Description
The buzuq is a fretted long-necked lute at home in Levantine and Kurdish music. This Professional Buzuq is built by hand: a rounded body, a long slender neck with movable tied frets, and three courses of metal strings. The result is the instrument’s characteristic sound — microtonal inflections and a long, drone-like sustain — suited to traditional repertoire as well as contemporary work on stage and in the studio.
Materials & Body
The body of this Professional Buzuq is handcrafted from mulberry or walnut, two tonewoods long favored by luthiers in the region for their warmth and projection. The rounded bowl shape amplifies low-frequency resonance, giving the instrument its signature depth. The long, slender neck provides ample room for melodic runs and position shifts, while the overall construction balances durability with acoustic sensitivity. The instrument is built in-house at the Tapadum Strings & Percussion Workshop in Izmir, and each one passes individual quality control — fret positioning, neck stability, string response, and tonal balance — with our string instruments specialist Sertan Sarioglu before shipping from our Brisighella, Italy showroom.
Tuning & Fretwork
The Professional Buzuq is typically tuned to D-A-D, a standard configuration that supports both melodic playing and rhythmic drone accompaniment. What sets this instrument apart is its adjustable-fret system, which allows musicians to reposition frets along the neck to access the microtonal intervals of Kurdish and Levantine maqam practice. This flexibility means you can navigate maqam-based scales and quarter-tone passages with precision. The instrument is played with a plectrum, enabling intricate picking patterns and ornamentations including slides and trills that are central to the buzuq tradition.
Technical Specifications
| Type | Long-necked lute |
| Strings | Three courses, metal |
| Standard tuning | D-A-D |
| Body material | Mulberry or walnut |
| Frets | Movable, tied |
| Playing method | Plectrum |
| Dimensions | Approx. 100 × 35 × 25 cm |
| Weight | Approx. 4.3 kg |
| Built at | Tapadum Strings & Percussion Workshop, Izmir |
Who It’s For
This instrument is built for intermediate to advanced players who want an authentic, performance-grade buzuq. If you are studying Kurdish or Levantine music traditions, this is a reliable instrument to develop your technique on. Experienced string players transitioning from oud, baglama, or guitar will find the buzuq’s long neck and microtonal fretwork a rewarding challenge. Ethnomusicology students and collectors seeking a genuine, handcrafted example of this tradition will also appreciate the build quality and tonal character.
Musical Genres & Traditions
The buzuq belongs to the folk and popular music of the Levant — Lebanon, Syria, Palestine and Jordan — and is also widely played in Kurdish folk music and in contemporary Middle Eastern fusion projects. Its drone-like sustain and microtonal capability make it suitable for both solo improvisation (taqsim) and ensemble playing. It shares both its name and its D-A-D tuning with the Greek bouzouki — a related but distinct Mediterranean lute — and sits alongside the other plucked lutes in the string instruments collection at Tapadum.
Care & Maintenance
Store your buzuq in a padded case when not in use to protect it from humidity changes and physical impact. Wipe the body and neck with a soft, dry cloth after each playing session to remove oils and moisture. Check string tension and fret positioning regularly, especially if you transport the instrument frequently — a tied fret that has slipped will put a single note out of tune while the rest of the neck sounds correct. Avoid exposing the instrument to direct sunlight or extreme temperature shifts, as natural wood can warp or crack under stress. Other instruments in this line are in the buzuq collection.
Worldwide shipping & 15-day return.
