Remote Oud Session Player

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Analog. It just feels more real to me.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Just make things, and learn from your mistakes. Every track you finish teaches you more than any tutorial.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Improvisation. I love the freedom of taqasim, finding a phrase in the moment that fits the mood of a song.

Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?

A: My oud, my Neumann microphone, my studio headphones, my laptop and my audio interface.

Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?

A: I've been playing the oud for 10 years. Along the way I also learned recording, mixing and video production, and today I record oud from my own treated home studio.

Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?

A: Basim Hawar. Working with him is a real joy, and his musicianship always brings out the best in a session.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Playing. Performing on the oud is at the heart of everything I do: expressive phrasing, feel and taqasim come first, and my engineering skills make sure that performance is captured cleanly.

Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?

A: "Al-Tariq Al-Akhar" (The Other Path), my own oud work. I'm proud of it because it reflects my own voice on the oud: modern, calm and spiritual.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: A meditative oud piece built around slow, spiritual phrases and space.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Modern, calm and spiritual. I like the oud to breathe: clear phrasing, space between notes, and a meditative feel, even when it sits inside a contemporary production.

Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?

A: Saad Mahmoud Jawad, Basim Hawar, Mustafa Zayer, Kioomars Musayyebi and Luca Rossi.

Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?

A: Clean, mix-ready recordings, delivered on time, with clear communication from the first message to the final file.

Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

A: "Can you play in a Western key without quarter tones?" Yes. I play comfortably in standard major and minor keys, and I adapt the phrasing so the oud fits the song naturally.

Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?

A: That the oud only works in traditional Arabic music. It can sit beautifully in pop, hip-hop, electronic and film music, as long as the part is written to serve the song.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: What is the BPM and key? Is the song in a Western key or a maqam? Do you have a melody you want played, or would you like me to write the oud part? Where in the song should the oud sit, and do you want it upfront or as a background texture? Any reference tracks?

Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

A: Send a demo and references before ordering. The clearer the brief (where the oud plays, what mood, what style), the faster and better the result. Also check that the player can work in your song's key and tuning; I'm happy to confirm that before we start.

Q: What type of music do you usually work on?

A: Anything that needs an Eastern color: pop, hip-hop, electronic and chill tracks, as well as cinematic, film and game music. I also play traditional Arabic music and taqasim.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: A real, expressive oud instead of a sampled one. I write lines that serve the song, whether that means a subtle texture under the vocal or a memorable hook, and I can play in Western major/minor keys or in traditional Arabic maqamat with quarter tones.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: 1. You send your demo, BPM, key and a couple of reference tracks. 2. We agree on the part: where the oud plays, how long, and whether you want written parts or my own lines. 3. I record several takes over your demo. 4. I deliver 24-bit WAV stems aligned to bar 1, ready to drop into your session. 5. Revisions if needed.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: An acoustically treated home studio with a Neumann microphone, a Universal Audio Apollo Twin X Quad interface and Logic Pro. The room is treated with acoustic panels, so the oud sounds natural and clean, without room problems baked into the recording.

Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.

A: Recording authentic oud parts for producers and artists who want a genuine Middle Eastern color in their tracks: intros, hooks, full oud tracks and taqasim (improvised oud passages), delivered as mix-ready stems.