100 bucks and an iron: oud star Joseph Tawadros hits Wauchope, Lismore and Bellingen

His first oud cost 100 dollars and an iron. Now the eight-time ARIA Award winner is bringing it to three North Coast towns this weekend.

The Cairo-born, London-based oud virtuoso Joseph Towadros plays Wauchope on Friday, 6 November, Lismore on Saturday, 7 November, and Bellingen on Sunday, 8 November, on a solo tour of Australia.

“A lot of it’s going to be solo, but it’s going to be a lot of fun,” he said.

Dr Tawadros, who holds a doctorate in Music from UNSW, is known for his brilliant technique and wicked sense of humour.

“And of course, I do a bit of the rambling.”

“Some people just come for the rambling. Some people come for the music. Some people come for neither.”

“You have to hedge your bets, you know?”

His love affair with the oud started at 10, when his father swapped with a family friend at Glebe Markets.

“It was 100 bucks and an iron. The guy needed an iron, so it was like, ‘Hey, get me an iron and 100 bucks,'” Dr Tawadros said.

“It’s a good investment, I think.”

The oud is an Arabic lute, and the ancestor of the lute and the modern guitar.

“It’s a very warm sound,” he said. “It’s similar to the flamenco guitar in a way, and actually that’s where it has its origins.”

“It went to Spain in the ninth century and spread around Europe and became the lute.”

He is touring to promote his new album, Conversations with Jack, with legendary jazz drummer Jack DeJohnette, kora player Yacouba Sissoko, and his brother James Tawadros on percussion.

DeJohnette, who played with Miles Davis, died about a year ago, and the album is among his final recorded collaborations.

“It’s a real tribute album to a great man,” Dr Tawadros said.

“And it mixes jazz with this instrument,” he said. “Throughout the years, I’ve been able to create my own music and have people not from that background connect with the music,” he said.