The Music of Julius Eastman and Arthur Russell
Program
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Eastman Evil N–
The provocative names of Eastman’s works often meet the listener before the music does. “These names,” he stated at the premiere, “either I glorify them or they glorify me.” Both being true, they glorify what culture at large is wrongfully compelled to demonize. They are, he continues, “the field n——s on which the American economic system was built… that fundamental thing which eschews the superficial or, can we say, elegant.” Rather than be wounded and defeated by bigoted language, he wears it as a badge of honor. He doubles down with additional negative qualifiers, proudly repurposing the language with a musical militancy rarely placed on a historically white, male concert stage. And he glorifies this language, equating the “many kinds of N——s” with the 99 names of Allah.
This work is designed according to Eastman’s “organic” method of composition. Beginning with a three-note figure (F-E-D), on this tactile bed of pitches he introduces a seven-note “Dies irae” theme, which anchors the work at various points with tremendous gravitas. This is heightened by Eastman’s audible count-offs, cueing the only moments the performers synchronize. As the work storms into being, this theme returns like a clap of thunder, elsewhere evanescing like angels descending into the world. Projecting it into various key centers, dense atmospheres of sound accrue. Moving through these harmonic fields, a cascade of moods transfigures like the iridescent colors of a pearl, before disintegrating into silence.
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Eastman Gay Guerrilla
Proudly gay and militantly so, Gay Guerrilla is a sibling work to Evil N— in both commentary and compositional process. As he glorified the N-word and its “Evil” qualification in the latter, he says of the former, “in the case of ‘guerrilla,’ that glorifies ‘gay.’” Both works orient themselves around a minor key, while Gay Guerrilla begins with a comparatively more gentle pulsation. But in like manner this pulse develops according to Eastman’s “organic” process, as harmonies arise and dissolve into serene mosaics and volatile abstractions.
Having referenced Islam in regard to Evil N—, Eastman incorporates a Christian perspective into Gay Guerrilla. The slow, somber pulsing in this work is akin to the tolling of cathedral bells. Eastman directly incorporates “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” a hymn composed by Martin Luther in 1527. It appears in canon form toward the end of the work, where it invokes the deity as a shield and protector. Referring us back to the composer’s spoken commentary, the lyrics of this hymn touch on Eastman’s emphasis on principled conviction and self-sacrifice in the name of truth and freedom. Or, as Luther penned: “The body they may kill/God’s truth abideth still.” —Matt Marble
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Russell from the Arthur Russell Songbook
The songs of Arthur Russell are a kaleidoscope of American pop history, uniquely channeled through his unmistakable voice and cello-driven harmonies. It’s hard to think of a genre he didn’t inhabit. His lyrics drew from everyday observation, experimental poetry, Buddhist philosophy, and memories of his childhood in Oskaloosa, IA. Seeking a middle ground between the everyday and enigmatic abstraction, Russell would often consult his East Village neighbor Allen Ginsberg for guidance. And he would frequently metamorphose his songs into wildly different styles, from boisterous dance tracks to serenely sparse cello hymns. In the spirit of their author, his songs remain ripe for covering and remixing.
Tonight we are fortunate to hear eight reimaginings of some of Russell’s most beloved songs. Each song has been arranged by members of the collective and is sung by members Jodie Landau, Darian Donovan Thomas, and Christopher Rountree, alongside special guests cello virtuoso Andrew Yee, luminary vocalists Robin Pecknold and serpentwithfeet, and saxophonist Shelley Washington. The songs offered here range from Russell’s earliest folk efforts (“Close My Eyes,” “I Never Get Lonesome”) to his later infectious pop anthems (“Keeping Up,” “Wild Combination”), and close out with Yee’s arrangement and performance of an unreleased song, “Out on the Porch.”
About
“What I am trying to achieve is to be what I am to the fullest—Black to the fullest, a musician to the fullest, and a homosexual to the fullest.” - Julius Eastman
The music of legendary collaborators Julius Eastman and Arthur Russell is singular and boundless. These are expansive, quintessentially queer pieces in which every moment is full of choice. Their profound and personal sounds demand that performers become unabashedly themselves, merging and getting lost in the notes and rhythms, finding themselves again and again, and emerging whole and newly committed to self. This intrapersonal endeavoring is matched externally with musical structures that create profound belonging within a group.
Wild Up brings together notable guest artists to celebrate the work of avant-minimalist disco composer Arthur Russell with a new series of collaborative arrangements: The Arthur Russell Songbook. These entrancing and intimate melodies are paired with Julius Eastman's kaleidoscopic post-gospel minimalism. Wild Up with guest artists, perform Eastman’s Evil N– and Gay Guerrilla, two of his “organic music” masterworks—where phrases live inside of phrases, multiple layers ebbing and flowing with the passage of time.
Produced in collaboration with LA Philharmonic Executive Producer for Wild Up, Elizabeth Cline
Artists
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Arthur Russell
Arthur Russell (1951 – 1992) was a cellist, vocalist and composer known for his fusion of classical and popular music.
Originally from Oskaloosa, Iowa, Arthur traveled to the west coast in 1970 joining a Buddhist commune and studying Indian classical composition at the Ali Akbar Khan College in Marin County. In 1971 Arthur met and performed with Allen Ginsberg who brought him to New York for a recording session produced by John Hammond that also included Bob Dylan, Perry Robinson, and Happy Traum.
Arthur moved to New York in 1973 to study at the Manhattan School of Music. Quickly gravitating to the then burgeoning downtown music scene, Arthur wrote and performed his minimal compositions, including the bubblegum pop inspired “Instrumentals”, and was music director at the Kitchen in 1974, along with recording his own pop songs for John Hammond.
Throughout his life Arthur collaborated with a who’s who of some of New York’s most influential artists including Christian Wolf, John Cage, Peter Gordon, Peter Zummo, Ernie Brooks, Jon Gibson, Mustafa Ahmed, Rhys Chatham, Jill Kroesen, David Byrne, Laurie Anderson, Larry Levan, Phillip Glass, Robert Wilson, Julius Eastman, Arnold Dreyblatt, Walter Gibbons and Phill Niblock. Russell’s music shifted dramatically in 1977 after an unexpected visit to a disco. Inspired by the sonic repetition and sense of community, Arthur wrote and recorded some of the most influential records of the disco era including “Kiss Me Again,” “Is It All Over My Face,” and “Go Bang”. By 1984 Arthur began stretching the boundaries of disco and composition, becoming entranced with echo, and its use in his own songwriting. The completed album, World of Echo combined Arthur’s rich composition skills with echo, feedback, voice and cello, and remains one the most influential documents of the era as a work of timeless beauty.
When Arthur Russell died from complications due to AIDS in 1992, he left an overwhelming archive of unreleased material that has since been rereleased and compiled by Audika Records in association with Arthur’s partner Tom Lee. As a cellist, songwriter, composer, and disco visionary, Arthur Russell consistently challenged our expectations of what pop music could be.
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Julius Eastman
Julius Eastman (1940-1990) was a composer, conductor, singer, pianist, and choreographer. A singular figure in New York City’s downtown scene of the 1970s and 80s, he also performed at Lincoln Center with Pierre Boulez and the New York Philharmonic and recorded music by Arthur Russell, Morton Feldman, Peter Maxwell Davies, and Meredith Monk. “What I am trying to achieve is to be what I am to the fullest,” he said in 1976. “Black to the fullest, a musician to the fullest, a homosexual to the fullest.”
Eastman was young, gay, and Black at a time when it was even more difficult to be young, gay, and Black. He swerved through academia, discos, Europe, Carnegie Hall, and the downtown experimental music scene. And in 1990, at age 49, Eastman died in Buffalo, New York, less than a decade after the New York City Sheriff’s Department threw most of his scores, belongings, and ephemera into the East Village snow.
Eastman’s music shines like a retroactive beacon to today’s musical creators. Any term used to characterize today’s musical landscape — “genre-fluid” or the like — was anticipated by Eastman decades before. Yet, he was punished for being ahead of his time, both in the treatment of his music and, tragically, his person. Eastman’s music flowed freely from — and through — his myriad influences and was terribly served by the musical infrastructure of his day. In our unique approaches to Eastman’s work, we’re pushing ourselves to work in dialogue with the composer’s creative impulses, channeling his individualistic spirit, augmenting the pieces with our ideas and concepts, and trying to stay true.
About To the Fullest
The music of legendary collaborators Julius Eastman and Arthur Russell is singular and boundless. These are expansive, quintessentially queer pieces in which every moment is full of choice. Their profound and personal sounds demand that performers become unabashedly themselves, merging and getting lost in the notes and rhythms, finding themselves again and again, and emerging whole and newly committed to self. This intrapersonal endeavoring is matched externally with musical structures that create profound belonging within a group.
This project represents a landmark collaboration between LA Phil Insight, REDCAT, and Wild Up uplifting the legacies of these maverick artists.
Exhibition Booklet
