and quality of material.
All teachers and students play the Nasseer Shamma style .
Some of the forum members here have been there, and took lessons, try the search engine for some more info.urus - 1-13-2012 at 04:47 AM
Thanks, 'cause I'm deeply interested in taking some classes in Egyptian style and studying oud.
I've already found some old posts, but they're a bit old, I think...
ps. I can't open the beit al oud site Maybe, it's the provider.urus - 1-13-2012 at 06:00 AM
the site worked again.
yep, it's in Arabic, but that's what Google Site Translate was made for.fernandraynaud - 1-14-2012 at 05:03 AM
Thanks, 'cause I'm deeply interested in taking some classes in Egyptian style and studying oud.
I've already found some old posts, but they're a bit old, I think...
ps. I can't open the beit al oud site Maybe, it's the provider.