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Brian Prunka
Oud Junkie
Posts: 2918
Registered: 1-30-2004
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Member Is Offline
Mood: Stringish
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fernandraynaud
Oud Junkie
Posts: 1865
Registered: 7-25-2009
Location: San Francisco, California
Member Is Offline
Mood: m'Oudy
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Really beautiful. The neck looks like a snake skin of sorts!
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Aymara
Oud Junkie
Posts: 1162
Registered: 10-14-2009
Location: Germany / Ruhr Region
Member Is Offline
Mood: No Mood
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Haha, what do you think, how my 12-string Yamaha feels? 
That's why I use Thomastik strings ... they are thin and sing.
Quote: Originally posted by Brian Prunka  |
Najib Shaheen told me that his father had had the soundhole made smaller ages ago in order to improve the sound. I am not sure what the exact
improvement would have been, but since soundhole size relates to the bass response I imagine that that was a factor.
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The bowl is very deep, ...
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It seems they tried to reduce bass responce and/or overall echo.
Greetings from Germany
Chris
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Dr. Oud
Oud Junkie
Posts: 1370
Registered: 12-18-2002
Location: Sacramento, CA, USA
Member Is Offline
Mood: better than before
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| Quote: Originally posted by fernandraynaud | | .... if the fingerboard is not ebony, for myself I would ask if he can coat it with something hard like Tru-Oil as used on rifle stocks so it resists
wear from the wound strings... |
fernandraynaud is correct about most of his advice except for this. Tru-Oil is an oil based varnish that remains flexible so it is excellent for
finishing the back and neck. It will not make the fingerboard harder or resist wear, however. What you want to use on any fingerboard is Tung Oil, 2
coats. It will harden the fingerboard, but do not use it anywhere else.
As for the face finish issue, I didn't see any mention of an egg white wash. This will seal the face a bit and has no effect on the sound. As for
shellac, brushed or Frech polished, it will certainly give more protection, and may not noticeably diminish the sound, but may affect the development
of the tone quality of the oud over time. The characteristic sound of an old out is partly due to it's extremely dry aged soundboard, and any finish
will diminish this process.
I believe the reason there are few old ouds is partly cultural and partly due to the fragile structure of the oud. People didn't seem to value an old
oud, rather they were discarded for a new one. I've been witness to the destruction of ouds by their owners who wanted to keep them "clean", so they
sanded the face to remove dirt and stains until the face was gone, sadly. I expect this occurred regularly to account for the scarcity of old ouds.
The fragile structure of the oud gives it its characteristic tone quality, but makes it more easily damaged. Instead of repairing the damage, it seems
they were discarded for a shiny new one.
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jdowning
Oud Junkie
Posts: 3485
Registered: 8-2-2006
Location: Ontario, Canada
Member Is Offline
Mood: No Mood
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It is interesting that some lutes - just as fragile as ouds - have survived for centuries (not often in their original condition) probably because
they were either costly presentation instruments or otherwise highly regarded acoustically (or both) and yet the lute went out of fashion by the mid
18th C.
Discarding of old ouds for new mentioned by Richard would seem to be reflected in the Arabian Nights tale of Al-Addin and the magic lamp - 'new lamps
for old' being offered?
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