Brian Keane & Omar Faruk Tekbilek – Beyond the Sky

The soulful and spirited music of Beyond the Sky transports the listener to exotic regions of the Mediterranean, Turkey, the Middle East and North Africa. This collaboration brings back the symbiotic duo of Brian Keane and Omar Faruk Tekbilek, along with three other remarkable musicians. Together, they navigate a timeless path of mystery, excitement and energy, dense with the imagery of an ancient landscape. The exceptional interaction of the musicians produce a spontaneous emotion, on both the original pieces they wrote for this recording, and the traditional Middle Eastern melodies they adapted. There is a good deal of improvisation, based on modal and rhythmic cues, updating standard tunes perhaps a thousand years old. Amidst the Middle Eastern harmonies, the listener catches whiffs of Moroccan and even Afro–Cuban styles. Beyond the Sky weaves a Middle Eastern fusion of cultural influences.

Omar Faruk Tekbilek and Brian Keane – Beyond the Sky
CD Review by John Williams
In this CD, Omar joins with his producer Brian Keane to create a CD of superb music. The CD is really in two parts mixed together The title track immerses you immediately into a kind of meditative state as do several other tracks on the CD such as ‘Your Love is my Cure’, ‘Kolaymi’, ‘Bridge’, ‘Strange Little Corner’, “Sweet Trouble’ and ‘Al Fatiha” with its haunting vocal track. Interspersed with these are a number of more traditional Middle Eastern tunes with strong percussive infl uences. These tracks, ‘Imaginary Traveller’, Chargah Sirto’, ‘Selemet’ ‘Nightime’ and ‘Siseler’ are quite lively. I wonder if such a mix really works as a concept. It does show all the musical talents of the players, but two separate CDs might have been a better bet. I’d hate to be in the middle of meditating and get a full hit of percussion. Just a thought. Having said that, I found this CD an interesting one to listen to. I found it more ‘mainstream’ than the other Omar Faruk Tekbilek CD I reviewed recently. In that respect, it may appeal to a broader audience. You could do a lot worse than listen to music played by a true master with many years experience. I enjoyed it and can recommend it as a bridge between two musical cultures.