chris n lau viajando!

This is Selim Sesler. He’s the local Clarinet god who I first saw in the documentary, “Crossing the Bridge” which features a lot of different artists from various genres throughout Istanbul. Selim plays every Wednesday at Badehane, a smaller cafe/bar tucked away in the Asmalımescit area south of Taksim Square. He also plays at a livelier place in Araf, in Taksim, every Tuesday! So stoked to be able to see such an amazing performer, TWICE a week if I wanted to! Selim, you rule! Not sure what song they’re playing here, but the song they change into I recognize as “Ah Azeyn” from the UCSB Middle East Ensemble. There is a Turkish version with Turkish words which I do not know, however. Anyhow, enjoy. I faded in and out from a longer file I recorded, because they don’t really end songs, they just run from one right into the next like the badasses they are. :) Cheers!

Above is a shot of the beginning of Istiklal Ave., from the end of Taksim Square in Istanbul, Turkey. This is where Laurel and I most often busk. There are plenty of buskers to be found here—from men in their 50’s playing saz to support the education of their children, to younger Turks with guitars singing Pink Floyd. Also you’ll catch a Laz Turkish musician playing kemançe, a type of fiddle. The recording here is of a kemançe, but I can’t say one way or another if it’s Laz. I was walking down Taksim and heard the busker in the distance and turned on my portable recorder. You can hear as I approach and the music gets louder, as well as the digital interference coming and going from the cellphones in people’s pockets. I stood there for a bit before walking off to get some food around the corner. The man had his fiddle hooked up to an amp with plenty of reverb, which added a nice effect to a street whose throngs of people usually dampen and mute an acoustic instrument into oblivion. Enjoy!

Another part of the recordings I took in Sweden at the Norrskog forester’s event. This time, we have here a small excerpt featuring a fårbensflöjt—“sheep leg bone flute” solo. Since this post is a bit late (it’s Wednesday now, not Monday) due to no internet at our apartment, I’ll post a second one today to make up for it :) Peace!

At a pub near our WWOOF house in Tipperary, Ireland, we got to spend an evening at the weekly session. Various musicians from around the area get together and play songs together, jam, play standards, sing songs, dance & be merry. This one’s a tongue twisterish piece called, I’m assuming, Mary Mac. Cheers!

This is another killer piece I grabbed from the Nedim & Neshko concert at Haymatlos.. enjoy!

At the Norrskog forester’s event in Sweden, there was a potluck afterward at which Lau & I were invited to play & jam some music.. We got together with the other musicians: a man who played a variety of folk instruments and two highschool aged girls who played the fiddle. So this piece is a song those two performed… Can’t remember the name unfortunately, but it’s a lively little tune. :)

Last week I had the good fortune to stumble into these guys. I originally wanted to go that night to see a group called “The Balkan Messengers.” Days later, I re-checked the site and “Nedim Nalbantoğlu & Neshko Neshev” were listed. I was considerably less excited, because the gig had switched from a whole band to a duo. Nevertheless I made my way to the venue, Haymatlos, after coming late to the weekly jam at another cool spot, Kooperatif. “Everybody’s at Haymatlos,” they told me.

So here we are. Epic Turkish/Jazz/Balkan/Insane fusions on violin and accordion. I’m pretty sure this is some of the most awesome music I’ve heard in my life. Hope you enjoy. I’ll post more in coming weeks.

Song 2 of 2 of the Mazaher ensemble. This is a short excerpt featuring the simsimiyya. See first post for the full description.

The Mazaher ensemble plays music from what originally was a healing ritual performed by women for women called zar. At the Makan venue in Cairo, we got to experience a wonderful show featuring beautiful singing, drumming, and participatory dancing. Woo-hoo! There’s a good link here for more information: http://www.egyptmusic.org/mazaher.html. This site linked here is also the website for the Makan venue we saw the show at.

Song 4 of 4 from the El Tanbura show in Egypt (see song 1 for full description).

Song 3 of 4 from the El Tanbura show in Egypt (see song 1 for full description).

Song 2 of 4 from the El Tanbura show in Egypt (see song 1 for full description).

This group, El Tanbura, plays a traditional music from Egypt which utilizes an ancient instrument, the 5-stringed (and a more complex version with more strings) plucked lyre, simsimiyya. We saw them at a somewhat unique community venue space which features them weekly. Very cool. Song 1 of 4 excerpts for you. Msg or email for a download link.

For further info on this group, here’s an online article I found. http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/el-tanbura-egyptian-folk-music-at-its-best-420581.html

One of the first performances we saw in Egypt was a Sufi-inspired “whirling dervish” style Tannoura show. I captured the awesome music and have it here for your listening pleasure. Enjoy. More to come! If you’re into it, msg me for a download link.