Oriental & Turkish Romany Music Suggestions
Yesterday
I taught a fun workshop on Turkish Romany Dance Stylizations. In two hours we covered a lot of material. We danced nine
combos to put the movement into practice and spent a bit of time talking about the history and culture. In two hours
we just scratched the surface of what this culture, dance & music has to offer.
We used 9/8 Drum Solo from Dalia
Carella's CD Shuvani.
Here is
a short list of recordings of some great Turkish and Turkish Romany music.
“Tzigane” - The Erkose Ensemble
“Caz Roman“ - Mustafa Kandirali & Ensemble
“Mustafa
Kandirali Ile Neseli Günler”
- Mustafa
Kandirali & Ensemble
“Gypsies of Turkey” – Ahmet
Kusgoz ve Arkadaslari
“The Road to Kesan” – Selim Sesiler
“Fire Dance” - Omar Faruk Tekbelik
“Mystical Gardens”
-
Omar Faruk Tekbelik
“Crescent Moon” - Omar Faruk Tekbelik
“Beyond the Sky” - Omar Faruk Tekbelik
“Asena” - Ibrahim Tatlis
“Sulukule Rom Music of Istanbul”
- Kemanî Cemal Çinarli
“Turkish
Belly Dance” - Huseyin & Gunay Turkmenler
“The
Sultan’s Secret Door” - Istanbul Oriental Ensemble
“Gipsy Rum” - Burhan Oçal & the Turkish Oriental Ensemble
“Rough
Guide: Music of the Gypsies” – Various artists
“O Bicim Ciftetelli Vol.
1”
– Various Artists
“Acayip
Çiftetelliler” – Various Artists
“How To Make Your Husband a Sultan” with
Ozel Turkbas
“Alla-Turce” with Ozel Turbas
“Mustafa
Kandirali” – Distributed by Traditional Crossroads
“Bal Anat” – Jamila/Suhaila Salimpour
“The Alleys of Istanbul” – Turku
“Gypsy Fire” – Harold Hagopian & Omar Faruk Tekbelik
Discomfort and the Art of Learning
As
an artist and student I cringe when hear limiting statements that there is only one mode of doing things that is proper and
correct. Whether it’s about how to train & grow as a dancer (to drill or not to drill) or a preferred
mode of how to create (improv or choreography), all of these modes take us somewhere further than where we started if we put
quality time into them.
One may have a more comfortable way of doing things, but that does not make
it the only way to do something.
Following your strength is very important. Finding
ways to make that strength even stronger is key to being the best you can be. But only following your strength
and doing what comes easy to you negates other skill sets that could be developed and ultimately cheats you out of the full
process of learning something.
Dancing or working on something you already know is good.
It’s especially good for developing ease and relaxation with that piece so that nuances and intuition can take
over.
Working on something that you can’t do or in a way that does not
feel natural to you is also good. As a matter of fact, it’s great! Substantial,
meaningful and measurable growth generally comes from working outside of your comfort zone.
“Growth demands a temporary surrender of security” – Gail Sheehy
Returning to the position of “brand new student” on a regular basis does so many things for
us.
·
It keeps us humble.
·
It allows us to relate better to our students.
· It helps us to understand the full process of learning something.
(Rather than picking the most appealing part of something and leaving the harder details for later or never to be dealt
with.)
Trying a different approach to learning or creating also has
tremendous benefit.
· It helps
us to keep an open mind.
·
It opens us to new perspectives and ideas.
·
It generally enables a flow of new and exciting ideas.
There are so many ways
to approach developing skills. What works really well for me is a ying and yang approach, a balance of left
and right brain activity. A balance of work and play keeps me moving forward with my physical ability and
gives me great ideas for innovation. Another important factor for me is having the right tools and a plan
to keep me challenged and on track. (Ask me about my tools if you like.)
Is
it easy? Not so much….there are plenty of things that seem determined to get in my way.
Resistance, resistance, resistance! Check out “The War of Art” by Steven Pressfield. For me this is a great tool in busting the top offenders that try to screw with my growth and process.
Working outside my comfort zone has become my comfort zone. My mind and body embrace
and crave new challenges and going to places they haven’t been before. It took some time to get there
but it is worth all the work and is incredibly freeing creatively and emotionally. As long as I keep working
this way, I have a constant flow of new and better skills and ideas than I had before. Now I rarely
beat myself up when I don’t get something right away.
I like a Bruce Lee approach to learning……rather
than limit yourself to only one form or style of learning, explore and master them all. (Still working
on that 
)
