You can hire an oud player here for a wedding, a majlis evening, a gala dinner, a hotel event or a Ramadan night in Dubai or Abu Dhabi. The musician sits near your guests and plays classical Arabic and Khaleeji music on the oud, alone, with a singer or with a qanun player. Send us the date, the venue and the number of guests, and we send the oud players who are free, with videos and a price, usually within a working day.
Price: oud and qanun players start from AED 2,000. The final price depends on the season, availability and how you customise the performance. See how much an oud player costs in Dubai.
OudPlayersDubai.com books oud players, qanun players and small Arabic ensembles, nothing else. One team in Dubai handles your enquiry from the first message to the last song. More about us.
What an oud player brings to your evening
The oud is a fretless, pear shaped string instrument, the ancestor of the European lute. It carries most of the classical Arabic and Khaleeji repertoire on its own, so one musician can fill a majlis or a dinner with warm, live sound. The player usually sits, plays acoustic or with light amplification, and covers one part of the event: the arrival, the cocktail hour, dinner, or the moment the bride and groom walk in.
Guests talk over a solo oud without effort, and still stop to listen when a song they know starts. That is why couples, hotels and companies book it for the quieter, more elegant part of the night, and leave the dance floor to a band or a DJ.
Choose your line-up
Solo oud. Background music for a dinner, a majlis or a hotel lobby. Understated and never louder than the conversation.
Oud and singer. Tarab songs by Fairuz, Umm Kulthum and Abdel Halim Hafez next to modern Khaleeji hits, for guests who want to listen and sing along.
Oud and qanun. The qanun adds the shimmering runs you hear on old Arabic recordings. See the oud and qanun duo, or book a qanun player in Dubai on their own.
Trio or takht. Add percussion, a nay flute or a violin for a gala dinner or a large room. See the Arabic takht ensemble.
Female oud players
You can ask for a female oud player for a ladies' majlis, a women-only part of a wedding, or a family or government event. There are fewer female players than male players, so send your date 7 to 10 days ahead, and earlier in wedding season or Ramadan.
Occasions
Weddings. One set during the majlis or cocktail hour and one during dinner is the usual plan. See oud player for a wedding.
Corporate and hotel events. Lobby welcomes, gala dinners, embassy receptions and cultural evenings. See corporate and hotel events.
Ramadan and iftar. Soft music after iftar in tents, hotels and homes. See oud player for Ramadan.
Dubai and Abu Dhabi
Oud players perform in hotels, villas, majlis tents, ballrooms and rooftops across Dubai. For events in the capital, see oud player in Abu Dhabi.
How to book
Send the date, the venue, the guest count and the part of the evening you want music for on WhatsApp or through the quote form. Add a few songs you love. The planning guide explains which line-up fits your room, and the videos show oud and qanun players live.
