Iki/Eylul Sarkilari

Modern Turkish music with a respect for tradition. Nicely dressed young men and women playing traditional instruments (check the pictures inside – the liner notes won’t help much unless you read Turkish) as well as bass and piano, singing modest folk songs with an ear toward modern tastes, not getting too rowdy (not belly dance music, for example) yet having some pep. It’s “nice”. To be honest, this is undoubtedly middle-of-the-road stuff in its native land and its neighborhood but here in Palo Alto it’s exotic enough (and of course rare enough on the radio) to deserve a hearing on KZSU.

1. Great melody, nice singing
2. More upbeat, with some group unison singing
3. Somber instrumental; just a little mawkish
4. A bit generically “Mediterranean”; accordion, buzuki, soulful singing
5. A mid-tempo instrumental with a bit of the Roma-like guitar
6. Tanbur, clarinet, sweet vocal give this waltz-time tune a lively feel
7. Pretty melody
8. Toe-tappingly rhythmic instrumental
9. Long-ish tanbur intro, tender vocal
10. Mellow instrumental
11. Very mellow instrumental
12. Breathy, sort of perky vocals
13. Call-and-response between woman and group of men; tuneful uptempo song