Catalogue: Special Projects: "Soundtrip Turkey" - Various Artists - Soundtrip Series

Turkish music made it way to Europe via a Eurovision Song Contest victory in 2003. With that win, Turkish pop left its obscure corner to became a permanent feature in the local music scene. The mix of oriental influenced vocals, catchy beats and folk instruments is unique in character and hints at the whole cosmos of traditional Turkish music from which it springs. Laying between Orient and Occident at the meeting point of Europe and the Middle East, Turkey owes its cultural development to the interplay between of these various spheres. Here you find influences of the Balkan, the Arabic-Islamic world and even Indian music. Turkish folk music is primarily based on various plucked instruments, e.g. the Tanbur a Persian, three-stringed, long-necked lute, in use for over two-thousand years. The Ud, a short-necked lute from the Mediterranean area, is the parent of the European lute. The Kanun the oriental parent of the zither is used often as well. The sound of the Ney, a reed-pipe, is unique and can be heard across the whole Arabic-Persian-Turkish region. These instruments create the typical fine nuances of sound characteristic in oriental music. The most important rhythm instrument is the Darbuka, a small, cup-shaped metal drum that is beaten with the hands. The use of those traditional instruments makes for an exceptional blend of folk music with Pop, Rock, Jazz or Chanson. This sound)))trip CD introduces a wide variety of Turkish music and takes the listener on a journey into the exotic sounds behind the gate to the orient. As diverse as the tracks may be, they all share great passion and vitality, emotions and sensuality.