Eternal Love

This unusual album explores the tuneful Turkish Sufi song tradition with the aid of Michel Godard on tuba and serpent. It is hard to imagine a more eccentric addition to the Turkish classical mix, but somehow it works. The ensemble has been expanded, with Şirin Pancaroğlu and Meriç Dönük's harp replacing the traditional kanun (plucked zither). The sound is smoother and fuller, and the harp adds complexity to the arrangements of some well-known instrumental numbers – Misirli Ibrahim Efendi's ‘Acemaşiran Saz Semai’ and Arel's ‘Mini Mini Nihavend Peşrev’, for instance. Is this simply an extension of tradition, or does it turn it into muzak? Turkish kanun playing has been sounding increasingly harp-like in recent decades – arguably for even longer. Listeners will have to judge for themselves. But the exuberant artistry of the Simdi ensemble is hard to resist. Uymaz's vocals are outstanding, while Godard's tuba and serpent improvisations huff and puff between the lines: it is strange enough to make a Sufi smile.