My new Haidar Naj'm oud.

It's long overdue that I posted this, and since another semester has started, it's now or never. A few weeks ago I received my Haidar Naj'm oud I purchased from oudproff. The oud is a floating bridge style, made in Baghdad, Iraq. First and foremost, I have to say that oudproff is a wonderful seller! He is patient, doesn't hesitate to give you any information, answers all your questions, and puts a lot of personal care and devotion into the sale. Unlike my last purchase, I felt like I was dealing with a friend and not a salesman.

Now about the oud. Take note first that I've only held my first oud this summer, so I'm a real newbie here. I was very nervous upon receiving it due to the strict US import policies, but was extra relieved when I opened the case. I was immediately in awe of seeing such a beautiful piece of art.


After tuning it and finally giving it a pluck or two, I was the happiest boy on the block. I could take hours to describe the sound, but instead I'm humbly attaching a sound file I put together really quick. The timing is off and my mic is bad, but it should still give you a taste of what the oud sounds like if you ignore my horrible playing.



This oud is so much more to me than just a music instrument. I am half Iraqi, and this instrument is a means by which I am trying to explore my father's heritage, especially the music. Growing up in America for most of my life, I feel that it is my responsibility to learn and practice as much of my parents' culture as I can. Me and my father are both engineers, and when I first showed him this oud we marveled at its brilliant structural integrity. It was certainly built by a master.



When people in my family hear the oud, they always gaze with a sparkle in their eyes like they are a mile away. They usually tell me that the sound brings them back to their "good old days" back in their hometowns when they'd sit along the shore and enjoy the breeze and the music.



Since I received the oud, I have changed the strings to the Pyramid set that oudproff included in the sale. Mostly because I wanted to get the lower CFADGC tuning instead of the higher one the oud was already tuned to. Since the strings are still stretching, the sound of the oud improves a little bit every day. Honestly, I have yet to get to know this oud. I received it right when school started up again, and have very little time to play it. When the semester evens out, I should get more time and perhaps I'll get a good mic and record some actual songs. I have performance anxiety issues, I tend to mess up a lot more when I'm recording or people are listening. I'm trying to adjust this by playing in front of people as much as I can.



This thing has made me very happy, and to me is worth more than twice the money I spent on it. I have to say a million THANK YOUs to oudproff and the forum, I'd probably have never connected with this if it wasn't for you guys.

By the way, Dennis, my cat, also loves the oud!

Mabrouk to you and Dennis. Beautiful oud and I loved oudproff's rendition of Asmahan's Layalil Ons fi Vienna!

Dennis could be my cat Tommy's long lost cousin.

Hey Mike! That's an awesome cat you got there. I agree, both him and Dennis have similar faces. Hopefully he doesn't destroy all of your belongings like my Dennis does. He's a bad, bad cat. Sometimes I think he has a little evil in him...

Hello cjmichael,

I really appreciate those nice words, the feeling is mutual as I too felt dealing with a friend more than anything. Your satisfaction is absolutely mine as well.

Music is a beautiful common ground that should bring people together. This very forum (Mike's) is a true realization of this concept with its great administrators & members with their great taste to this wonderful & passionate instrument, the OUD.

Thanks also for posting my YouTube video of that oud.

I like your idea of low tuning cjmichael, nice going.

By the way, below is an audio file I recorded on your oud cjmichael prior to sending it to ya !

Sincerely,
O.P.

p.s. Is it a pre-requisite to own a cat prior to owning an oud in this forum you guys ???! I don't mind having a kitten !

Oh! I forgot I had that music clip, thanks for posting it Proff. Man, I wish I started playing oud years ago. Oh well, I guess better to start now than any time in the future.