Usually, each maqam has a typical (default) tonic. For example, if no tonic is mentioned, maqam Bayaty is considered to have tonic D ("Re"). When transposed to G, we call it Bayaty on G. In practice, each maqam is usually transposed only to a handful of non-default tonics. However, in theory, it can be transposed to any tonic.

The Oud Tutor allows the user to control the maqam selection through the Maqam panel in the program's main window.

The Maqam panel has 2 drop-down lists; the first lists the available maqams and the second lists the possible tonic notes. When a maqam is selected from the maqam list, two things happen:

1. The default tonic of the maqam is automatically selected in the Tonic list.
2. The oud view reflects the selected maqam on the default tonic.

The user still has the option to pick a different tonic for the selected maqam. If the user selects another tonic, the oud view will reflect the maqam on the new tonic. The following figure shows the oud after selecting maqam Bayaty and tonic A ("La").

In addition to the pre-defined maqams, the maqam list includes an entry "--None --". Upon selecting this entry, no maqam will be in effect, and the oud will restore its normal non-maqam view.