Turkey: A Musical Journey - Traditional Songs, Dances & Rituals (Nonesuch, 1975)

Long before world music even existed as a category, Nonesuch Record's Explorer Series was putting out extraordinary albums of material by musicians hailing from some of the most exotic places on the planet - or at least exotic by American standards. And how's this for convoluted? The Explorer Series was essentially an imprint of an imprint since Nonesuch was originally a subsidiary of Elektra that label founder Jac Holzman had established to re-release classical recordings at cut-rate prices. Most, if not all, of the Explorer titles seem to have been produced in a similar fashion. That is, the albums consist of performances originally recorded in foreign countries by local labels or globetrotting musicologists and then licensed to Nonesuch for release in the United States. In many respects, the Explorer Series was the 1960s-1970s equivalent to Sublime Frequencies.

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The liner notes of Turkey: A Musical Journey: Traditional Songs, Dances & Rituals indicate that it is "a production of EZGI Records, Istanbul." My educated guess is that this LP contains music that had been recorded over the course of many years, if not decades, and had previously been released in some capacity by that company or perhaps by other Turkish labels. Regardless of the performances' origins, the 15 tracks assembled here provide a fascinating cross section of - what else? - traditional songs, dances, and rituals from Anatolia. The recordings by the Karayilan Duo, Mustafa Kandirali & ensemble, Orhan Gencebay, the Konya Folklore Group, Binali Selman, Sezai Ulukaya, and the anonymous "Singer" present various aspects of folk music intended for dancing. To my ears, "Silifke'nin Yogurdu/Meydan Oyunu" and "Erzurum Bas Bari/Ikinci Bar" are reminiscent of material by the Master Musicians of Joujouka, while many of the other cuts by the aforementioned artists would not sound out of place on a belly dance LP. "Dost," a wandering minstrel (asik) tune by Ali Izzet featuring saz (or, more accurately, baglama), puts me in the mind of Kaleidoscope at their most Middle Eastern or the Alex Oriental Experience. The best way that I can come up with to describe "Siksara Oyun Havasi" would be "Anatolia meets Appalachia." Listen to the furiously bowed kemence (a small three- or four-stringed violin) and the guy calling out the dance moves, and you'll hear what I mean. The hypnotic "Mevlevi Music" is comprised of three religious performances unique to the Turkish Sufi sect better known as the whirling dervishes and sound as ancient as the order's 13th-century inception. The trio of titles by the Istanbul Radio Concert Ensemble present the listener with instrumentals done in a classical suite style in addition to a love song written by the legendary Tamburi Cemil Bey. The closing track provides an example of the martial (mehter) music unique to the Janissaries, who were among the most elite soldiers of the Ottoman Empire. That prominent booming giant kettle drum (kos or timbal) alone must have instilled great fear in the armies of their European opponents, but now you can listen to the same thing in the comfort and safety of your home.


1. Silifke'nin Yogurdu/Medan Oyunu - Karayilan Duo
2. Dost - Asik Ali Izzet
3. Saba Zeybek/Tavas Zeybegi - Mustafa Kandirali & ensemble
4. Misket - Orhan Gencebay
5. Konyalim - Konya Folklore Group
6. Erzurum Bas Bari/Ikinci Bar - Benali Selman
7. Siksara Oyun Havasi - Caller, with Ferhat Ozyakupoglu
8. Kavalla Oyun Havasi - Sezai Ulukaya
9. Mevlevi Music
10. Arabesque Ciftetelli - Mustafa Kandirali & ensemble
11. Aslan Mustafa Oyun Havasi - Singer
12. Nihavent Pesrev - Istanbul Radio Concert Ensemble
13. Sevdim Seni Ey Isvebaz - Istanbul Radio Concert Ensemble
14. Nihavent Longa - Istanbul Radio Concert Ensemble
15. Mehter Music