Customer Reviews

Mystical Garden

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

 

 

mystical garden transports me to another place, another time, rekindles my imagination, and makes me want to and dance ...

mystical garden transports me to another place, another time, rekindles my imagination, and makes me want to and dance ...

must hav

This is a truly amazing CD: nary a boring or un-original track in the whole bunch. There's a lot of variety, from the raucous "Shaskin" (the zurna, the featured instrument, is typically played at large outdoor events) to the beautiful, flowing "Hasret" (which always compels me to pick up a veil and start improvising), Keane's lovely "Magic of the Evening," and the mystical final piece. The musicians are all terrific -- listen for the kanun player, who's a genius, although I'm also quite taken with the percussion solos. The whole album is highly listenable if you're not a dancer (although I wouldn't call it "background music"; you DO have to pay attention!). And if you're a dancer, don't put it on unless you've got an hour free. My Middle Eastern dance teacher had a party at her studio. We've been learning a choreography to "Shaskin," so we ran through that. Then someone started the CD again from the beginning -- and, the whole 66:19 minutes later, we realized that we were STILL dancing!

Beautiful, soothing music. Track 4, Shashkin, is excellent for belly dancers (beginners, even!). Eastern rhythms combined with not too much new age synthesizers produce absolutely sublime listening music.

A most pleasing and soothing collection of musical pieces which captures the sometimes elusive, but sensuous, Islamic aesthetic.

Omar Faruk is brimming with talent in composing unusually pleasing traditional Arabic recitations intertwined in modern vibrations.

This record is one of his masterpieces with the Kalema as its best part--though rather short. I hope he makes more of such Qur'anic pieces.

-Abro.