Tree of Patience

Description

Product Description On his first release in over three years, acclaimed Turkish virtuoso Omar Faruk Tekbilek expands his "Mediterranean sound" beyond political, religious and geographic boundaries. Joined by an all-star cast of music luminaries including Enrique Morente, Arto Tuncboyaciyan, David Darling and Steve Roach, Omar Faruk applies his unity-in-diversity approach to a collection of songs colored with traditional Sufi melodies, Middle Eastern flavors and distinct traces of folk and flamenco. The result: a contemporary world music sound that is uplifting and exuberant, intuitive and spiritual. Honored as a peacemaker and virtuoso, Omar Faruk Tekbilek is one of the most sought-after Middle Eastern musicians living in the United States. Relentless worldwide touring and a welcoming openness to music from all cultures position him as the rare artist who transcends political obstacles while maintaining traditional sensibilities. Tree of Patience is his personal acknowledgment of all the remarkable people he has encountered and who contributed to his development as an artist and a human being. About the Artist Honored as a peacemaker and virtuoso, OMAR FARUK TEKBILEK is now a highly sought-after musicians whose work transcends political boundaries while maintaining traditional sensibilities in a way few artists can manage. Omar Faruk was born in Adana, Turkey to a musical family who nurtured his precocious talents. At the age of eight, he began his prodigious musical career by developing proficiency on the kaval, a small diatonic flute. His musical interests were nurtured by his older brother and a sympathetic uncle who owned a music store and who provided lessons. While working in the store, Omar Faruk learned the intricate rhythms of Turkish music, how to read scales, and other rudiments. He was trained on and eventually mastered several instruments: ney (bamboo flute), zurna (double-reed oboe like instrument with buzzing tone), the baglama (long-necked lute), the oud (the classic lute), as well as percussion. By the age of twelve he began performing professionally at local hot spots. In 1967, upon turning sixteen, he moved to Istanbul where he and his brother spent the following decade as in-demand session musicians. Omar Faruk stayed true to his folkloric roots, but during this period of frenetic session work in the metropolitan music scene, he explored Arabesque, Turkish, and Western styles and the compositional potential of the recording studio. In Istanbul he also met the Mevlevi Dervishes, the ancient Sufi order of Turkey. He did not join the order, but the head Neyzen (ney player), Aka Gunduz Kutbay, became another source of inspiration. Omar Faruk was profoundly influenced by their mystical approach and fusion of sound and spirit. During that time he was introduced to Hatha Yoga and eventually to Tai Chi, which he continues to practice daily. After establishing himself as one of the top session musicians in Turkey, he began touring Europe and Australia. By 1971, he made his first tour of the United States as a member of a Turkish classical/folk ensemble. It was while touring in the US that he met his future wife, Suzan, and in 1976 he relocated to upstate New York to marry her. Omar Faruk found very few options for a Turkish musician in the US, so he formed a band called the Sultans with an Egyptian keyboardist, a Greek bouzouki player, and his brother-in-law on percussion. It started as a pop band but very quickly turned into a sort of Pan-Near Eastern ensemble. They began to attract some attention within the circle of Middle Eastern dance fans and managed to record five albums, but Omar Faruk was still unknown outside his local musical community. This all changed after his fateful meeting with Brian Keane in 1988. In the following years, he and Keane would produce another six recordings together, launching Omar Faruk boldly into the world music scene and establishing himself as one of the world's foremost exponents of Middle Eastern music.