Havada Bulut Yok - First Recording

I finally got around to encoding my performance at the 2005 Colors of Rhythm concert at Oberlin College. It has a lot of value for me as it was my first time singing a traditional Turkish turku ever, and it consequently led to my interest in flamenco. Many thanks to Savas, who is playing the guitar, BOzlem, who pulled the Turks of Oberlin together for this performance, Asli, BOzlem, KOzlem and Sercil for the choreography. I encoded two versions of the performance, one with only the song and another one with both the song and the dance sequence.

Turku Only


And here's the link for the version with both the song and the dance sequence:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVkW-hneHXM

Enjoy! There will be more to come! ;)

Money Making Monster

Cloverfield - 3 stars

Looking at the Box Office numbers, Abrams' money has been well-invested. In its first weekend, Cloverfield shot to the top of any January release by raking in more than $40 million. This BO accomplishment comes on the heels of horrific reviews from NYTimes, Variety and a sleuth of other film critique publications. It seems Cloverfield's main premise of a fake documentary of a monster laying waste to Manhattan has hit the cords with entertainment-seeking movie-goers. I don't blame them. Cloverfield manages to be quite horrifying while being funny at the same time, given the fact that it's a monster film at heart.

The hand-held camera obviously contributes a lot to the horror, as the viewer's vision is shaky, limited and grainy, ensuring complete immersion in the action. One of the best scenes of the film is when the group is attacked by the smaller ilk of the monster in the subway tunnels. It truly is a sequence of amazing power because it seems so natural, so real. You almost believe these people are run over by aliens; that is until the cameraman starts blaring out another round of stupid remarks. That brings me to the screenwriting, which is good on average, except for these rounds of stupid dialogue initiated mostly by the cameraman.

Despite its shortcomings, Cloverfield entertains and satisfies as a monster movie. The hand-held camera, the special effects, and the monster all make this one a crowd-pleaser. Hollywood is of course happy too. This one is nothing special but fun to watch.

It's tails for the Coen Bros this time around

No Country for Old Men - 3.5 stars

The Coen Brothers' latest follows on the heels of O Brother, Where Art Thou and The Man Who Wasn't There in terms of its atmosphere, but they can't seem to shoot the bull's eye this time around. As always, the attention to detail with the impeccable mise-en-scène rings usual for the Coen pair, and the film is refreshing in the sense that it doesn't focus on action even though so much carnage ensues in its wake, but the film seems to be missing an integral artery. The flawless performances by Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, and Tommy Lee Jones, is unfortunately suffocated by an all-to-familiar tale that says the same thing we've heard countless times. However, it does accomplish in showcasing the changing face of violence in West Texas in the 1980's, awing the viewer with breathtaking scenery (kudos to the cinematographer) and introducing a villain who is one of the most memorable of recent times. So, I fully support the Best Actor Golden Globe, but I simply can't justify the Best Screenplay Globe...

The For-Two Syndrome

In my busy Chicago days (don't get me wrong; I'm busy because of work these days, not play), I rarely get the chance to cook a hearty meal at home. So, I usually have to either eat out or buy something ready-to-cook. After a few weeks of this regime, what I realized is that almost everything pre-cooked comes for couples! Bread-crusted salmon and leek quiche (for two...), Bertolli's roasted chicken and linguine (for two.....), Giordano's famous Chicago pizza for delivery (for freaking two................!!!). I'm already single and these for-two meals aren't helping me as I get to eat double portions every dinner! How is that supposed to help me end my spinster ways? You tell me.

Dec 07 in a nutshell

The day after New Year's Eve, I realized I hadn't blogged for the longest time! That's not because there hasn't been anything happening since Thanksgiving, but more because there has been a lot going on. As I had promised myself when I arrived in Chicago, I traveled within the US as much as possible. In order to keep things concise, I'll give a quick overview of the past month.

1st off, there was San Francisco...
And such a beautiful and intoxicating city it is! My sister and I had great French food at Cafe Claude, the city's best cafe au lait at Cafe de la Presse, good times on the old but still cool trams, had some dungeness crab and visited Alcatraz. Feel free to check out the pics!

http://picasaweb.google.com/ysolmaz/SanFranciscoNov2007

Then, it was back to the Big Apple...
Gozde, Salvo and I made a dash to the Big Apple for a fabulous weekend. Visited most of the touristy stuff so we could show Salvo as much of NYC as possible in two days. We even managed to squeeze in some ice-skating, which I had never done in my life before. Just so you know, I suck at it! So, don't try and take me ice-skating... ever! Check out the pics!

http://picasaweb.google.com/ysolmaz/NYCDec2007

Who said skiing in Vail was only for the famous...?
Seriously! The snow was fluffy, the weather was gorgeous, the company was fun, the food absolutely home-made and delicious-every single night. Our amazing organizer, Gozde, pulled it all together and we had a condo in Vail with a hot tub, swimming pool and sauna, which was about 5 min walking distance from the slopes. I had a half-day skiing lesson and got addicted so I'll definitely be hitting the slopes again sometime soon. Ice-skating I may suck at, but skiing comes naturally. ;) Pics, as always, are available:

http://picasaweb.google.com/ysolmaz/SkiingInVailCODec2007

A little stint in Toronto proved why Canada is called Canadia...
Toronto was, in one word, boring. The city had no spirit, wasn't interesting and had no charm whatsoever. Even the people living there looked a bit...umm...weird and suspicious in some way I can't explain. The only good thing that came out of it was my parents visiting their old friends who had emigrated here long ago and taking a helicopter ride over Niagara Falls. Feel free to pass up on Toronto and head to Quebec if you're ever in Canada.

http://picasaweb.google.com/ysolmaz/TorontoNiagaraFallsCanadaDec2007

Discover why Montreal and Quebec City rock...
These two cities are incredible... I was absolutely speechless when I saw the European grandeur in these two North American cities. Mind you, Quebec City is the oldest city in North America, who celebrated its 400th anniversary this New Year's Eve. The French influence is very strong here and the people of Quebec have a real sense of identity that's clear and strong, which separates them from your average Canadian. I was highly impressed with the standard of living, the care, love and respect they show for their cities, and their hospitality. The Quebecoises bent over backwards to speak in English when I couldn't converse in French. I would definitely visit these cities again, despite the -20C temperatures I had to endure.

http://picasaweb.google.com/ysolmaz/MontrAlQuBecJan2008
http://picasaweb.google.com/ysolmaz/QuBecCityQuBecJan2008

So, there's my December 07 in a nutshell. Happy New Year to all of you and I hope to see you all very soon!!!

Bonne Annee!