Bazaar Istanbul

Coll: Bazaar Istanbul—Music of Turkey
Sampler coll of ARC Music out of Sussex.Six of 13 tracks from the same duo +
ensemble. Liner notes indicate that the music is of Gypsy provenance, though the
track descriptions only say so for #4 & 9 .For the most part, these are
upbeat infectious melodies, one can see the dancing around the fire.
As with many Middle Eastern musics, time and tonal shifts abound, and improv
cadenzas (called uzun hava in Turkic) add ornament. Exotic instruments,
exuberant rhythms, danceable beats—how can you lose? Play it!
.
Faves: 1,2,3,9,10,11 (Dr D 08-04)
1Instrumental,upbeat belly dance. 9 piece ensemble wails and sways. Good solo turns
2 Instr. Medley 4 short ‘fishy’ songs. Six piece trad folk ensemble; plenty tempo changes
3 Vocal medium tempo, driving, “My lover is like a lion” handclaps, fun percussion
4 Instr. Med, loping, filmic. 9-piece ensemble .Tune recalls Thracian town Senburgaz
5Vocal. Med, lament.”I should die.”. Just vox +saz. Poor record quality sounds ‘old’
6Instr med Wedding dance music. Bride’s fam brings her to groom’s house , everyone dances
7Instr slow, measured pace, a zeybek dance. 7 pieces, heavy on the percussion
8 Vocal, slow to med. A love song about not being from good enough family to please
the prospective bride’s parents
9 Instr med/fast dance, called segah. Same group as 4. Flows along streamingly
10Vocal, med/slow. See #5,very similar
11 Instr, fast belly dance. Stretches to give 9-piece ensemble solo improvs
12Vocal, med/slow. Where Bobby McFerrin found his title.
13 Instr med/slow. Complex interplay between zither and keyboards, belly dance