Mike's Oud Forums

the boring exercise thread

littleseb - 1-26-2012 at 03:14 AM

hi all,

i thought it would be a good idea to have a thread dedicated to exercises and technique practices. i always found it useful when people posted exercises, but they are sometimes a bit difficult to find as there is no dedicated section for them.

so:

this is the thread to post your risha and left-hand exercises and to give and receive feedback, hints and tips!

seb

charlie oud - 1-26-2012 at 05:08 AM

Left hand exercise below. Purpose to address pressing too hard, a very common problem which results in plonky playing and poor vibrato and poor general articulation.

1) choosing any maqam place your left hand finger on the string of a chosen note BUT DO NOT PRESS YET

2) strike the muted note regularly to a steady beat.

3) gradually and slowly start to press until the note sounds. Do not press any harder when the note sounds.

4) you will realise how little pressure is reqired to sound the note and you NEVER need to press harder than this.

5) repeat with other fingers and other notes.

6) Now play some music this way until pressing lightly becomes a habit.

littleseb - 1-26-2012 at 05:13 AM

Quote: Originally posted by charlie oud  
Left hand exercise below. Purpose to address pressing too hard, a very common problem which results in plonky playing and poor vibrato and poor general articulation.

1) choosing any maqam place your left hand finger on the string of a chosen note BUT DO NOT PRESS YET

2) strike the muted note regularly to a steady beat.

3) gradually and slowly start to press until the note sounds. Do not press any harder when the note sounds.

4) you will realise how little pressure is reqired to sound the note and you NEVER need to press harder than this.

5) repeat with other fingers and other notes.

6) Now play some music this way until pressing lightly becomes a habit.

:cool:
very good start to this thread!

Mehran - 1-26-2012 at 05:20 AM

Great Idea for a thread.

Could I add something as well.

I was wondering if anybody who has been lucky enough to receive lessons from an actual oud teacher to be kind enough to describe their lessons.

For example what was the lesson format (10 mins scales, 10 min drills etc) and the specific drills/practice prescribed.

I find their is a substantial amount of information on the oud on the internet now (i.e. the jamil oud books and youtube).

However sometimes it can be difficult to know what to focus on to develop well. A good practice regimen may help those of us without teachers.

Maybe we also need a dedicated subcategory in the forum specifically for techniques and practice? This would address the problem of finding them instead of having to sift through the "ouds, ouds ouds" and "advice, tips, & questions" rooms.

Mehran

charlie oud - 1-26-2012 at 05:23 AM

Thank you Seb:)

littleseb - 1-26-2012 at 05:27 AM

one urus posted on another thread which i thought was quite neat:

urus - 1-26-2012 at 05:43 AM

yep. a good exercise. especially if you try playing it in different positions. it works for me, at least)
i also found the 2nd part (allegro) of Haydar's Caprice to be a good training exercise, too.

littleseb - 1-26-2012 at 05:48 AM

Quote: Originally posted by urus  
i also found the 2nd part (allegro) of Haydar's Caprice to be a good training exercise, too.

could you post the scores, please?

urus - 1-26-2012 at 07:10 AM

http://www.4shared.com/office/dlqwjvmc/Caprice-Muhyi-al-Din-Haydar....

urus - 1-26-2012 at 07:12 AM

and of course, the exercises in Bashir's book are wonderful.
(look for the scores at the forum or Reda Aouad's site, http://www.redaaouad.com)

Jono Oud N.Z - 1-26-2012 at 01:42 PM

This is a very good idea!:)
Very helpful, thanks littleseb.

mavrothis - 1-26-2012 at 02:00 PM

Hi,

This link might be helpful (I also find the Kapris by S M Targan a great workout):

http://oudcafe.com/exercises.htm

The ornamentation exercises section isn't completed yet, but maybe someday!

Take care,

Mavrothi

littleseb - 1-26-2012 at 02:07 PM

great everybody, this is exactly how i imagined this thread. keep 'em coming! :cool:

littleseb - 1-27-2012 at 01:31 PM

one of fadel's from a long time ago. makes my fingers hurt good and proper!

Ararat66 - 1-28-2012 at 04:32 AM

Mav

Some of us check quite regularly to see if your 'ornamentation' section is complete :airguitar: ... you have all the components there and a little vid slow medium and fast for each is probably all that's needed. (I know all this takes longer than it seems !!)

:)

Cheers

Leon

littleseb - 2-3-2012 at 10:53 AM

15 oud exercises


hi

tareq al jundi

http://youtu.be/B480Uk5aN2M

http://youtu.be/yHyJz7FoeE4

http://www.4shared.com/zip/zz__TOc7/Oud_Exercises.html

mavrothis - 2-3-2012 at 11:00 AM

Hi Leon,

Ever since becoming a dad time is harder to come by, but let's see if I can get back in gear with the Oud Cafe these days.

I will try to finish and upload some more makam lessons, along with completing (and most likely improving) the ornamentation exercises page.

The site probably needs an overall update as far looks go too, right? Let's see what I can do about that.

Thanks,

m

Ararat66 - 2-3-2012 at 11:50 AM

Hi Mav

Congrats on being a dad, brilliant ... now you know why I need to practice :) It's a fantastic thing being a parent ... they grow up quick!! If you update oud cafe I'll be gratefull ... and impressed.

Cheers

Leon

littleseb - 2-10-2012 at 04:34 AM

http://www.hakanemreziyagil.com.tr/?&Bid=1069166&/Lesson-1-...

http://www.hakanemreziyagil.com.tr/?&Bid=1069178&/Lesson-2-...

http://www.hakanemreziyagil.com.tr/?&Bid=1069233&/Lesson-3-...

http://www.hakanemreziyagil.com.tr/?&Syf=15&cat_id=9&ba...

http://www.hakanemreziyagil.com.tr/?&Syf=15&cat_id=10&b...

charlie oud - 2-10-2012 at 08:28 AM

Nice selection Seb thanks. I think we should point out this is mainly the Turkish way when moving from one string to another i.e. alternating down and up strokes when changing string.
The Arabic way is always a down stroke when changing string or at least thats what many say. Each to their own I say.