UD Festival 2026 in Amsterdam dates, programme and tickets (3–22 November)

What is the UD Festival?

The UD Festival is a festival devoted to one instrument: the ud, also spelled oud. It is a pear-shaped lute played with a plectrum, and the festival calls it "a musical bridge between East and West": an old Arabic instrument that reached Europe through Andalusia and shaped the sound of Western music.

The festival is organised by the Amsterdams Andalusisch Orkest, an Amsterdam ensemble that plays Andalusian and Arabic music, and is an initiative of the orchestra and the theatre Meervaart. The first edition was in 2016 and it is held every two years, so the 2026 edition is the sixth.

The programme shows the ud's range: Palestinian, Syrian, Tunisian, Persian and Bahraini ud players, a Moroccan singer, jazz and electronic crossovers, and the Andalusian repertoire of the orchestra itself.

When is the UD Festival 2026?

The sixth edition runs from Tuesday 3 to Sunday 22 November 2026. It opens on Tuesday 3 November with The Cello & the Ud at Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ, a tribute to the Moroccan ud master Saïd Chraibi made with the Cello Biënnale, and closes on Sunday 22 November with Yad Oud and the Amsterdams Andalusisch Orkest at BIMHUIS.

After the festival, on Tuesday 24 November, the UD Concours finalists play a UD Festival On Tour evening with Codarts students at Grounds in Rotterdam.

The programme, day by day

Tuesday 3 November, 18:30: The Cello & the Ud with ud player Omar Lazrak and cellist Anwar Saïdi, Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ, Amsterdam.

Thursday 5 November, 20:15: Nizar Rohana Trio, with guest ud player Yasamin Shahhosseini, in the Recital Hall (Kleine Zaal) of the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam. Tickets run from €19 to €29. The trio plays again on Friday 6 November at 20:15 at Sijthoff Cultuur in Leiden.

Thursday 12 November, 19:30: a free MAJAM jam session at MAQAM, Amsterdam, led by the Persian ud player Hossein Behroozinia. Doors open at 19:00 and you bring your own instrument and voice.

Friday 13 November, 20:15: Hossein Behroozinia & Friends at Theater De Regentes in The Hague, where Persian strings meet spiritual Andalusian songs.

Saturday 14 November at Meervaart, Amsterdam: Nawras Altaky Septet (Arise!) at 19:30 and Tunisian ud virtuoso Dhafer Youssef (Shiraz) at 21:00. A combination ticket covers both, and a Tunisian afterparty follows.

Sunday 15 November, 20:15: the Moroccan singer Oum, with her album Dialddar, in the Recital Hall of the Concertgebouw. Tickets run from €29 to €39.

Thursday 19 November, 19:30 (doors 19:00): a free jam session at MAQAM led by the Greek ud player and Concours juror Kyriakos Kalaitzidis, open to everyone who registers. Friday 20 November, from 10:00: first round of the UD Concours at MAQAM, open to the public with a ticket.

Saturday 21 November, 14:00: final of the UD Concours at Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ. The same evening at 20:15 the Syrian ud player and singer Waed Bouhassoun plays with the Amsterdams Andalusisch Orkest in the Grote Zaal of the Muziekgebouw.

Sunday 22 November, 20:30: closing concert with the masked Bahraini ud player Yad Oud and the Amsterdams Andalusisch Orkest at BIMHUIS.

Where it takes place

Most of the festival is in Amsterdam, spread over several halls: the Concertgebouw (Recital Hall), Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ, BIMHUIS, Meervaart, and MAQAM, the cultural centre of the Amsterdams Andalusisch Orkest, for the jam sessions and the first days of the competition.

The festival also travels: the Nizar Rohana Trio plays in Leiden at Sijthoff Cultuur and Hossein Behroozinia plays in The Hague at Theater De Regentes. After the festival, Rotterdam hosts the On Tour evening at Grounds.

Tickets and prices

Every concert is ticketed by the hall that hosts it, and the festival website links to each one. Prices are set by the venues: the Nizar Rohana Trio at the Concertgebouw is €19 to €29, Oum €29 to €39, Waed Bouhassoun at the Muziekgebouw €12.50 (Early Bird, ages 13 to 30) to €39, Yad Oud at BIMHUIS €25 seated and €21 standing, and the UD Concours final €6.50.

The MAJAM jam sessions at MAQAM are free. Doors open at 19:00 and the jam starts at 19:30, with soup, cookies and tea. If you play, bring your instrument.

At Meervaart on 14 November there is a talk before the concerts, Blend Bazar, from 17:30, and a Tunisian afterparty in the foyer follows for the evening's audience.

The UD Concours, the competition for young ud players

During the festival young ud players compete in the UD Concours, for the second time. It is open to players aged 16 to 35 and the jury is Negar Bouban (Iran), Nizar Rohana (Palestine and the Netherlands) and Kyriakos Kalaitzidis (Greece). They award the Saïd Chraibi Prize, named after the Moroccan ud master. Applications are closed. The first round on Friday 20 November is open to the public.

The first two days are at MAQAM on Thursday 19 and Friday 20 November (the first day is closed to the public, with a jam session that evening) and the grand final is on Saturday 21 November at the Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ. First prize is €2,000, second €1,500 and third €1,000. The winner also gets a chance to play with the orchestra's musicians next season.