How to Tune Oud Instrument Easily

The oud instrument, which is a fretless instrument, is in the category of stringed and plectrum instruments. The lute, which has a sound range of 3 octaves, is used as 11 or 12 strings. There are 6 groups of wires in wire groupings, and the top bam wire is 11 wires when used as a single, and 12 wires when used in pairs. The bam string at the top is tuned to the thick la sound called coarse dugah in Turkish Music and is generally used for brewing purposes.

The body of the oud instrument has a structure resembling a half pear. For the body part, woods such as mahogany and hornbeam, which are hardwoods, are preferred. The dorsal side, which is the back, consists of 20 to 21 equal parts called leaves. The augers on the handle are arranged backwards. Its plectrum is longer than other plectrum instruments and is held between the fingers. 

Today, some oud instrument makers, the parts of which are glued without gaps suitable for the boat curve, or they are used as monolithic aluminum in the same form, are wide in the middle, pointed at the ends, and since the process starts from the middle axis, they always turn an odd number of slices, usually mahogany, walnut, paduk, vengi, butterfly, rarely from plum or olive tree.

How to tune oud instrument easily

Tuning methods of the oud instrument

There are four types of tuning for the strings of the oud instrument. Respectively;

1) Oud, which traditionally has a 5-string structure, is tuned from thin notes to thick; are made in the form of left, re, la, mi, re, respectively.
2) On the contemporary six-string oud instrument (in the same order): sol-re-la-mi-re-la (Targan sometimes used this thick la as a bold Sol depending on the piece he will be playing);
3) The change made by Bacanos is; sol-re-la-mi-si-fa;
4) In Cinuçen Tanrıkorur's tuning system, is left-re-la-mi-si- the thickest "mi"

How often should the oud be tuned

While playing the oud musical instrument, hands must be clean. This will keep the chest board clean and increase wire life. Changing the strings of the oud musical instrument every six months will contribute to keeping the sound quality at a high level. If you are not going to play the oud instrument for a long time, leaving the strings loose (about 1 voice) is a good method.

Another issue to be considered is the slightest error in the wire winding or poor material quality, causing irregularity in the calibration of the wire and is the most important reason for the sizzling on the keyboard.

The measurement of the wire thicknesses of the oud should be made with a precision instrument called a micrometer. Oud should be carried with bond type bags or fiberglass bags manufactured today. However, it should not be stored in such bags for a long time. It should be kept away from closed and hot environments, especially in summer.

Should I buy a tuner for oud tuning

You don't need to buy a tuner to tune an oud instrument. Buying a tuner would have been a good choice in the past, but today, many people try to solve a problem by downloading an app to tune their musical instruments. At this point, you can make the necessary adjustments by downloading a suitable tuning program from your phone to tune your oud instrument.

You can also like: All About Oud Instrument

How does an oud instrument sound?

The sound formation and the formation of the sound in the oud musical instrument are realized by the transmission of the vibration energy, which is the result of the movement given to the strings by the blow of the plectrum, on the soundboard.