Events BABA ZULA COME TO SOFIA AGAIN FOR THE 3RD TİME - THE MUSICAL FINALE OF THE 13TH EDITION OF SOFIA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

Author : / Date : 2009-03-01 11:19
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BABA ZULA will play the final note of the 13th edition of Sofia International Film Festival on March 15, 2009.

The virtuoso performers first came to Bulgaria in 2005 to present live the soundtrack to Fatih Akin’s documentary masterpiece Crossing the Bridge: the Sound of Istanbul. Luckily for their fans in Bulgaria, the 2008 edition of Sofia International Film Festival closed with a BABA ZULA concert.


Those who have heard them have instantly fallen in love with the unconventional and particularly impressive improvisations of the band!

Their original style does not fit any of the genre specifications. Their compositions stir the imagination and open hard to reach areas before the fans.

Freedom, which is essential for them, becomes a source of inspiration for their creative spirit.


The authentic sound of BABA ZULA has been cultivated from the music of the late 1960s and 70s. The band was set up in Istanbul in 1996 by Levent Akman, Murat Ertel and Emre Onel, who left in 2005 and was replaced by Cosar Kamci. In 2004 the unique master of ‘live drawings” Ceren Oykut joined the group. Her presence on stage, and the creation of images with the swiftness and inspiration demonstrated by her are an important visual part of the entity that BABA ZULA represent.

Their artistic improvisations are serious works with an original style, sound and character. They use the emblematic in Turkish music wooden spoons and saz (the only traditional Turkish instrument with an electric version) and rely on the centuries’ old cultural traditions of their country. The combination of Oriental instruments (such as darbuka, electric saz, spoons, “ney” from the Suffi tradition”, clarinet as detail of Turkish gypsy music) and the modern electronic sound creates the peculiar specific sound of BABA ZULA that they define as “Oriental Dub”.


BABA ZULA’s performances throughout Europe resemble mystic rituals – a mixture of visual art, oriental dance, opulent costumes, poetry, theatre and live animation that offer the audience true audio-visual delight. The famous Turkish actress Serra Yilmaz, who has starred in several Ferzan Oztepek movies will join BABA ZULA in Sofia as their special guest.


As infers the title “Roots” of their latest album (2007), the connection with past and tradition is an occasion and a reason, a source of inspiration and a drive for action, a provocation and a consequence to everything they have created.

The music becomes a performance, the visual improvisation completes the auditory sensations and the result is a unique party with BABA ZULA!

This is exactly what the fans of music, cinema and Sofia International Film Festival will experience on March 15, 2009 at Number One Hall of the National Palace of Culture in Sofia prior to the screening of Wim Wenders’ film “Palermo Shooting”, and later the same evening at 4th km Party Centre.

Together we shall mark the close of the 13th edition of the Festival and will enjoy an amazing live performance of the Turkish music phenomenon BABA ZULA!

http://www.cinema.bg/sff/

September 2008
Archives to read this and see the fantastic photos as well please go to........http://www.thelivemusicreport.com/2008/September/BabaZula_sep08.html

Baba Zula
at the 7th annual Small World Music Festival
September 23, 2008 • Lula Lounge • Toronto

Small World Music
Baba Zula creates Hoopla at Lula
by Laila Boulos with photos by Roger Humbert
Andrew Craig, of CBC Radio 2's Canada Live greeted the lively, percolating room laughingly noting that the crew at CBC Radio 2 still liked those in the audience who listened to CBC Radio 1. With a screen backdrop depicting the name Baba Zula under babbling brook waves, Baba Zula took to the stage amid the rippling of shouts and applause through the audience.

From the moment of their first joining of darbuka and saz, Baba Zula filled the air with mystical melodies flowing in and out as tides coming in to shore. Known for creating psychebelly dance music or oriental dub, their songs mix influences from the traditional Turkish folk music of the 1960s along with electronic and creative effects.

During the evening, these special quirky effects displayed themselves frequently as one minute the sounds of horses would come galloping over the stage only to be overtaken by ducks quacking in a pond, which then gave way to the muffled sounds of footsteps crunching through snow. Baba Zula have also been known to use sounds of insects in their music and are recognized for making great use of the Turkish musical staple; spoons, in addition to the electric saz. The 'saz' or 'baglama' is a long-necked lute of folk traditions, and is the only electrified Turkish instrument.
Murat Ertel
Adding to the theatrical performance was drawing artist Ceren Oykut's deft use of Adobe Photoshop to bring to life the meanings of the songs. Her Etch-A-Sketch like drawings, although simple, conveyed deep meaning in terms of oppression and control as her artistic interpretations, in stark black and white, were magnified and projected onto the screen behind the band.

The extremely enthusiastic and vibrant audience almost appeared to be part of the performance as, throughout the evening, the women passionately belly danced and filled the air with ululations. Wedding wails, zagharit or zaghareet are referred to as ululations. These are vibrating vocals uttered by females expressing joy or grief; honouring someone; or, summoning people to belly dance (Middle Eastern dancing). These shrill ululations can be heard at festive occasions (like weddings) as well as funerals in the Middle East, India and Africa (where it is referred to as "ililta"). To get an idea of what this sounds like, listen to the beginning of the song "Wipe Out" by the Surfaris.

When singer Brenna MacCrimmon appeared on stage, the room erupted with shouts and applause. On "Cecom", MacCrimmon's haunting vocals were treated with echoed layering to create a beautiful sheer curtain of intoxicating vocals that flirted with the light energetic backdrop of the saz. On one piece, while singing, she skillfully handled the def, a Middle Eastern tambourine, to add whimsical effects as someone growled appreciatively from the audience, "You rock, baby!".

At many points in their performance Ertel related stories about life in Turkey, stating that he did "...not want to speak negatively about my country..." then adding that, "...the censorship committee banned our music not because of the music but because of the lyrics..." as the band jumped into a spacey piece of electronics. Meanwhile, Oykut skillfully drew a picture of a small animal that looked similar to a dog in a very restrictive cage while another animal in another equally restrictive cage reached over to console it. She later drew a two-headed monster, as the effect and power of the censorship committee was becoming clearer to the audience.

Throughout the performance, the cymbals were used liberally and contrasted with the primal power of the darbuka creating images of light against darkness and underscoring the mesmerizing timing of Turkish music. Speaking of timing, Ertel provided a brief lesson about the timing of Turkish music as he counted out one, two; one, two; one, two; one, two, three as he expressed his wish that the audience dream of this time signature that evening.

Once again, Ertel’s soul-drenching vocals, reminiscent of Dave Gahan (Depeche Mode), intertwining with MacCrimmon's Loreena McKennitt-like vocals provided a heady experience. Her Earth Mother expressiveness, and dream-like flow of warm energy created ecstatic chanting and envious shouts from the audience.

Later, Ertel held up a smaller saz connected to a mini amplifier distorting the sound as he turned the room into a rock concert stadium. Thankfully, the sound effects then changed to the wind whipping waves quickly over seashells.

Ertel stated that every country has its own (George) Bush to make people obey rules and so began a tongue-in-cheek song celebrating women's right to cheat. As the band continued their ode to freedom for adulterous women, suddenly, the aforementioned waves began to pound, crash against the shore as the thundering clash of cymbals meeting in the air battled with Akman's Jon Bonham drumming.


Ceren Oykut & Lale Sayoko

Murat Ertel & Lale Sayoko
As the belly dancer, wearing a sultry gold belly dancing costume, slithered and swayed, the band continued their Grace Jones' "Slave to the Rhythm" inspired intensity. The spoons, at Akman's hands tempered the intensity but it was short-lived as the band once again submerged the audience into the throbbing hold-on-to-the-headboard passionate rhythm. As the waves of distorted drums and psychedelic saz poured over the stage, the screen projection displayed an image of a mummy that morphed into a woman wrapped tightly in Muslim garb. The messages between the music and the artistically interpretive drawings, although conflicting, were each powerful.

Continuing their political and social commentary, Baba Zula began a song about Sheikh Bedreddin. Born of Muslim and Christian parents in the Anatolian city of Simav, Bedreddin was a philosopher and theologian who dreamed of a utopia where everyone in the world would unite. Dramatically, on the screen appeared a noose in which later was drawn a shepherd (read: philosopher, theologian) hanging, and a man with a gun behind him. Sadly, the censorship committee is continuing its legacy today.

Although the message in their final piece (and throughout the majority of their performance) was heavy, it did not deter the crowd's enthusiasm or desire for an encore, which they demanded with even more emotion than during the concert.

The encore of "Pirasa", with the cool intertwining of vocals between MacCrimmon and Ertel, once again, and Yes-style electronics satisfied the audience, especially when Ertel, without warning, jumped down from the stage, came out into the audience, and began charging up and down the room to the amusement of the onlookers. Still, after this display, it took a while before the room cleared, as everyone appeared to want to hold on to the magic of the Baba Zula experience.

A Bit about Baba Zula
A quirky name that fits their eccentric personas, Baba Zula means, in Native American, “great big secret,” which is similar to “Wakan Tanka” in Dakota mythology. In Turkish, Baba refers to “father” or “big thing” and Zula is similar to “secret”.
Turkish group, Baba Zula was created in 1996 in Istanbul, Turkey growing from the now disbanded Anatolian rock group, Zen. Their debut album, Tabutta Rövasata (Somersault in the Coffin) provided the original music score for Dervis Zaim's movie of the same name and was the reason for the formation of the band. Original member Emre Onel has since been replaced (in 2005) by Cosar Kamçi. Baba Zula was supposed to be a short-lived side project, but since their debut, Baba Zula has released a number of albums and worked with a variety of international stars in the music industry. Among their works are: 3 Oyundan 17 Müzik (Three Plays from Seventeen Pieces) on Doublemoon Records, which included music created for Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's classic, The Little Prince; Psychebelly Dance Music which was mixed and mastered by Mad Professor; Duble Oryantal, for which they worked again with Mad Professor, along with Alexander Hacke, Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare. They have also worked with well-known composers and lyricists in the world of Turkish music, such as Neset Ertas and Pir Sultan Abdal. The analog techniques of Turkish producer Mehmet Ates are also very much in evidence in their recordings.

Baba Zula
Murat Ertel – saz, other strings, vocals
Levent Akman – percussion, rhythm machines, toys
Cosar Kamçi – darbuka
Ceren Oykut – drawing artist
Lale Sayoko – bellydancer
guest
Brenna MacCrimmon – vocals

www.babazula.com

We welcome your comments and feedback
Laila Boulos
• • • • • •
Roger Humbert
lailaboulos@thelivemusicreport.com
• •
rogerh@thelivemusicreport.com
•
The Live Music Report
reporters@thelivemusicreport.com


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Baba Zula
Reinvigorating roots
by Anil Prasad to read this and see the photos too please go to http://www.innerviews.org/inner/babazula.html
Copyright © 2008 Anil Prasad. All rights reserved.
Turkey is a nation in the midst of a dramatic transition. It’s pushing forward with social and economic reforms as it pursues membership in the European Union. During the process, it’s casting an eye to the rear view mirror, pondering and situating the impact of centuries of history stretching back to its pre-Islamic, Shamanic roots on its current hybrid Islamic-secular nation state. It’s a multi-layered country that blends Eastern and Western influences into its cultural mix—a fact that’s particularly apt given its geographic location straddling Europe and Central Asia.
Baba Zula, Turkey’s most beloved alternative music purveyors, provide an ideal soundtrack for this region in flux. The Istanbul-based band combines dub and reggae influences, traditional Turkish instruments, and electronica into a truly one-of-a-kind psychedelic sound. Comprised of electric saz player and vocalist Murat Ertel, electronics and percussion maestro Levent Akman, and darbuka player Coşar Kamçi, the three-piece band creates an enormous sound bathed in myriad melodies and polyrhythms. In concert, Baba Zula is a quartet that also features the talents of Ceren Oykut, a renowned graphic artist that creates and renders projected digital images in real time.
While it is relatively unknown in the West, the saz is the foremost stringed instrument used in Turkey. With three-to-12 strings on a bouzouki-like body, it possesses a distinct, bright, and ringing high-pitched sound that’s pleasing to the ear. It’s at the core of the group’s sound and that of many other contemporary and traditional Turkish acts.
Baba Zula just released Roots, its sixth album. It’s a stripped down affair that represents the essence of the group’s trio interaction. Previous discs featured many special guests, as well as outside producers, but the band was intent on keeping things in the family for its latest outing. The album features 25 mostly short pieces that largely came out of studio improvisations, as well as three dub mixes by noted Japanese producer Naoyuki Uchida.
Listeners abroad may have been previously exposed to Baba Zula in Crossing the Bridge, a remarkable documentary by Fatih Akin now available on DVD worldwide. The film takes viewers through Istanbul's contemporary and avant-garde music scenes with a level of depth and intrigue rarely found in musical travelogues. The documentary has helped elevate Baba Zula’s international profile considerably. Don’t be surprised if they hit your local scene in the near term.
Ertel sat down with Innerviews over Turkish coffee and pastries in an Istanbul café to discuss the new album, the band’s history, and the complexities of life as an artist in Turkey.
Describe the beginnings of Baba Zula.
Initially, I was in a group called Zen that I formed in the late ‘80s. It was a progressive, psychedelic rock band with some Turkish influences. The band was based on playing our own compositions, but one day, the bass player didn’t show up to a rehearsal. So, we were left in the rehearsal room at the University of Bosphorus with me mostly playing guitar and singing, a drummer, and another guy singing and playing bendir, a round Turkish frame drum. We got bored of playing our own material and started improvising. That transformed the band into one that focused exclusively on collective improvisation. More people joined the band and over the years it ranged between five and nine musicians.
In 1996, a friend of mine named Dervish Zaim from the same university approached me and said he’s completed a film called Tabutta Rovasata which translates into “Somersault in the Coffin.” He had put some music on the film but wanted Zen to create a new score. So, we watched the movie and some guys in the group didn’t like it, while the other three did. So, we picked up a new name just to do the music for the project, and that’s how Baba Zula formed. We just reissued the soundtrack as a remastered CD.
We thought Baba Zula would end with the film soundtrack, but it turned out to be very successful and new possibilities opened up. We were invited to do a live concert, which we hadn’t planned on. We figured out how to do it by performing as a three-piece, along with an American bassist named William MacBeath, who went by the stage names William MacBeth or Bill MacBeat. We went on to perform and jam with him at other concerts, and through him, we also met the saxophonist Ralph Carney, who we also collaborated with. From there, taking in guests became part of the Baba Zula formula.
What does the name mean?
For Native Americans, it means “great big secret,” similar to “Wakan Tanka” in Dakota mythology. In Turkish, Baba refers to “father” or “big thing” and Zula is similar to “secret,” so it also loosely means the same thing.
Compare Zen’s music to what Baba Zula does.
It was very similar to what we do now, but much more simple and minimal. We didn’t want to stick with formulas, but rather just make music and then try to understand and analyze it later. Also, with Baba Zula, I wanted it to be more focused on Turkish folk influences than Zen. Zen was more psychedelic with a little bit of Turkish music, but it also had many Western influences which were becoming too much for me. With Baba Zula, I really found what I was looking for. In this band, we have a term called “defined improvisation” in that a piece may be defined with certain musical terms like a scale or a mood, but we play each song differently every time, yet when you listen to it, you understand that it’s that song. We also didn’t want to do the same thing as Zen. We wanted a more song-oriented approach that included more traditional forms and the improvisational components that are inherent in most Turkish music.
Why was it critical to incorporate the Turkish folk component into Baba Zula’s sound?
I really thought it was very important to find my roots and go back to the music I listened to during my childhood. There were great artists like Baris Manço and Mogollar who combined elements of Turkish folk with rock and roll who were really influential. When I was a child, I would get their 45s and listen to them over and ever. There’s also a form of music in Turkey called Ashik music, which means “the one that’s in love”—but not only with a woman or man. It also refers to being in love with God and nature. An Ashik is a minstrel who goes from village to village, carrying a saz, and he becomes a guest of the community. People give him a place to stay, and food and drink, and after awhile, he goes to another village. There were a lot of people like that in the past. Several Ashiks came to our house and were really important to my musical development. The main reason I took up the saz was because I was always seeing them.
I should also mention that my father, Mengü Ertel, was a graphic artist who did covers for many records by Turkish artists, which also proved highly influential for me. For instance, there was an artist named Ruhi Su and my father did all his album art direction during his lifetime, which came out to about 15 albums over a 24-year career. Before finishing his records, he would come over to our house and perform the whole album live. My father recorded it onto reel-to-reel tapes and he listened to them in the house while thinking about the cover design.
Tell me about the concept behind the band’s new CD Roots.
We wanted to make music that felt more like what we do in concert. Our previous two albums had lots of guests and production, so we chose to have just a couple of guests on the album and record mostly as a three-piece band, just like we did when we first formed. We also wanted to take advantage of recording techniques from the ‘50s and ‘60s in which they recorded in smaller studios and used acoustic technology. In addition, we wanted to get even further back to the roots of Turkish music on the album by using more indigenous Turkish instrumentation. We’re unhappy with the idea of globalization in which corporations want everyone to think about the same things, eat and drink the same things, and listen to the same music worldwide. Their strategy is to cut people off from their roots. So, we went in the opposite direction and tried to connect more with our roots. The album does have a mix of styles though given that we included a few dub mixes at the end of it by a DJ friend of ours from Japan named Naoyuki Uchida. He has a different sound from Mad Professor who we used on previous albums. Naoyuki takes a more minimalist and Eastern approach.
Describe the creative process behind Roots.
We began with five composed songs and the rest of the pieces were completely improvised. We had a two-day session during which we decided we would play short songs. We recorded 82 improvisations live as a trio and from those, we chose 21, which formed the basis for the rest of the album. In a way, this relates back to Zen because that group was entirely about improvised music. During the previous Baba Zula albums, we focused more on composed music, but we wanted to get away from that a bit because it started to feel a little formulaic. Having a balance of improvised and composed material feels like a good mix for the future too.
What made you want to incorporate dub influences into Baba Zula’s music?
I’ve always liked the echo effect and delay very much. It’s always been influential, even when presented in a kitsch way. The music of Jamaica has been an influence on me since childhood. Some of the music that was most important to me as a child was Harry Belafonte’s calypso stuff. It gave me a grasp of Jamaican sounds. Then when Bob Marley became famous, he became a very big hero of mine. I liked that he was one of the first non-American, non-Anglo-Saxon musical heroes in the world. I really learned about reggae through him and that’s how I also found out about dub music.
The most interesting music to me is that which is influenced by reggae, including dub and reggae-influenced drum-and-bass acts. Lyrically, I also like the rebellion against the system and government represented in the music. It also stands for freedom, peace, and equality which are all things I really admire. Going back to Marley, he really made the point that it’s a white man’s world and that there is inequality to be overcome, and it’s that way in Turkey as well. Rhythmically, I also find dub very interesting because of the strong downbeats. In blues and rock, the downbeat usually hits on the second and fourth beats, but in Jamaican and Turkish music, they mostly hit on the first and third beats. So, there’s a link between two musical cultures there. You can actually replace a reggae drum machine with a traditional Turkish drum machine and it doesn’t feel strange.
How did you hook up with Mad Professor, who produced the band’s Duble Oryantal and Psyche-Belly Dance Music records?
When we started Psyche-Belly Dance Music, we had a problem with the drum machines we were using. They can be very dangerous in that they can get cheesy pretty fast. You really need to have a great sound to use them well. We were thinking about the problem and Cem Yegul, the executive producer from our label Doublemoon, said “You’ve made a very dubby album. Why not get a very good dub engineer to mix it?” We thought that was a very good idea. We thought about Lee Perry, Scientist, and Mad Professor. We thought Lee Perry would be risky [laughs] and felt that Mad Professor would be our man, so we contacted him. He came to Istanbul to mix three tracks, but we were so happy with what he did that we asked him to continue. He’s a really great musician. He also really deserves his name. Sometimes he fucks up equipment because he really takes things to the limit. [laughs] He’s a guy that’s done lots of things with electronics, but also with a deep roots feeling, which parallels what we’re about. We also have the songs too. We call the combination “Oriental Dub” and we hope to create some more music with him in the future. He really felt like a member of the group. He has a great grasp of what we’re doing and can really work some magic on the control board.
Your main instrument is the saz. Describe it for people who are unfamiliar with it.
It’s the main instrument in Turkish folk music. It’s been named differently throughout history. At first, it was called the kopuz when Turks lived in Asia. According to some art historians, this may have been around 1000 BC until sometime between 650 and 1000 AD when there were Arabian attacks and genocides against Turkish people. The kopuz was made out of a horse skull. Its body was covered in leather and it had a fretless fingerboard. The instrument was played with a bow. During this period, Turkish people, mostly Shamans, were killed and forced to convert to Islam. Lots of instruments resembling the Shamanist roots were banned and burned. As a result, the kopuz became less popular but continued its existence in various forms and names.
When Turks became Muslims, some of them came to Anatolia under the name of Selcuks. In the manuscripts of the Selcuk Turks we can see the word saz used for the first time, so it was renamed during this transitional period. It likely changed a bit during this time and had a wooden body instead of a leather-covered one, with metal strings replacing the gut ones. Also, the bow began being replaced by fingers and plectrums. Around this time, the Turkish people spread Islam themselves, and special ways of interpreting Islam were born around Anatolia. Some of the most beautiful examples for me are the Alevi, Bektashi, and Mevlevi orders. Those three sects of Islam are all closely related with the Anatolian Turkish culture. Their approach is to link Islam with the old Shamanic ways, and also through dance and music. For the Alevis and Bektashis, the saz became a symbol of Anatolia and revolt. This relates to the period around the 14th century, when the Ottoman Empire was founded by the Turkish people and others from Anatolia. At this time, the saz was seen as a symbol of opposition against the ruling Sunni sect. So, the Ottomanic Islamic authorities sought to ban it again. Around the 18th century, the name baglama emerged. The name means “to tie,” which I think must reference an instrument with tied frets, exactly as it is nowadays.
There is a great song by Ashik Dertli from the end of the 18th century which still refers to the instrument as a saz, and describes the situation perfectly:
Telli sazdir bunun adi.
(Stringed saz is its name.)
Ne ayet dinler ne kadi.
(It doesn’t listen to the verses of Qu’ran or the sayings of Muslim judges.)
Bunu calan anlar kendi.
(The one who plays it understands himself.)
Seytan bunun neresinde.
(Which part of it belongs to the devil?)
So, the instrument has three names. I prefer saz, but you still hear it called baglama, which is an even more popular name today. I should also mention that the bouzouki, which is far more well-known throughout the world, is nothing but a saz with a longer mandolin neck with frets and tuners. It was brought to Greece by the Rembetiko players who lived on the Turkish side of the Aegean Sea around the 1920s. It is named after the most popular tuning of the saz called bozuk, which means broken tuning.
When the kopuz evolved into the saz, it had gut strings that were played with fingers or a plectrum called a mizrap. Later, frets and steel strings were put on it and it began being played with plucks. Now, it’s usually set up with three sets of double- or triple-strings, with each grouping tuned in unison. Sometimes each group of strings is a combination of bass and treble strings. The fretting system is different from Western instruments in that it has 17 notes per octave. So, it has the 12 tones of the Western scale, plus five tones. And the additional five tones are not quarter tones divided equally, but another system called Comma, which is a Turkish system that wasn’t written, but passed down orally going back thousands of years. So, the division of the frets, in essence, represents the basis of Turkish melodic theory. In Turkish classical music, they divide things into between 24 and 32 and sometimes even more frets, which to me is impractical. It results in too many little frets. So, in Turkish folk music there are 17 frets. We also have certain scales which are called maqams or ayaks in Turkish folk music. These are different from typical scales in that they don’t always have just one octave, but usually two. And they aren’t always seven-note scales. Sometimes they are eight- or nine-note scales that begin from low notes and go into the high notes or vice-versa. There are also other scales that travel around, resulting in three main types of maqams.
The saz types are a bit like saxophones in that they start from soprano and go into the baritone registers. Each instrument covers a different range of notes and sounds. The big one is very large. It’s called a Meydan saz, which means “the big place where you held your meeting.” Therefore, it has a neck so big that you can’t hold it—you have to put your arm around it to play it. It offers very powerful volume and sometimes has nine strings arranged as three sets of three. The baglama stands at the middle of the saz range with a longer neck than a guitar. The smallest saz is called the three-stringed saz and only has three single strings on it.
You play an electric version of the instrument. Tell me how that variation evolved.
The electric saz was born in the ‘60s because of an electric guitarist named Erkin Koray. He’s not a saz player, but he came up with the electric saz idea. He wanted a specific sound and had one made for him. It’s a similar story to the blues guys who came to Chicago and other big cities with noisy clubs and couldn’t get their acoustic instruments heard, which is why they went to electric guitar. It’s the same story here. The electric saz is like a city version of a saz. It’s much easier to play at a high volume. One of the problems with it is that I get uncontrolled feedback from some electric sazs because they have hollow bodies. That’s why I decided to make a solid body electric saz. I’ve also added MIDI capabilities to one of my sazs, which I’ve been experimenting with in the studio.
I find the electric saz very interesting because it is the first and still the only Turkish instrument that has been electrified and modernized. It also is the only instrument that has links starting from the pre-Islamic roots of Turkish culture and then Anatolian culture and now modern day Istanbul.
While visiting Istanbul, I noticed there were few books or films documenting the Turkish music scene beyond Crossing the Bridge.
There are few documents, which is a problem. There are really fantastic musicians here, including a lot of old ones who could die any time. There should be books and films made because they know lots of things that young musicians don’t. There are also lots of old recordings that have yet to be re-released so people can have access to this important cultural information. Unfortunately, I think people are thinking very commercially here. Only the idealistic ones are looking beyond that realm. Things are changing little by little. One good example is old Turkish film songs from the ‘70s are resurfacing. Before the military coup in 1980, Turkey had the third biggest movie industry after Hollywood and Bollywood. Many of these films have been recycled on television and have worked their way into everyone’s subconscious. So, they took popular songs from those films, compiled them on a CD called Belkis Ozener and it became a number one hit. Since this record, people realized that old music can sell and they’ve started to pursue reissues, but the artists aren’t always treated with respect. For instance, for Bariş Manço, a funk-rock pioneer, there is no complete album of his released in original form from his ‘60s or ‘70s output. The songs are scattered across compilations. The albums should be reissued properly, in their entirety. Having said that, it’s good that there is a new respect for older Turkish music.
How do you look back at Crossing the Bridge?
It was a real milestone because there was almost nothing available on the recent music scene in Istanbul and Turkey. It’s a very influential scene and people should be aware of it. The movie was done by a Turkish guy named Fatih Akin, but he was born in Germany. So, a lot of Turkish guys got pissed off and jealous because they didn’t think about doing it first. In particular, lots of Turkish directors were upset because the film was so successful. Many say “It doesn’t represent the whole scene. This is not all of Istanbul.” Of course not. It can’t be. People should use the film as a motivation to create their own movies and focus on their favorite artists. A lot of things have changed since the movie. There are a lot of great things happening for Turkish musicians and we can feel it. We’ve been able to tour Europe and Japan, and these things could not have happened this fast without the film. We’ve also been on CNN, Euronews, and other television networks as a result
Baba Zula is one of the main acts featured in the film. How did the band get involved with it?
I knew Fatih, but I first read that he was planning to work with us in a magazine. [laughs] I was really glad because he’s a director that I really admire. The collaboration began at a club called Peyote in Istanbul. They asked Baba Zula to be the artistic directors for the venue, and the first thing we did was ban all the guys who played nothing but covers. [laughs] Most of the bands and musicians we chose to play at the club like Replikas and Selim Sesler made it into the film. When Fatih talked to them, he learned about their influences and sought them out for profiles too. It was a very natural and sincere project. The film also put me in touch with Alex Hacke of Einstürzende Neubauten, one of my favorite bands. Through him, I also met people like Lydia Lunch that I really love. The film proved very important and has influenced a lot of musicians. A lot of artists now come through Istanbul who are excited about the scene and want to be part of it.
Baba Zula’s live show is highly acclaimed. Describe what you’re going for when you perform.
We really enjoy playing live because like Jean Baudrillard said, “We are living in an age of simulation.” And those simulations are getting better and better to the point where the difference between simulations and reality are becoming less and less. In this age, we feel a live concert should really be something. It should be better than a DVD in your living room. You should go to a concert knowing it will be the only possible time you can experience that unique event. To that end, we have improvisational elements in the concert. We also have multidisciplinary levels of art, including Ceren Oykut, who is drawing artwork that is projected on a screen throughout the show. She is a very important element of the experience. She helps draw people into the music. She also helps tell the stories of the songs to people who see us when we perform abroad. Most of the time, people don’t understand Turkish and she helps bridge that gap. We also have the element of belly dancing, which is a very interesting style to incorporate onstage. We don’t use belly dancing in a tourist sort of way. We are thinking about it at another level in that everyone has a connection to their mother’s belly. It is where we all come from. It’s true that belly dancing movements are erotic, but they are also linked to the act of giving birth. Belly dancing also links us to the Shamanic, pre-Islamic roots of Turkey that some people are trying to get the Turkish people to forget.
Is there a political component to Baba Zula’s music?
Yes, the Ashiks were very political, and as my role models, infused me with including that idea in my music. When I hear there is injustice around me, I really get angry and want to express my thoughts about it through music. I want to fight lots of evil stuff that I don’t want in this world. The lyrics aren’t always directly about politics, but rather the politics of life. We have lots of songs about animals, plants, and nature. Some people criticize that and say “Why don’t you deal with important matters?” For instance, we have a song called “Leek” which I think has an important message. We survive by killing animals and plants, yet we don’t have any respect for them. No-one can tell me that a human being is superior to a plant. We don’t know that. It’s a life form and maybe a better life form than a human being because it comes from the Earth and has a real relationship with air, water, and the sun. And when it’s dead, it becomes part of the planet. It has senses and a way of life and we should respect it. The same goes for animals.
Some people think animals are dumb and stupid, but this might not be the situation. In fact, we might be the dumb ones. The bears might be more creative than us. You can’t judge these things by the weight of your brain. I’ve always thought about these other angles. When I was a kid, I always saw Westerns that portrayed the Native Americans as the enemy and later found out that they were actually the good guys, not the bad guys. Baba Zula’s lyrics reflect those perspectives and sometimes people don’t like them. There are people that even want to ban us because of this. Five songs from our Duble Oryantal were banned from Turkish state radio because of their lyrics. “Leek,” “Children of Istanbul,” I Think I’m Pregnant,” “Free Spirit,” and ”Oh No, My Uncle Came” were all banned. The lyrics are nothing compared to what you hear in America. Take “I Think I’m Pregnant” for example. It’s about a girl that tells a guy she’s pregnant and that because of this, they will be banished. Later, the listener finds out the garden she’s referring to is Eden, and that these two are Adam and Eve. That was enough to have the track banned.
How did you react to being banned?
I can’t understand it. There are lots of weird examples of censorship with the Islamist government. There’s even a growing feeling that if you write lyrics that are considered controversial you could be murdered. There have been artists that have had to move away from Turkey because of political or religious persecution related to their art. You might have a case where lots of people support what you do, but there could be 10 maniacs out there threatening you that make the situation unlivable. Music has always been a problem throughout Turkish history. People were killed because of their songs and music going back centuries. Even as recently as 1992, more than 50 saz players, poets, and writers were staying at a hotel in Istanbul that a fanatic Islamist group set fire to. Thirty of them were badly burned, suffocated and lost their lives. Even my own family has had problems because of the military coups in Turkey. Some of them were put into prison and tortured.
Today’s conditions aren’t as bad as the past, but we don’t know what’s going to happen in the future. There’s a feeling that anything could still happen and things may get worse. Maybe I’m overly paranoid, but the current Turkish government is acting in unison with the petrol-oriented powers, including George Bush and the Saudi Arabians and I really don’t like it. Our government tries to seem liberal and acts like our people are free, but the truth is, only if you are rich can you act like you are free. If you’re a poor person, you live in terrible conditions and face a lot of economic and societal pressure. There is heavy stuff going on here, including a war in Iraq, so things are very difficult.
An example of how the government pretends to be liberal, yet really isn’t, manifests itself in the fact that you can’t go on television and sing about certain things. I really envy Western musicians who can talk about God, religious matters, and the government in the media. They can freely express themselves and you cannot really do it here. The worst part is the self-censorship that has taken hold in Turkey. Because you know you cannot talk about certain things, you censor yourself before even making an attempt.
Does self-censorship affect Baba Zula’s output?
Yes. It’s sad, but true. I use art as a filter for my thoughts and to try and talk about certain things at certain acceptable levels. If I didn’t take this approach, it would be very dangerous for me. Look at Orhan Pamuk, the Nobel-winning Turkish author. He is living in New York City now, partly because he was threatened for his views. A fantastic classical pianist named Fazil Say also dared to comment on the problems in Turkey and how the government is trying to move in a fundamentalist Islamist direction by modifying secular rights in favor of Islamic laws. There were lots of insults and attacks on him, and he’s just a classical instrumentalist.
There is also Hrant Dink, a prominent Turkish-Armenian writer who was shot dead outside of his newspaper’s office in Istanbul. He was a peaceful man who defended the rights of Armenians who live in Turkey and Turkish people abroad. So, we as artists try to do our best and protest in the way we can without overly attracting the attention of the fundamentalists. However, most of our songs with lyrics remain banned from radio and television. Most musicians that appear in the media don’t talk about anything other than love and relationships. Young people are really being brainwashed by television and radio because they aren’t being told about the important problems around them.
Baba Zula is the most popular alternative music act in Turkey. It’s surprising that you can be that well known, yet not have your music played very frequently.
Word of mouth is a big factor in our success, which is a great, organic way of building a fan base. The Internet has also played a really big role in attracting attention. I should also mention that it is possible to talk about serious matters in your art here, but you get a small audience. This is largely because media outlets are owned by fewer and fewer people. There is an underground movement in comic books and magazines which tell the truth about what is happening and I have hope and faith that these will turn some young people onto some new ideas.
What’s coming up for Baba Zula?
We’re just starting to think about the next album now. We did some recording with Lydia Lunch, including two songs and one improvisation. We are also planning on recording with Jaki Liebezeit from Can. We’ve played with him a few times over the years and really like him. Jaki is a great drummer and can play the Turkish odd time meters and rhythms. He really has a great grasp of Turkish culture. I also recently performed with the Patti Smith Group in Istanbul which was quite an experience. I played on a couple of songs, including a cover of Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” I’m hoping we can do something with her in the future too. So, there are a lot of possibilities for the upcoming Baba Zula album and I’m really excited about how things are unfolding for it.
Related Websites:
Baba Zula
Baba Zula on MySpace
Ceren Oykut on MySpace
Zen on MySpace
Mengü Ertel on MySpace
Doublemoon


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Site design by Andy Rinehart of color:gray

Tabutta Rovasata orjinal film muzikleri albumu, uzun bir aradan sonra, Baba ZuLa'nin 10.yilinda Aysen Aydemir ve Dursun'un aziz hatiralarina adanarak tekrar dagitima girdi.

dursun tabutta rovasata filminde mahzun ismi ile ahmet ugurlu tarafindan canlandirilan gercek bir karakterdi.

The album Sommersault in the coffin, at the 10th anniversary of baba zula, is dedicated to the beloved memories of Aysen Aydemir and Dursun.

 .................................................................................................................................................................................murat ertel ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................electric saz.............. acoustic saz .......electric guitar............ 12 string acoustic guitar............. bass guitar.............. tapes ...............drums............ bendir ...................samplers.............. synth................... percussion ..................................................................................................................................................................... levent akman .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................spoons ........percussion...... finger cymbals ..............drums ............bendir,............machines........................ ............................................................................................................................................... ..................................................................................................................................emre onel ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................darbuka........................,percussion..........................drums,...................bendir

 

dursun was a real character who inspired director dervish zaim to base the main character of his movie...the album is remastered..it features the original music score of the film and 4 other songs with the voices of ahmet uğurlu, ayşen aydemir and tuncel kurtiz...

 

Baba Zula: from the belly of the beats

Underground music maniacs, the real hardcore otaku (obsessed fans), have long raved about the Turkish psychedelic music of the 1960s and '70s -- crazy reverb-drenched, twangy-guitar tracks that sounded like The Ventures if they'd been a belly-dancer backing band with a taste for hashish and quarter-tone tunings.

This stuff never traveled much, though, and only recently has this music started reappearing on cleverly packaged compilations wrapped in an aura of retro-chic, on albums like "Love, Peace, and Poetry: Turkish Psychedelic Music" and "Hava Narghile," which is the "Nuggets" of Anatolian psyche-pop.

A first glance at Istanbul-based band Baba Zula -- with their garish, baroque visual style and classic, shaggy boho looks -- might leave you thinking that one of these '70s hippie bands has aged particularly well. When you listen, though, you'll hear a stylistic pastiche that is thoroughly postmodern -- mixing traces of dub and improv-rock with traditional Turkish instrumentation.

This sort of blend is appreciated more overseas than at home -- though that's starting to change. Next month will see Baba Zula's live debut in Japan, and the band spoke with The Japan Times to discuss their evolution and influences.

Baba Zula formed in 1996 as an improv group doing music for avant-garde theater. But it quickly became a band in its own right, based around members Murat Ertel (electric saz and guitar), Levent Akman (percussion, drum machines, toy instruments) and Emre Onel (darbukka, sampler, keyboard, vocals). The band's lineup has expanded and contracted over the years but is again a trio. Says Ertel: "We came back to the beginning. I think it's the ultimate Baba Zula sound because simplicity and roots are important for us. Turkish traditional folk music also emphasizes simplicity and fewer instruments, but the music becomes more powerful because of it."

Baba Zula have released three albums on Doublemoon: "3 Oyundam 17 Muzik," a collection of their music for theater; "Ruhani Oyun Havalari," which saw them move more heavily into "Oriental Dub" mode with Mad Professor behind the mixing desk; and their latest "Duble Oryantal," which also saw Jamaican greats Sly & Robbie supply a few rhythm tracks. Ertel describes how the group hooked up with Mad Professor, the premiere U.K. dub mixer, who has worked with Massive Attack and Jamiroquai, among others: "We met him in Istanbul at a show, and he agreed to make mixes for three of our songs, but it went so well that he did the whole album. Mad Professor is crazy about electronics and effects . . . He brings a sense of clarity to our music. Also, he's a rootsman and he comes from the (African) Yoruba tribe, so we learned from each other the spirit behind our thinking."

A typical Mad Professor production for Baba Zula is something like "Kisaltmalar (Dub Mix)" on their second album. Guest musicians Husnu Senlendirici on Gypsy clarinet and Brenna MacCrimmon on vocals provide snakey, supple melodic lines that the Mad Prof. stretches and fractalizes with delays and dropouts; a decidedly Oriental bassline grooves along in that irresistible 9/8 Turkish rhythm, heavy with the anchor-weight of dub, and rolling darbukka percussion gets subtly shaded by veils of echo and filtering.

When Ertel is asked what "dub" -- a nebulous word at best when once removed from the shores of Jamaica -- meant to him in a Turkish context, he replied cryptically, "Dub means the power of simplicity and emptiness and beauty of echoes of time . . ." When pressed to elaborate, he'd say only "I think that says everything about dub." Period. Hard to argue, really.

The band is capable of strange and delicate beauty, on tracks like "Cecom," which mixes insects and garbled bits of found sound with a slow, trilling melody on saz, and a haunting, doubled vocal by MacCrimmon. They're equally capable of kicking out the jams, though, and Ertel says "it's important to have a groove: music that if you hear it, it will be moving you. We want to dance at our own concerts too! And of course, we have to make our bellydancers dance . . ."

Baba Zula are known, somewhat tongue-in-cheek, as purveyors of "Psychebelly Dance Music," and the collaborations of free-minded dancers have become an integral part of their live act. Many dancers in Tokyo adore the band for its eccentric approach.

Nourah, a student of Tokyo legend Mishaal, and an accomplished dancer in her own right, toured Denmark and Turkey with the band last year and will dance with them in Tokyo. She tells how "dancing with Baba Zula is unlike with any other band; it's really improvised. You're never sure how the song is going to change or end. But they trust me and just want me to dance freely."

Asked why Baba Zula incorporate bellydance into their shows, Ertel says, "I think it's a very erotic and a very revolutionary ancient ritual from matriarchal times." Asked about its popularity in Japan, he replies "I think women all around the world are becoming more powerful to express themselves. But Japanese bellydancing has a very high aesthetic side to it. We performed with Nourah the most and she is fantastic . . . if she only pretended to dance like a Turkish bellydancer it wouldn't be influential for us."

Baba Zula often talk about how important improvisation is to their sound, but their songs also seem quite structured. "When we play live, some part comes from the soul, and some from the mind," explains Ertel. "Just like yin and yang, we have to keep a balance. It's different always, and that's why it's exciting. We are jamming composers."

The band's most striking aspect may be its ability to bridge Turkish folk styles like taksim or gazel with imported styles like dub or electronica, but as Onel has said previously, "We are not concerned with an East-West synthesis whatsoever. As long as sounds are in harmony, it doesn't matter if they come from a cooking pot or a drum." Ertel notes that "the great division in music is between the West and the rest, not just the East."

In the end, Baba Zula are a very hard band to pin down, full of contradictions that they somehow resolve musically. One thing that you can be sure of is that their show will be quite an experience; "Our concerts are rituals," says Ertel. "We are trying to reach a point of catharsis, trying to feel an energy which comes from the ancient times." (G.F.)

Baba Zula perform with Double Famous and bellydancers Nourah and Akiko Takada on April 4, 7:30 p.m., Club Quattro, Shibuya; advance tickets: 5,000 yen, same day 5,500 yen (both include one drink). Tickets available from Ticket Pia, Lawson Ticket and Club Quattro. For more information, contact Conversation at (03) 5280-9996. www.conversation.co.jp

See related story:
Sounds that bridge two continents

 

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­Turning Japanese

 

After their trip to Tokyo Baba Zula return to Turkey and their roots with a surprising new CD. James Snow investigates.  

The new CD released by Baba Zula marks a return to their original sound, and is fittingly called "Kökler", or "origins". The title can also be translated as "roots". After viewing band member Ceren Oykut's artwork for the CD, which is dominated by large limbed trees with massive roots, perhaps this is a better translation to go with. After releasing two albums, which featured a typically eclectic, east-meets-west, coterie of guests, from Sly and Robbie to Alexander Hacke, the group decided to strip down their lineup, getting back to the core members: frontman and visionary, Murat Ertel, effects and electronics maestro, Levent Akman, and the virtuoso, percussionist, Çosar Kamçi. The only guest is their frequent collaborator and friend, the Canadian singer, Brenna MacCrimmon.

Significantly, the album is also produced by the legendary Mehmet Ate--, rather than Mad Professor (of Massive Attack fame), who produced their last two CDs*. The group chose to work with him to get back to the "authentic", analog sound of late 60s Turkish psych-rock songs they were enamored with in their youth, much of it produced by Ate--. The difference in sound is very apparent. Levent's effects, electronic beats and samples are still there, but the rest is raw and retro. After a long odyssey characterized by 'oriental dub', 'psychedelic belly dance' and musique concrete, in other words, a radical reconfiguration of Turkish folk, here the group gets back to basics.

Most of the 29 tracks are instrumentals. Guest, Brenna MacCrimmon, sings the only straightforward song. The other folk song comes courtesy of a sampled and manipulated Ne--et Erta-- 45". The snap, crackles and pops of old-fashioned vinyl are audible on the latter. Fans of Baba Zula's forays into dub will be glad to know they are still playing around with that genre. However, overall, this CD ia more of a Turkish folk collection, BZ style. Expect odd instruments like the Japanese gas heater, which Murat rescued from the rubbish bin because he loved the illustration of a geisha on it, which is drummed on ("japon halay--") and other oddities, but be ready for a more traditional approach than usual. The album will most definitely appeal to listeners who liked their debut album, the soundtrack to the film, "Somersault in the Coffin", and to fans of their live shows.

Traveling around town with this album on the i-pod, gave this writer a sense of place. Though the sound of the saz is often melancholy, the effect is balanced by the upbeat energy provided by the Turkish percussion, and BZ's playfulness when it comes to lyrics, samples and effects. Somehow it all seemed to fit the cityscape in a way all the trendy east-meets-west albums coming out…don't. For example, Turkish pop groups who play ska and sound like The Specials are alright on their own terms, but create a kind of cognitive dissonance, as they don't seem to really come from anywhere but the much-hyped global village, which often is no more than a non-place alla Starbucks – rootless, in short. Songs like "iskender", which recounts the apocryphal encounter in Anatolia between Alexander the Great and Diogenes the Cynic, also place the listener historically. According to legend, Alexander offered Diogenes anything he wanted and his only response was to ask Alexander, who was overshadowing him, to step out of his sunlight.

The paradox is BZ's return to their own Anatolian roots came out of a trip to Japan. How you might ask? TOIST caught up with Murat and Levent at the café-restaurant, Misket, to find out:

Murat Ertel: There was this Japanese dub engineer we met in Tokyo…"Uchi" (Naouyuki Uchida)…and we worked with him at the concert in Tokyo and we were very, very pleased. It was the shortest soundcheck of our whole career. It finished in 15 minutes.

Levent Akman: Everything was ready.

ME: The frequency he got with the bass and effects was perfect so we said we want to work with you, so we sent three songs to them. He produced them in Tokyo and sent them back.

TOIST: The last three songs, right?

LA: Yes, the last three.

ME: Our trip to Japan was very important for this album. It really affected this album very much. It really changed our conception of the oriental or the Far East…because the Japanese are living in a kind of science fiction world. They are living ahead of all the other civilizations that we know…and also they are linked to their old traditions at the same time, so they are very futuristic, but also traditional. That approach really suited us very much. We are kind of like that. We have a link with tradition but we are kind of futuristic.

LA: And also in Japan they are very enthusiastic about belly dancing. We heard there are around 200 belly dance schools in Tokyo and our belly dancer from Tokyo…She has 25 students and her teacher has 60 students…and also they wanted to dance to our slow songs.

TOIST: How did the dub stuff go over there? What did they react to the most?

ME: They reacted to the Turkish folk songs, and the slow style the most, which was a very strange thing for us…We have a theory about Turkish culture and Japanese culture having a link and this link was destroyed by China's interference. Just a theory (laughs)…

TOIST: It's all getting homogenized and polished?

LA: Yes…Germany, Belgium, France, it all looks the same, but Japan and Tokyo are very different.

TOIST: One last question: You've had songs banned before. Do you think any of the songs on this album will suffer the same fate.

ME: Yes, (laughs) all of them.

 

Kökler is out now on the Doublemoon label. Most decent shops now devote a whole section to Doublemoon's output, but you should find it easy to find this one. Not only is the music stripped down, but the album's artwork departs from the usual digitally manipulated images that characterize today's CD covers, and stands out on the shelf with its simple black and white drawing by Ceren Oykut.

*The group also released a film soundtrack. Go to www.babazula.com for details for a complete discography.

 

 

http://www.timeout.com.tr/yazi_goster.php?artID=785

Gokhan Akcura & Baba Zula Presents: Killing in Istanbul!!

After a busy summer spent playing at important European festivals like Wenn, Arezzo Wave, Klinkende Munt and a string of dates in Denmark, Baba Zula return to their old stomping ground Babylon to present their latest project Kilink.

The project is inspired by a skeleton clad anti-hero, the Italian comic book character Killing. Over time this character became popular in Turkey as well and was the subject of many cult favorite films. Shot in Turkey, Baba Zula perform an improvisational soundtrack to the Killing films, which are shown on screens during their performance.

Don't miss the chance to see which Killing hero each member chooses to dress up as for this special performance at Babylon!

Murat Ertel: Elektric saz, Theremin
Levent Akman: Drum machine, percussion
Cosar Kamci: Darbuka, Bendir, Bas Darbuka
Ceren Oykut: Visuals
Munire Deniz Akgündüz: Dancer
Sema Yildiz: Dancer


Date/Time: 22th November 2006, Wednesday / 21:30

Place: BABYLON - Beyoglu/Istanbul

Enterence: 25 YTL, student 15 YTL

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Gökhan Akçura & Baba Zula Sunar : Kilink Istanbul'da!

Caniler Krali Killing Turkiye..de 1967 yilinda bir foto-roman olarak yayinlandi. Ama orada kalmadi. Yilmaz Atadeniz..in cabalariyla sinemaya aktarildi: Kilink Istanbul'da! Ardindan bu olumcul kahramani yurt topraklarinda misafir edip onlarca filmini cektik. Iste bu nadide sahsiyetle, gecikmis bir randevuda bir araya gelecegiz. Fotoroman kareleri, filmler, video roportajlar ve surpriz konuklarla birlikte.

Killing'in nazik kollarinda ve elbette esas olarak bir Baba Zula konserindesiniz.

Iyi seyirler!

Not: Konsere maskeli gelmenizi rica ederiz.

Murat Ertel: Elektrik saz, Theremin
Levent Akman: Drum machine, perküsyonlar
Cosar Kamci: Darbuka, Bendir, Bas Darbuka
Ceren Oykut: Gorseller
Munire Deniz Akgunduz: Dans
Sema Yildiz: Dans


Zaman: 22 Kasim Carsamba / 21:30

Mekan: BABYLON - Beyoglu/Istanbul

Giri..: Ayakta 25 YTL, ögrenci 15 YTL



..>..>

That's right... Babazula is headed back on the road in Denmark starting 30th Aug in Magasinet and they are not quitting until the middle of September. The Japanenese belly dancer "Nourah" will also accompany all shows in Denmark ...

Denmark Tour guest: Nourah from Tokio
30.08 Odense @ Magasinet
31.08 Rodovre @ Viflen
01.09 Roskilde @ Hestetorvet
02.09 Ringsted @ Torvet
03.09 Copenhagen @ Vega
04.09 Vordingborg @ Stars
05.09 Helsingborg @ Dunkers

 

Plus, the group will perform with Alexander Hacke and Nourah at Balance Concert Hall , 6th September, Istanbul/ Turkey...

and so on... also, the soundtrack of Crossing The Bridge ( featuring Baba Zula ) has scored as the "album of the month" in the same magazine...

*****************************************

Baba Zula, RYTHM dergisinin son sayýsýnda yer alýyor. Ayrica Crossing the Bridge dergide "Ayýn Albümü" seçilmiþ bulunuyor. Ýlisikte makalenin Turkce cevirisini bulabilirsiniz....

 

 

 

 

- FATIH AKININ ISTANBUL MUZÝK ANSIKLOPEDISI AVRUPAYI FETHETTI

Fatih Akin'in filmini ve soundtrackini birbirlerinden bagimsiz 

olarak incelemek dogal olarak mümkün degil.  Haliyle bu yazidaki  

sinematografik anlara olan göndermeler de kacinilmaz. Keza bir sekilde filmin 

tarzi bunu gerektiriyor. "The Sound of Istanbul"da Baba Zula sadece 

Baba Zula degil, bir tekne ile Bogaziçi'nde yolculuk yapan, canli çalan 

bir Baba Zula ve filme de bu sekilde "giriyorlar". Kürt sarkici Aynur 

Dogan sadece karizmatik bir sekilde Kece Kurdan albümünden Ehmedo'yu 

Fatih Akin'in kamerasi ve Alexander Hacke'nin kayit cihazlarinin önünde 

söyleyen Aynur degil; Kirmanca söylemeye cesaret edenlerin çileli 

anlarini yeniden yasayan Aynur'dur. Efsanevi aktör ve sarkici Orhan Gencebay, 

önünde bir kaç nesil hayranin egildigi ekranda görülen bir silüet degil, 

o an gerçeklesen sanatin bir parçasi. Bu filmde yer alan isimler sadece 

senaryo geregi  özel kilinmistir demek istemiyorum. Orient 

Expressions ve Mercan Dede'nin ayni (Doublemoon) plak sirketinden çikan 

albümleri de sicagi sicagina piyasa sürüldü ve her ikisini de siddetle 

tavsiye ediyorum. Yoksa 70 dakikalik bir müzikal ürünün Istanbul 

denilen labirenti gezmek için son derece yetersiz oldugu gerçegine 

gözlerimizi ( ya da kulaklarimizi)hafifçe kapatirsak, sadece tanidigimizi 

sandigimiz (ve bizden aslinda çok uzak olmayan gerek kültürel, gerek cografik) 

bir dünyanin mükemmel bir mozagini sunuyor filmin soundtrack'i. Son 

olarak anmamamiz gereken bir sey de su: Hey! Bu soundtrack ayni zamanda 

Eisturzende Neubauten bascisinin eseri. Kendisi filmde rehber rolunde ve 

kesinlikle Buena Vista Social Club'taki Ry Cooder veya Moro No 

Brazil'deki Mika Kaurismaki'den asagi kalmiyor!

Tzvetan Tzvetanov

4/5

Rhythm Magazine July 2006

www.rhythm.bg

********************************************************

 

Remember the show w/ Mad Professor at Carling Academy, London on the last April??

Well, here are a few pics from there... at least, we have some:)

*********

Geçtiðimiz Nisan ayinda Londra Carling Academy'de vuku bulan Baba Zula - Mad Professor konserini animsayan var mi?

Buyrun buradan yakin. Az ve öz :)

Thanx to Zeynep Tulin Dogen for the pictures...

New show dates has just announced and Baba Zula will be performing in UK's Venn Festival besides Belgium and Turkey ... For more information, please click the picture below and check out the offical site of the festival ...


Just to remind you all... Between 18-25 May, Baba Zula's long time collaborator singer, who is also performing vocals in "Cecom", Brenna MacCrimmon will accompany all events and shows...