Charbel Rouhana, one of the finest ud (also spelled oud) players in Lebanon. Born in 1965 in Aamchit (a town north of Beirut), Charbel pursued his music education at the Holy-Spirit University in Kaslib and obtained his Diploma in ud instrumentation in 1986 and his M.A. in Musicology in 1987.
One of his major achievements is establishing a new methodology in playing the ud. This method was published and adopted by the National Conservatory of Music and the Faculty of Music in the Holy Spirit University-where he has been teaching ud courses since 1986 till present.
Charbel Rouhana has been performing live events since 1984, touring several countries, venues, and festivals. He also collaborated in composing musicals for choreographer Abdul Haleem Caracall’s shows: “Elissa-The Queen of Carthage” (1995), “Andalusia-Lost Glory” (1997), and “Bleilit Kamar” (1999). Winner of several national awards, Charbel also won the first prize at the Hirayama Competition in 1995 in Japan, for Best Composition entitled “Hymn of Peace”.
According to Charbel, Oriental-Arabic music is facing a renaissance period incarnated by traditional instruments, especially the ud which is ancient and always related to traditional singing and classical instrumental Arabic music. Charbel’s musical writings succeeded in transforming this Arabic traditional instrument into a multinational, modern instrument able to communicate with other cultures and music, with an emphasis on the Oriental-Arabic style.
Discography:
Salamat (Voix De L’Orient, 1997)
Mada (Voix De L’Orient, 1998)
Alani (Voix De L’Orient, 2000)
Vice Versa (2003)
Sourat- Trait D’Union (Forward Music, 2004)
The Art Of The Middle Eastern Oud (ARC Music, 2004)
Dangerous (Forward Music, 2006)
Handmade (Forward Music, 2008)
Oud Fusionista (CIA, 2008)
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.