Mission Statement Istanbulive: The Sounds & Colors of Turkey is an unprecedented event that celebrates the rich musical heritage of this country with major Turkish artists performing together in New York under the SummerStage banner. Producers Serdar Ilhan and Mehmet Dede´s mission is to introduce the music of Turkey, which is often underrepresented in the US, to the American consciousness through events, showcases and educational programs and by doing so also support the Turkish Tourism Office´s ongoing efforts in promoting Turkey as a destination country. The producers highlight Istanbul and New York´s similarity by bringing together musicians from different backgrounds, including Turkish, Greek and Armenian, to advocate mutual understanding and respect between ethnic cultures, while showcasing the extraordinary virtuosity and diversity found in Turkish music today. About The Producers - Serdar Ilhan Ilhan moved to the US from his native Istanbul 20 years ago with an undergraduate degree in Graphic Design and graduate degree in Photography. As an award-winning Art Director he worked at an ad agency before he entered the NY live music scene. He has been presenting Turkish, Mediterranean and World music at prestigious places like Lincoln Center, Town Hall, Carnegie Hall and Florence Gould Hall for the past 15 years (Some of the concerts he produced are listed below). Ilhan also ran successful establishments like St. Marx Café, Maia and Drom hosting many memorable nights of music, food & culture and continues to present music of different cultures at various venues around town. In addition to being the manager of the NY Gypsy All-Stars, Ilhan is one of the co-founders / co-producers of the annual NY Gypsy Festival. http://www.serdarilhan.com About The Producers - Mehmet Dede Mehmet Dede runs Brooklyn-based boutique music events company Electric Lila. Born in Turkey and raised in Germany, Dede has worked as producer, artist manager, marketer and record label manager at companies including Giant Step and Universal Music. As event producer he's booked international talent to NYC venues Drom, Nublu, Le Poisson Rouge, Joe´s Pub, among others. In 2005, he co-founded the NY Gypsy Festival and to this date continues to co-produce the festival. Dede´s speaking engagements on New Media and live shows include various panels at NYU, APAP and California Presenters conference. He has also appeared on WKCR and WFMU. Dede holds an M.A. from New York University with honors in Music Business & Marketing and B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering. http://electriclila.wordpress.com Serdar Ilhan presents 2009   Selim Sesler & NY Gypsy All-Stars @ Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall 2008   Baba Zula USA Tour (Chicago, Madison, Minneapolis, Toronto ve New York) 2008   Sir James Galway, Al Di Meola, Cheb-i Sabbah, Brooklyn Funk Essentials, Boban Markovic Orkestar and others at various dates @ Drom 2004   Jazz Made In Turkey Festival @ Alice Trully Hall at Lincoln Center Aydin Esen, Okay Temiz, Laco Tayfa, Ilhan Ersahin, Kudsi Erguner, Erkan Ogur, Joe Lovano, Greg Osby, Eddie Henderson, Lefteris Bournias 2000   Zulfu Livaneli & Maria Farandouri "Turkish & Greek Songs Of Peace" @ Town Hall 1999   Mazhar Fuat Ozkan "Kosova Benefit Concert" @ Club Live NYC 1999   Turkish Earthquake Jazz Concert @ Florence Gould Hall Al di Meola, Arto Tuncboyaciyan, Badal Roy, Mordy Ferber,A.Engin, llhan Ersahin, Ara Dinkciyan 1994   Atilla Engin and Turquoise @ Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall New York Gypsy Festival The NY Gypsy Festival is an annual gathering dedicated to exploring the authentic as well as changing face of Gypsy music in the world today. Since launching the festival in 2005, co-producers Ilhan and Dede have reached thousands of fans at NYC venues such as Symphony Space, Joe´s Pub, NYU´s Skirball Center, Drom, (Le) Poisson Rouge and Central Park´s De La Corte Theater. The festival was featured in the NY Times, Newsweek, Spin Magazine, TimeOut NY, Village Voice, among many other places. Some of the acts presented over the years include: 2005   Gogol Bordello, Ivo Papasov, Slavic Soul Party, Zlatne Uste and others 2006   KAL, Frank London, Husnu Senlendirici, Kolpakov Trio, Kultur Shock and others 2007   Balkan Beat Box, 17 Hippies, Beirut and others 2008   Baba Zula, Dotschy Reinhardt, Watcha Clan and others http://nygypsyfest.wordpress.com Special Thanks Mr. Mehmet Samsar, Mr. Hasan Zongur, Mr. Levent Demirel, Ms. Nihan Bekar, Mr. Basar Sen, Mr. Harun Arslan, Mr. James Burke, Ms. Erika Elliot, Mr.John Seroff, Mr. Ihsan Baytan, Mr. Cem Ongen, Ms. Zeynep Guven, Ms. Basak S, Mr. Arda Beskardes, Mrs. Nur Ercan, Mrs. Neslihan Cafer, Mr. Ekmel Anda, Mr. Murat Agirnasli, Mrs. Seyhan Arkonak, Mr. Orhan Yegen, Mr. Selim Kesedar, Mr. Necati Ozturk, Mr. Aytac Nurol, Mr. Zafer Sevimcok, Ms. Sebnem Tasci, Mr.Bulent Koprulu, Mr. Ozer Dumankaya, Mr. Suleyman Secer, Mr. Koray Yilmaz, Mr.Onur Ozgul, Mr. Mehmet Yorukoglu, Mr. Selim Cayligil, Mr. Kosta Katzoglu