• Roosebeck Turkish Oud in Walnut
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Oud

Roosebeck Turkish Oud, Walnut and Lacewood with Gig Bag

$609
$609
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6 Courses / 11 Strings Fretless Walnut & Lacewood Bowl Spruce Top 3 Soundholes

Ideal for: Turkish and Mediterranean music players, fretless instrument enthusiasts, and anyone studying makam-based traditions

The teardrop oud of the Turkish and Mediterranean tradition.

The oud is one of the oldest stringed instruments still in widespread use, and the Turkish oud is its brighter, higher-tuned voice. This Roosebeck Turkish Oud has a classic teardrop bowl built from 23 walnut and lacewood staves in a satin finish, an unfinished spruce soundboard with three goatskin rosettes, and a fretless neck that lets you slide freely between makam intervals. Eleven strings in six courses give you the full Turkish range, powerful and resonant across more than three octaves.

Bright, Powerful Turkish Voice

Eleven strings across six courses, nylon on the upper three courses and wound on the lower three, produce the powerful, resonant voice the Turkish oud is known for. The unfinished spruce soundboard responds sharply to risha (pick) attack, and the shorter 23-inch scale, tuned higher than the Arabic oud, gives the instrument a brighter, more penetrating tone. Range covers more than three full octaves.

Turkish oud vs Arabic oud: The Turkish oud is tuned higher and built on a slightly shorter scale, which lifts its voice into a brighter, more cutting register. The Arabic oud sits lower and warmer. Both are fretless, and repertoire moves between them, but the Turkish tuning is what gives this instrument its edge.

Staved Teardrop Bowl in Walnut and Lacewood

The teardrop bowl is built from 23 staves of walnut and lacewood in a satin finish, walnut for warmth and depth of grain, lacewood for its bright, figured character. The neck is lacewood with a walnut fingerboard, and the eleven tuning pegs are turned from satinwood.

The fixed bridge is a walnut mustache with a lacewood top, the traditional oud shape set against the light spruce. Decorative detail varies from the photographs.

The soundboard is left unfinished, with one large central soundhole and two smaller ones below, each fitted with a carved goatskin rosette.

Why an unfinished soundboard: Leaving the spruce top unfinished lets it vibrate more freely, which suits the open, projecting tone the Turkish oud is built for. The three goatskin rosettes are both a decorative tradition and part of how the top breathes.

Fretless and Tuned for Makam

Two suggested Turkish tunings, low to high, are E A B E A D or E F# B E A D, with a range of E2 to A5. The fretless neck is essential to oud playing; without frets you can play the microtonal intervals, the commas and quarter tones, that define makam-based music.

The bone nut sits on a neck that measures 1.5 inches at the nut and widens to 2.125 inches at the body joint, with the strings spanning 3.125 inches at the bridge.

New to fretless playing? A fretless neck rewards practice with intonation. Most players spend their first weeks with a tuner nearby until ear and fingers learn the positions. The wide neck gives your hand room to find the makam intervals cleanly.

Technical Specifications

Courses 6 (11 strings: courses 1-3 nylon, 4-6 wound)
Body / Bowl Walnut and lacewood, 23 staves, satin finish
Soundboard Unfinished spruce with three goatskin-rosette soundholes
Neck Lacewood with walnut fingerboard, fretless
Tuning Pegs 11, satinwood
Bridge Walnut mustache with lacewood top
Nut Bone
Neck Width 1.5 inches at nut, 2.125 inches at body joint
String Spread at Bridge 3.125 inches
Scale Length 23 inches
Recommended Tuning E A B E A D or E F# B E A D (low to high), range E2-A5
Body Dimensions 19 inches L × 13.75 inches W × 7.75 inches H
Overall Length 33 inches
Weight 2.05 lbs
String care: Strings carry no warranty, and makers suggest replacing them every 3 to 4 months. Keep a spare set on hand, wipe the strings with a dry cloth after playing, and plan on fresh strings if the instrument has been stored for a while.

What's in the Box

Every Turkish Oud ships set up, tune before your first play.

Padded Gig Bag Oud Pick (Risha) Owner's Guide (PDF)

Have questions about this instrument? Contact us or browse all Ouds.

Questions about this instrument?
Talk to our team or browse all ouds.
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Roosebeck Turkish Oud, Walnut and Lacewood with Gig Bag

$609
$609
Tradition you can feel, craftsmanship you can hear.
Solid tonewoods
Cured, cut, and chosen for sound.
Voiced by hand
Fretboards dressed, action set, bridges fit by our luthiers.
Made to be played
Built for working musicians, designed to sound better the more you play it.
Since 1973
Five decades of building instruments that last generations.