Cumbus Long Neck

Improvisation on Turkish cumbus, stringed, oud-like instrument. Free-form improviation with runs, ornamentation, repetition and silent pauses, growing slightly faster and more intricate towards the end. Mysterious, intimate and sparse, Turkish and Middle Eastern sounds perfect for a documentary about the region or to accompany a vast, deserted landscape onscreen.

      Cumbus_Long_Neck-JPM

Bombay

Meditative oud instrumental with male vocals. Upbeat, melodic oud, resembling sitar, repeating melodic ideas with sparse hand drums and intermittent guttural vocals on top, reminiscent of North Indian Classical Music. Plodding yet rhythmic and driving with an improvisatory feel, perfect for a Film/TV scene set in a vast, unfolding Middle Eastern landscape.

      Bombay-JPM_version

Baglama Taksim

Saz or baglama instrumental. Mid-tempo Arabic saz solo, a stringed instrument like a lute or guitar, resembling the Arabic oud, sounding like English folk or American country at times, with a strong Middle Eastern sound. Determined and energetic yet thoughtful and reflective, would suit documentary or TV/Film centered around the Middle East, matching the lively pace of life.

      Baglama_Taksim-JPM_version

Autoharp

Meditative Arabic instrumental for autoharp. Repeated musical ideas are explored and improvised upon, meandering phrases and pauses allow the resonance of the instrument to ring out. Reflective, quiet and thoughtful, perfect for Arab documentaries or contemplative Film/TV.

      Autoharp-JPM_version

Mbira

Mbira(thumb piano) track with percussion. Improvisation on thumb piano, joined by African percussion and sound effects. Simple melodically, sparse and intriguing. Perfect mysterious and beguiling soundtrack to a travel documentary or Film/TV show referencing traditional African cultures.

      Mbira-JPM_version

Sahara (Ney version)

Arabic ney track. Intermittent ney phrases with elaborate ornamentation and an improvisatory feel, accompanied by a tense drone, anticipatory percussion and subtle snaking string parts. Mysterious, tense and thoughtful, an unsettling build, powerful background music for a documentary set in the Arab world.

Version available without percussion.

Oud versions available.

      Sahara_Ney-JPM_version
      Sahara_Ney_No_Perc-JPM_version

Endless Sands

Oud instrumental with strings drones. Oud improvisational melody with a string drone building atmosphere and tension. Intermittent percussive snare rumbles punctuate the drone. Rhythmic percussion introduced and some vocals and a short expressive but subtle ney interlude. Anticipatory, mysterious and exciting, perfect evocative Arabic instrumental to soundtrack documentaries or travel shows.

Alt versions have a more free and meandering feel.

      Endless_Sands-JPM_version
      Endless_Sands_No_Percussion-JPM_version
      Endless_Sands_No_Percussion_Sparse-JPM_version

Lyre

Moody lyre instrumental. Sparse improvisatory melody, sounding like a cross between harp and acoustic guitar. Beguiling, melancholy and ancient, a mysterious, questioning, atmospheric soundtrack to strange, anticipatory Film/TV scenes or documentaries about ancient civilisations.

      Lyre-JPM_version

Loutar

Improvisation on loutar, an oud-like stringed instrument. Sparse improvised phrases growing to more melodic parts. Hypnotic, melancholy and raw, like the soundtrack to a western movie at first before taking on a North African feel when the melodic sections kick in. Perfect documentary soundtrack.

      Loutar-JPM_version

Cura Saz

Turkish saz instrumental. Improvisatory solo on Turkish saz, resembling the Arabic oud, as well as lute or guitar. Improvisations end on repeated refrains. Melancholy and meditative, bringing to mind desert plains and traditional ways of life, imagine a Spaghetti Western set in Turkey. Perfect folk music for an Arabic or Turkish documentary.

      Cura_Saz-JPM_version