Mike's Oud Forums

Beautiful maple Oud by Dimitris RAPAKOUSIOUS

majnuunNavid - 9-3-2015 at 11:28 AM

https://youtu.be/C7UtVmAlKQY

This is a gorgeous Oud. Good sound too.

Jody Stecher - 9-4-2015 at 08:17 AM

Quote: Originally posted by Lute  
I dislike maple, mahogany and paddock woods on ouds, cheap and ugly!


"Paddock" is an enclosure for keeping horses. It can also mean an enclosed field. "Padauk", generally pronounced pa-dook, is a fine tone wood with sonic properties similar to Brazilian Rosewood. One of the best sounding new ouds I have heard has ribs of padauk. Its red color will not please all tastes.

I have played only a few ouds with maple ribs. They all were outstanding instruments, very lightweight, with clear melodious voices. All the instruments in the violin family have backs and sides of maple. This is true for the violins of Amati, Stradivarius, and all the makers of the Guarneri family. These instruments are universally valued for their sound and responsiveness and for their visual beauty as well. They also fetch very high prices, sometimes in the millions. Of course it is possible for something beautiful in one context to be ugly in another. I think maple oud bowls can be very lovely. Light colored bowls will not please every taste.

Mahogany is of many types and many colors, ranging from a light reddish brown to very dark brown. The grain can vary as well. Mahogany tends to give a quick response and can give forth lovely overtones that other woods give less readily. I have heard some Turkish and Armenian ouds with mahogany bowls that are of the very highest quality. These bowls were of a dark color and had a simple appearance that was modest but not cheap and certainly not ugly by any standard.

A poorly made oud will look cheap and ugly no matter what the wood. A good craftsman will take any wood and harmonize its particular beauty with the form of the oud he crafts.

I have not seen anything cheap or ugly come from the workshop of Dimitris Rapakousios. Inexpensive, yes! Cheap, no.

Brian Prunka - 9-4-2015 at 03:08 PM

I prefer walnut myself, but in the end what matters is the skill of the luthier and the sound they can get.

Maple is certainly not a cheap wood and can be more challenging to work with—it's been used in the greatest instruments for centuries.

hamed - 9-4-2015 at 05:48 PM

Hi Lute,

What if the oud's bowl was made of rosewood, but had maple strips between the ribs? Would that be acceptable to you?

Jody Stecher - 9-4-2015 at 05:54 PM

Lute, taste is always personal and you are entitled to your tastes and opinions about what is attractive. These opinions cannot be argued with.

Ikea furniture is generally made from particle board. When solid wood is used (chair dowels for instance) beech, birch and pine are the most common woods used by Ikea. The type of maple used in lutherie is much too difficult to work to be used in mass production. But even the straight grain variety of maple is much more expensive than straight grain birch.

As for mahogany, the types of mahogany used in lutherie (instrument building) are not much like the cheap green (undried) wood from Indonesia that is lately used for furniture. This will split in a dry climate. Tone wood mahogany is expensive tropical wood that has been carefully dried . It is much too expensive to build furniture. "Mahogany furniture' usually is either inexpensive hardwood or particle board with a mahogany veneer. The veneer of mahogany is used because it is a valued and lovely looking wood. It is used as a veneer because it considered to be attractive.


hamed - 9-4-2015 at 08:41 PM

Hi Lute,

What if the oud's bowl was made of rosewood, but had maple strips between the ribs? Would that be acceptable to you?

majnuunNavid - 9-4-2015 at 09:29 PM

I would like to see an Oud made out of Koa. Just for fun.

Mehran - 9-5-2015 at 03:25 AM

What's your problem dude?

Fair enough you don't like something. We all feel that way at times.

However if you don't like something and want to criticise someone else's craft, I don't want to hear it unless it's constructive.

Jody Stecher - 9-5-2015 at 07:23 AM

Quote: Originally posted by Lute  
[Quote me where in my text I '' criticise someone else's craft'' ??????????



"cheap and ugly".

The context was a response to a comment about an oud made by a specific maker. The original poster found the oud beautiful. Although your comment was made about 3 woods you disliked in general, no matter who the maker may be, the context was a specific maker. The implication is that an oud by this maker is cheap and ugly when he uses maple. Surely you can understand that this will be read as a condemnation of the maker, at least of his good taste. Surely you can understand that when you also condemn, by implication, the taste of Antonio Stradivarius as well, and condemn the taste of every violinist, violist, and cellist that ever lived, that it is likely to meet with some objection.

Jody Stecher - 9-5-2015 at 04:19 PM

I don't like certain foods and I don't think the cook who prepares them is a fool or a bad cook so I can see you don't mean to criticize the luthier. But context did make it appear that you did. Sorry about the wrong assumption.
It is true that you did not actually mention the maker.

Quote: Originally posted by Lute  
Jody Stecher, you cannot just take the words out of context! The wrong assumptions and interpretations were made! I referred to the woods only!

Furthermore, If you quote all, you will notice that I have not said any words about the maker, and here it is; ''I dislike maple, mahogany and paddock woods on ouds, cheap and ugly!''. Where did I mentioned the maker?? ''Cheap and ugly'' was referred to those woods only.

hans - 9-7-2015 at 02:03 AM

That's annoying, I ordered a bird's eye maple oud from Dimitris Rapakousios, but I am in Chengdu right now and Youtube won't work here :-{. I wonder if it is my oud?
I ordered it because I love maple ouds, especially bird's eye maple. It is unfortunately more expensive than woods like walnut

hans - 9-7-2015 at 08:46 AM

:applause: