In love with Oud

UAE’s leading singer, musician and oud player talks about his love for the enchanted strings of the classic instrument and the 
test of time 
it has stood

At the age of 14, Saeed Al Salem fell deeply in love and ever since he and his beloved hardly spend a day apart. Sometimes happy, sometimes sad, at times traditional, at times fashionable, Saeed and his beautiful oud complement each other so harmoniously that those who are in their company never fail to admire them.

Indeed, Saeed Al Salem is not only Abu Dhabi’s, but UAE’s great singer, musician and oud player. When he is not performing or meeting his fans in one of the concert halls in or out of the Emirates, he is usually catching up with his friends, after the Maghreb prayer, in one of his favourite coffee shops on Mouroor Road. The chatter quickly moves from cars to football and the day’s news, to finally set on an old time favourite topic — music.

“For the people of the Gulf, oud is the guitar of the West,” he said. So, since childhood, Saeed loved listening to the oud and Arabic songs, which he ended up learning and then sang them out aloud. Among his favourites were Abu Baker Salem, Mohammed Abdou, Talal Meddah, Mihad Hamed and Abdou Halim.

“My family and friends used to tell me that I have a very nice voice and style of interpretation. They were nice compliments, but I didn’t think back then that one day I will become a singer.”

But that is what he did, and not only a singer, but an oud player too. “I began learning the oud, by myself, when I was 14 years old, and I can say that in five years’ time I became a professional player.” In 1998, Saeed released his first album, followed by two more, which may be found in music stores all the way from Abu Dhabi to London.

The lyrics of his songs are usually verses by famous poets and shaikhs, such as Shaikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, Sultan Mujali or Ali Al Khawah. “I once performed in front of Shaikh Zayed, singing one of his poems, during the National Day. He really seemed very happy with the music and interpretation,” remembered Saeed.

As for the music, he either writes it himself or collaborates with other composers, the likes of Tareq Al Mughel, Musa Mohammed or Fayez Al Saeed. “I didn’t announce it in public yet, but now I’m working on my fourth album, which will come out after Ramadan. It is going to be a mix of various styles,” revealed Saeed.

He usually prefers singing classical Arabic tunes, but with his own modern interpretation. “There is a very famous song, ‘Habib Al Qalb’, written by Haarb Hassan about 40 years ago. In 2002-2003, I used to sit with him and talk about this song, then I made a new modern version of his song, which I sang it to him. He liked it and I started to sing it in concerts.”