Talip Ozkan

• Genre: Middle East

About

Talip Ozkan is a master of the "saz," an ancient Turkish stringed instrument not unlike a long-necked lute. Its metallic sound is reminiscent of a harp, but with the wooden resonance of a guitar. Having first studied Western classical music, Ozkan turned his attention to traditional Turkish modes and instruments and became the director of folkloric music programming and recording for Turkish national radio. Frustrated at the lack of resources, he relocated to Paris, earned his doctorate in ethnomusicology, and established himself as a virtuoso instrumentalist. Most of his work is solo, plucking complex patterns on the saz and occasionally singing with his plaintive baritone voice. With bluesy textures and meditative passages, he preserves the classic music of the Ottoman empire in his meticulous recordings. Strains of the Orient and the Arab run through the melodic lines that Ozkan coaxes from his saz.

- Robert Leaver