Singer Mara Kiek and her band Mara! bring together Bulgarian and Turkish music with jazz and elements of Celtic and Renaissance traditions, resulting in a powerful and adventurous sound. Melbourne-born Kiek trained in Australia as a student of Western classical music, but a series of trips overseas in the '80s led to a period of study in Sofia and Istanbul; back in Sydney, she founded Martenitsa, an a cappella group modeled after Bulgaria's state choirs. Whether pursuing global fusion or traditional folk, Kiek and her groups are guides to uncharted worlds of breathtakingly beautiful music.