**** Hamza Shakkur & Ensemble Al-KindiSYRIA: TAKASIM & SUFI CHANTS
FROM DAMASCUS
(WDR -- World Network Records/German import)
Terrible pun
aside, you really should give this disc of
whirling dervish
music a spin. This
is an exceptionally well performed and clearly recorded hour of vocal and
instrumental music connected to the devotional rituals of mystical
Islam. Even
if that's not your religion, you can find much drama in this partially
improvised music. There are flute solos that stun, percussion lines and chanted
vocals that mesmerize. Imagine the golden Islamic calligraphy that decorates
mosques turned into music. This is it: sinewy, and as spiritually instructive
as a Bach Mass.
-- Norman Weinstein
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