In this terrace concert, we’ll get a sneak preview of the UD Festival. On stage is a quartet featuring the Greek ud player Nikos Avgoustidis and the Syrian-Dutch clarinettist Ghaeth Almagooth, together with musicians of the Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra. They give the audience a wonderful insight into the versatility of the ud, the instrument that builds a musical bridge between East and West. With its rich sound and countless possibilities, the ud (also known as the oud) has influenced musical traditions across the globe and today serves as the perfect catalyst for collaboration between musicians from different cultures.

About Nikos Avgoustidis

Nikos Avgoustidis is an oud player and multi-instrumentalist whose musical journey began at the age of five with the guitar. Ten years later, he discovered the oud. Largely self-taught, he was already performing with leading artists in Greece by the age of 22. He studied at Codarts, and his musical development has been shaped in part by influential ud players including Ara Dinkjian, Hamza El Din, Munir Bashir and Riad Al-Sunbati. Nikos has contributed to various albums and collaborated with artists such as Michalis Kouloumis, Efren Lopez, Christos Barbas, Ruven Rupik and, during this concert, with Ghaeth Almagooth. His interests include Arabic, Turkish and Greek folk music, and in his playing he emphasises the expressive power of every note. In doing so, he showcases the emotional and melodic richness of the maqam.

About Ghaeth Almagooth

Ghaeth Almagooth is a Syrian-Dutch clarinettist, composer and improviser. He took up the clarinet at the age of 21 and moved to the Netherlands in 2015, where he continued to develop his musical career after fleeing Syria. In 2022, he completed his Master’s degree at Codarts Rotterdam, specialising in ethnomusicology.

His music blends Middle Eastern traditions with influences from the Balkans and jazz. With a warm, expressive tone and a strong focus on improvisation and storytelling, he creates compelling concerts in which each performance tells a unique musical story.

Ghaeth performs with, amongst others, DAFA Trio, Arifa, Alwan, Madaba, L’Chaim and Dyar Band. He has given concerts in Europe, North Africa, Asia and Mexico and has collaborated with renowned musicians and ensembles, including the New York Gypsy All Stars, Ross Daly, the Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra, Kudsi Erguner, Alex Simu, the Netherlands Blazers Ensemble and Ellen ten Damme.

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About Ruven Rupik

Ruven is a multi-percussionist who has mastered various musical styles ranging from flamenco to Balkan music, and Arab and Northern Indian classical music.

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FREE ENTRANCE

(Times tbd)

Preview Ud Festival met Tallal Fayed, Jawa Manla en Hamza Amrani

MAQAM Extends: Outdoor Ud at Erasmuspark (Eikenbosje), Amsterdam-West

Ud Festival x Cello Biënnale (Anwar Saidi en Omar Lazrek - A tribute to Said Chraibi , the King of the Eud

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The Cello and the Ud

The Amsterdam Cello Biennale and the Ud Festival are joining forces to celebrate two exceptional musicians who have masterfully blended Arab and Western traditions. What makes this programme so special is that the cello – originally a Western instrument – draws inspiration from the timeless compositions of Said Chraibi, music that has, until now, been performed almost exclusively on the ud. The concert pays tribute to Chraibi, the king of the ud, ten years after his death.

Together with musicians from the Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra, cellist Anwar Saidi and ud player Omar Lazrak present a programme featuring compositions by Chraibi himself and new original works spanning from Granada to Baghdad.

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5 november - Nizar Rohana Trio - Concertgebouw, Amsterdam

Nizar Rohana ud

Tony Overwater bass

Ruven Ruppik percussion

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Nizar Rohana is a Palestinian master of the oud, the traditional Arabic stringed instrument. He effortlessly combines his dazzling oud skills with melody and intimacy. Together with percussionist Ruven Ruppik and bassist Tony Overwater, Rohana forms a virtuoso trio that promises a wonderful concert in which Arabic and jazz music blend together.

Rohana (Haifa, 1975) began playing the oud at a young age and has gone on to become one of the better-known contemporary Palestinian performers on the instrument. His music combines traditional Arabic and Middle Eastern influences with elements of jazz, improvisation and Western classical music.  Together with Tony Overwater on double bass and Ruven Ruppik on percussion, he forms the Nizar Rohana Trio.

Rohana is the artistic coordinator of the UD Competition, in which young ud players aged between 16 and 35 compete for the Said Ghraibi Prize. This competition will take place for the second time in 2026 as part of the UD Festival, which is organised by the Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra and De Meervaart theatre.

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10 november - Nizar Rohana Trio - Sijthof Cultuur, Leiden

Nizar Rohana ud

Tony Overwater bass

Ruven Ruppik percussion

Nizar Rohana is a Palestinian master of the ud (or oud), the traditional Arabic stringed instrument. He effortlessly combines his dazzling ud skills with melody and intimacy. Together with percussionist Ruven Ruppik and bassist Tony Overwater, Rohana forms a virtuoso trio that promises a wonderful concert in which Arabic and jazz music blend together.

Rohana (Haifa, 1975) began playing the oud at a young age and has gone on to become one of the better-known contemporary Palestinian performers on the instrument. His music combines traditional Arabic and Middle Eastern influences with elements of jazz, improvisation and Western classical music.  Together with Tony Overwater on double bass and Ruven Ruppik on percussion, he forms the Nizar Rohana Trio.

Rohana is the artistic coordinator of the UD Competition, in which young ud players aged between 16 and 35 compete for the Said Ghraibi Prize. This competition will take place for the second time in 2026 as part of the UD Festival, which is organised by the Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra and De Meervaart theatre.

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Iranian barbat and ud player and composer Hossein Behroozinia (Tehran, 1962) will play at De Regentes theatre. At the age of just nine, Behroozinia was admitted to the Tehran Conservatoire, where he studied the tar with Reza Vohdaney and the ud with Mansour Nariman. He later immersed himself in the Persian radif under the guidance of Mohammad Reza Lotfi.

At the age of seventeen, Behroozinia was already teaching at the Iranian Centre for Preservation and Propagation of Music, dedicated to the preservation of classical Persian music. He subsequently held various leadership roles within the music world. Despite his busy career, he continued to teach and mentor young musicians.

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14 november - Dagprogramma: Kapitein Ud, lezingen en workshops - Meervaart, Amsterdam

14 november - Nawraz (blauwe zaal) - Meervaart, Amsterdam

15 november - OUM - Concertgebouw (kleine zaal)

Oum has one of the most beautiful voices in contemporary Afro-Arabic music. Her songs blend soul, jazz and Moroccan tradition, sung in Darija, Amazigh, French, English and Spanish. To mark the release of her latest album, Dialddar, Oum is coming to the Kleine Zaal of the Concertgebouw. It promises to be a special, intimate evening, accompanied by three backing vocalists, the ud and percussion.

Darija, poetry and contemporary influences
The Moroccan singer, songwriter and composer Oum was originally trained as an architect, but at the start of this century she chose to pursue a career in music. Over the past twenty years, she has created a unique musical universe in which soul, jazz and Moroccan traditions converge. Following two critically acclaimed albums released in Morocco, she made her breakthrough in Europe in 2013 with Soul of Morocco, her first international release. On the follow-up album, Zarabi, she continued her distinctive style, blending Darija, poetry and contemporary influences, linked to spiritual and ecological themes.

Dialddar
With her latest project, Dialddar, Oum returns to her roots. It is an intimate and profound work, built around vocals and percussion. A work that explores cycles of transformation, femininity and a deep connection to one’s origins. Dialddar showcases Oum at the height of her powers: completely in control yet deeply emotional. And well worth listening to.

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19 november - Masterclass UD Concours & Ud dinner - MAQAM, Amsterdam (for participants only)

On the first day of the UD Concours, a festive jam session will be held at MAQAM. This jam session will be open to all participants of the UD Concours and other professional and amateur musicians ánd music lovers. Registration is required and will open in the run-up to the concours.

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Foto: Shot by Meesterwerk

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20 November - Semi finals Ud Concours - MAQAM, Amsterdam (for participants only)

21 november - Grand Final Ud Concours - Muziekgebouw, Amsterdam

The Ud Competition will be held for the second time in 2026. During this competition, talented ud players from the Netherlands and abroad, aged between 16 and 35, will compete for the Saïd Chraibi Prize, named after the legendary Moroccan ud player. The participants will be judged by a panel of renowned ud masters. The grand Final will take place between 14.00 - 17.00 at Muziekgebouw ('Kleine Zaal').

Foto: Shot by Meesterwerk

21 november - Waed Bouhassoun and Amsterdams Andalsusisch Orkest - Muziekgebouw, Amsterdam

YAD Oud, the masked Bahraini ud (or oud) player, will take to the stage at the Bimhuis in Amsterdam on 22 November alongside the Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra, for the final concert of the UD Festival 2026. YAD Oud brings the ancient sounds of the Arabic lute into the present day in a style all of his own. With a blend of Arabic melodies, modern arrangements and influences from genres including ambient, hip-hop and electronic music, he creates a sound that is both traditional and innovative. His music has been streamed millions of times worldwide.

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