by Ken Waxman, Jazzword
“A complex but not complicated work The Rise Up is a tripartite orchestral tone poem dealing with Sufi, Sephardic Jewish and Muslim Middle Eastern history with American soprano saxophone master Dave Liebman as chief soloist. With each section divided into three parts, Turkish-American composer Mehmet Ali Sanlıkol’s score melds scraps of the region’s traditional music with explicit Jazz improvisations and Westernized arrangements reminiscent of Gil Evans’ work.” Read the full review here.