“Bouncing Cats”, a film by Nabil Elderkin is an inspiring story of one man’s attempt to create a better life for the children of Uganda using the unlikely tool of hip-hop with a focus on b-boy culture and breakdancing. Abraham “Abramz” Tekya’s Breakdance Project Uganda (B.P.U.) is a project that could empower, rehabilitate and heal the community by teaching youth about b-boy culture. The film features narration by Common and interviews with Mos Def, Will-I-Am, and K’Naan.
A year ago, conductor Jason Weinberger heard Suite for Ma Dukes for the first time. A long time fan of J. Dilla, Weinberger’s first thought when he heard the music was that he needed to find a way to perform Miguel Atwood-Ferugon’s “stunning reinventions of Dilla’s music.” “I’m always looking for ways to open up the traditional orchestra experience to new things anyway, so this seemed very natural.”
After a quick Google search, Jason found Miguel and sent him a message to see if there was anyway to get the Dilla pieces in front of one of the orchestras he worked with. A few months later they met in LA and connected over Dilla, Flying Lotus, and Lutoslawski, and the rest is history.
Earlier this year, Miguel Atwood-Ferugon and the Mochilla Team flew out to Cedar Falls, Iowa to witness J. Dilla’s music being performed as part of the WCFSO’s (Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony Orchestra) tribute to Great American Composers. The evening had Dilla’s music performed alongside legends Duke Ellington and William Grant Still.
“As the person responsible for programming the concert, I probably don’t have to explain how exciting it was for me to find myself performing Dilla’s music with the WCFSO. Even more gratifying, though, were other aspects of the evening – feeling the connections emerge between Dilla and his predecessors William Grant Still and Duke Ellington, taking the orchestra outside of its comfort level and in process to a whole other level of music making, and especially offering our audience the opportunity to abandon preconceptions and discover something special. In the words of one listener in attendance that night, ‘the music was beyond interesting, especially the movements from Suite for Ma Dukes by J. Dilla…’ we were swept along enjoying sound adventures we never could have imagined that we would enjoy.” – Jason Weinberger
Watch as this video takes you on a sound adventure and witness the magic of Dilla’s music performed on what would have been the eve of his 36th birthday to a sold out audience. The standing ovation Miguel received was testament not only to the beauty of his work on Dilla’s music, but the power of music. Sounds ability to open ears, minds, and hearts.
“I think Dilla would have been proud of that.” – Jason Weinberger
Thursday, April 29, 2010
UCSD Student-Run Free Clinic Project, San Diego
Dr. Ellen Beck is providing cost-effective, comprehensive health care services to the uninsured, while inspiring and training a new generation of medical professionals to work with underserved communities.
Meet the Recipient Dr. Ellen Beck’s free medical clinics in San Diego serve patients and doctors alike. They catch thousands of patients who might otherwise fall through the county’s social safety net, while training and inspiring young doctors to care for society’s least-privileged members.
The family physician and her large team of volunteers at the University of California at San Diego’s Student-Run Free Clinic Project provide comprehensive health care for people who don’t qualify for government aid and cannot afford private insurance. The doctors-in-training, supervised by licensed physicians, even make house calls to the homeless, reaching out to people on the street.
We use a patient-centered approach. We create an environment of respect and trust where people without access to care can take charge of their health and achieve well-being. –Dr. Ellen Beck
More than one in five California residents lack health insurance, and with continued high unemployment, the number of uninsured is expected to grow this year. For these Californians, there are few health care options, particularly in San Diego, which has no county hospital.
Yet Dr. Beck is proving that it’s possible to provide the uninsured with high-quality, cost-effective care, while at the same time inspiring a new generation of medical professionals to work with underserved communities.
The clinic project, directed by Dr. Beck and managed almost entirely by medical students, began in 1997 with a staff of three doctors and five students. Initially, they operated out of a church basement, holding bake sales to pay for supplies. Today, some 500 student health professionals take part throughout the year, treating patients at two churches and an elementary school.
It’s very gratifying to see medical students and health professionals follow their dreams and discover the kind of meaning they had hoped to find within our profession. –Dr. Ellen Beck
Under the supervision of practicing doctors, dentists and social workers, the students annually see more than 2,000 patients — the vast majority of whom suffer from chronic diseases, such as diabetes — providing treatment and medications for free. The dental clinic makes a point of doing restorative work — not just pulling teeth — since, as Dr. Beck often says, “toothlessness leads to joblessness.”
Contributions of time, services and goods from an extensive network of volunteers and donors allow the clinics to run at the low average cost of $800 per patient per year. The project not only offers high-quality care, but trains and inspires the students who provide it. Indeed, many graduates of the program return to the clinic as volunteer supervisors or start their own practices in underserved communities.
In part, that’s because Dr. Beck has created a microcosm of what is best in the health care system. Student doctors are taught a humanistic approach, spending considerably more time with each patient than is common in traditional practices. And the clinic provides not only free medical care, dental care and medications, but mental health counseling and acupuncture as well.
For her comprehensive approach to providing high-quality, cost-effective health care to the uninsured, Dr. Ellen Beck is a recipient of a 2010 James Irvine Foundation Leadership Award.
British singer M.I.A. enlisted the talents of Romain Gavras for the video of her comeback-single “Born Again”. The French director created a nine minute-clip filled with explicit, violent, graphic, politically-charged images that come in accordance with the powerful single. M.I.A.’s still-untitled album is scheduled to drop June 29 via N.E.E.T./Interscope. - via @Hypebeast
Nefarious & The Soul Dojo created a tribute mix to the late, great James Yancey. There’s no such thing as too much Dilla.
01. Elaquent – Gobstopper 02. Madlib – The Mystery (Dilla’s Still Here) 03. Dela – Won’t Do (ft. Miles Bonny) 04. Dwele – Workin’ On It 05. The Roots – Eve 06. Flying Lotus – Fall In Love Remix 07. J. Rawls – A Tribute To Dilla 08. 14kt – Without Dilla 09. Madlib – Dillalade Ride (Contact High) 10. The Roots – Hall & Oates
