Links to Excellence – Great Art, Great Music

The mesmeric cover of Emrah Kotan’s debut CD, The New Anatolian Experience was achieved via the professional services of photographer, Damaris, along with graphic designers, Ariel Fluerimond and Octavia Warren.

Surpassing its visual appeal, the ­­­­music of this Turkish percussionist – who plays for Grammy-winner, India.Arie – impresses with such tracks as “Ottoman Slap,” “Tanya,” and “Yemen Türküsü (Song for Yemen),” all of which can be sampled through the following links.

http://www.emrahkotan.com/music.html  

http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/emrahkotan

Integrity

Dedicating the month of December to the Honorable, Nelson Mandela, my encounter with him was only through movies, the media, and a recollection of once telling an old friend that the dictionary should bare a picture of Nelson Mandela next to the word integrity.  He earnestly agreed as we sat in silence admiring his unwavering convictions, while nearing his 27^th year of imprisonment.

Thinking about Mandela’s integrity provoked a sober examination of loyalty to a cause in context to choosing imprisonment over the renunciation of one’s ideas in exchange for freedom, as everyone knows the silent answer to this examination of themselves.  

Remembering Mandela

“Without language, one cannot talk to people and understand them; one cannot share their hopes and aspirations, grasp their history, appreciate their poetry, or savor their songs.” 

― Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom

Links to Excellence – “Versailles ’73”

For some, the ‘70s bring to mind the disco era of Donna Summer; Manhattan’s hottest night scene, Studio 54; Mahogany, starring, Diana Ross; and those Bob Mackie originals worn by Cher. 

While these and other trends were indicative of ‘70s American culture, a fashion revolution was emerging across the globe, known as Versailles ’73. 

http://www.youtube.com/ Versailles Trailer

Links to Excellence – Filming “Green Garden”

The production footage on Laura Mvula’s, Green Garden, unveils the inspiration behind the video treatment based on Mvula’s childhood exposure to greener surroundings.

From this back story, a cinematic vision unfolds, paralleling transcendent views of nature, deserving of man’s praise.

http://www.youtube.com/Production Set of  "Green Garden"

Links to Excellence – "I Can Explain"

There are two songs that I can definitively claim as top favorites, one of which comes from a voice that embodies artistic style with an emotional range that moves . . .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ax_8ULuBxYo

www.rachelleferrell.com

Links to Excellence – Fashion One TV Features UCOF

Courtesy of UCOF

Great fashion is timeless; moreover when it’s driven by global service and efforts to empower the youth through fashion, as United Colors of Fashion dedicates itself to.

Highlighting the best at the end, here’s an inside look at UCOF’s mission to go beyond the aesthetics of fashion during the 2012 events of this charitable organization, along with added images from their 2013 Annual Gala, entitled, Faith Hope Fashion.

http://www.unitedcolorsoffashion.org/gallery/ucof-on-fashion-one-tv/

Courtesy of UCOF