Customer Reviews

Sultan's Secret Door

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This CD is the next best thing to seeing Burhan Ocal and his band perform live. The songs are great, and the excellent sound quality really brings them to life. Percussionist Burhan Ocal is a master finger drummer, and the other members of the band play excellently on mostly traditional instruments such as the oud and the quunun. The violin on track 2 add a very nice touch. There's good balance between the more festive numbers (tracks 1, 2) and the mellow ones (track 3). Highly recommended.

Many Turkish ensembles and musicians are available, playing modern, classical Ottoman, gypsy, other ethnic, and regional musics. For a flavor of traditional forms with a contemporary arrangements, this album by Burhan Öcal's Istanbul Oriental Ensemble is for me the best of his many similar recordings and among the finest of all Turkish albums available. Oud, violin, qanun zither, clarient and zurna reeds, various drums and other percussion, and tanbur and saz lutes perform both stately and sensual dances, passionate ballads, laments, and humorous tunes, closing with a Turkish-Greek jam, with Greek guest musicians (group Prosechós). The amusing storyline of the insert notes creates a tone poem of the nine tracks. This album, recipient of the German Record Critics Award, should be among the collections of world music fans. It is good start for those especially interested in Turkish music.

This CD is a must have if you're a fan of Ottoman Turkish music. Read the short stories that explain each song while listening and you'll appreciate the music even more. In my opinion, it's like being in the Sultan's palace itself. This is a wonderful addition to your Ottoman Turkish music collection.

I became so enamored of the music of Burhan Ocal and other Turkish musicians that I felt compelled to take a trip to Istanbul this spring. Of all of the albums that led to this musical odyssey, this was the one most responsible. "The Sultan's Secret Door" is compulsively listenable and absorbing, each track an imaginary set piece taking place at the Sultan's court. The infectious rhythms and rich melodic tapestry capture the spirit of a time (the reign of Suleyman I) and place (Topkapi Sarayi) perfectly. You're on a magic carpet, and Burhan Ocal is the geni that makes it fly. An experience not to be missed.

Arabian flavour signifies Turkish music and culture.But, European influence gives it a difference from other middle-eastern cultures and musics.It isn't as rigid in its rhythm as Bellydance music, and nor is it as contemplative as Sufi music.
Long stretches of improvisation and mood (always Turkish scales, not jazz), where instruments (percussion,clarinet,oud,violin etc...) enjoyably drift in and out of each other, inevitably find their way into distinctive rhythmic melodylines.You can hear each instrument's texture so clearly, thanks to great production and highest quality instruments -which are played amazingly well.This music is hypnotic because it just 'flows'.There's no sense of effort, despite it being virtuosic.It perfectly fits the Arabian fantasy-world imagery from films and stories, aswell as being authentic folk music.
For a Turkish cd that is back to back melodylines, "Gypsy Rum" and "Caravanserai" would be better choices.But for a cd that shares the catchy parts between long sequences of Turkish mood, this one is perfect.
I'm glad Burhan Ocal didn't keep this secret as well as the Sultan had intended to.

I own three recordings by this version of the band and the "Sultan's Secret Door" is by far the most mature of the three. The songs have a seamless flowing quality that's missing in so much Middle Eastern music. As a couple reviews note below, the group very successfully introduces elements of Jazz and other Western techniques without compromising the musical whole. I've heard many would be officianadoes of Turkish gypsy music bad mouth Ocal on account of the fact that he holds dual Swiss/Turkish citizenship - or over the fact that he's "ripping off" gypsy music. This arguement against innovation is ill informed and severly misdirected. It's like saying that the Beatles were not a very good band and that they didn't really do much for rock'n'roll. But politically correct scholarship is trendy the world over and probably won't die out anytime soon.

If anything, more eastern ensembles should listen to this record and learn from it!

I love Burhan Ocal..Again a very nice cd by him....No more words...Try to listen it......

While this is nice selection of earlier style work; the choice of world music is very limited and appears ignored as a viable product on this website. I would encourage everyone to suggest to Amazon that they invest in some expertise and new selections in the various countries that are presented here. And offer some current work and artistry.