“Out of Time” and “Out of Tune”: Reflections of an Oud Apprentice in Somaliland

In this article, I use my oud lessons in Somaliland as a point of departure to reflect on the analytical and methodological potential of musical apprenticeship, with a particular focus on what and how we might learn from playing “out of time” and “out of tune.” Organized around three lessons, each beginning in a moment of “mistuning,” I reflect both on what it means to become the kind of person who can make music in a religiously contested postwar context and on the process of mistake-making, by which apprentices come into new knowledge about music-making and musical personhood.

Qoraalkan wuxuu ku saabsan yahay casharradaydii kabanka ee Somaliland. Waxaan halkan ku qeexayaa habka iyo falanqaynta barashada muusigga, gaar ahaan waxaan idiin hogatusaalayn doonaa qaabka looga baran karo codka jaban iyo laaxinka. Waxaan qaadaadhigayaa saddex cashar oo mid walba ku furmayo cod doorsamay iyo laaxin. Anoo isticmaalaya khaladadaydii barashada kabanka, waxaan dib u eegayaa sida uu ku hirgalo muusigistaha ku barbaarey xaalad gaar aa oo ka dhalataye hirdanka ka dhexeeya diinta iyo fanka dagaalladii sokeeye ka dib ee Somaliland. Waxaan sidoo kale falanqaynayaa hannaanka kufa-kaca ah ee qofka gacan yaraha ahi uu ku kasboda aqoon cusub oo qusaya curinta muusigga iyo kaalintiisa muusigyahannimo.