Julius Eastman
Encyclopedia
Julius Eastman was an African-American composer
, pianist, vocalist, and dancer of minimalist
tendencies. He was among the first musicians to combine minimalist processes with elements of pop music. He often gave his pieces titles with provocative political intent, such as Evil Nigger and Gay Guerrilla.
, New York
, where he began studying piano at age 14 and made rapid progress. He began college at Ithaca College
and transferred to the Curtis Institute of Music
in Philadelphia. There he studied piano with Mieczyslaw Horszowski
and composition with Constant Vauclain, and switched majors from piano to composition. He made his debut as a pianist in 1966 at Town Hall in New York City
. He also had a rich, deep, and extremely flexible singing voice, for which he became noted for his 1973 Nonesuch
recording of Eight Songs for a Mad King
by the British composer Peter Maxwell Davies
. Eastman's talents brought the attention of composer-conductor Lukas Foss
, who conducted the composer's music in performance at the Brooklyn Philharmonic
.
Eastman often wrote his music following what he called an "organic" principle. Each new section of a work contained all the information from previous sections, though sometimes "the information is taken out at a gradual and logical rate." The principle is most evident in his three works for four pianos, Evil Nigger, Crazy Nigger, and Gay Guerrilla, all from around 1979. The last of these appropriates Martin Luther
's hymn, "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God," as a gay manifesto
. Eastman's Stay On It from 1973 was an influential postminimalist
piece that incorporated pop music influences.
In 1970, Eastman joined the Center for the Creative and Performing Arts at SUNY Buffalo
, where he met the Czech-born composer, conductor, and flutist Petr Kotik
. Eastman and Kotik performed together extensively in the early to mid 1970s. Eastman was a founding member of the S.E.M. Ensemble
. From 1971 he performed and toured with the group, and composed numerous works for it. Many of the earliest performances of Eastman's works were given by the Creative Associates ensemble of SUNY Buffalo, of which he was a member from 1968.
A 1980 piece for Eastman's voice and cello ensemble, The Holy Presence of Jeanne d'Arc, was performed at The Kitchen
in New York City. In 1986 the choreographer Molissa Fenley
set his dance Geologic Moments to Eastman's Thruway, which was premiered at the Brooklyn Academy of Music
. Also a vocalist, Eastman recorded with Meredith Monk
's ensemble for her influential album Dolmen Music (1981).
Despondent about what he saw as a dearth of worthy professional opportunities, Eastman grew increasingly dependent on alcohol and possibly on crack-cocaine after 1983. His life fell apart. He had taught theory at SUNY Buffalo. A promised job at Cornell University
failed to materialize. At one point he was evicted from his apartment, his belongings (including scores) confiscated by the sheriff, and he was forced to live in Tompkins Square Park
.
Despite a temporary attempt at a comeback, Eastman died alone at the age of 50 in Millard Fillmore Hospital in Buffalo
of cardiac arrest
. No public notice was given to his death until an obituary by Kyle Gann
appeared in the Village Voice; it was dated January 22, 1991, eight months after he died. Eastman's notational methods were loose and open to interpretation. Revival of his music has been a difficult task, dependent on people who worked with him.
has sought out scores by Eastman and posted her finds of his work to her website.
Eastman's piece Crazy Nigger was performed March 15, 2008, during 7th Edition Dag in de Branding Festival, The Hague
, the Netherlands.
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, pianist, vocalist, and dancer of minimalist
Minimalism
Minimalism describes movements in various forms of art and design, especially visual art and music, where the work is set out to expose the essence, essentials or identity of a subject through eliminating all non-essential forms, features or concepts...
tendencies. He was among the first musicians to combine minimalist processes with elements of pop music. He often gave his pieces titles with provocative political intent, such as Evil Nigger and Gay Guerrilla.
Biography
Eastman grew up in IthacaIthaca, New York
The city of Ithaca, is a city in upstate New York and the county seat of Tompkins County, as well as the largest community in the Ithaca-Tompkins County metropolitan area...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, where he began studying piano at age 14 and made rapid progress. He began college at Ithaca College
Ithaca College
Ithaca College is a private college located on the South Hill of Ithaca, New York. The school was founded by William Egbert in 1892 as a conservatory of music. The college has a strong liberal arts core, but also offers several pre-professional programs and some graduate programs. The college is...
and transferred to the Curtis Institute of Music
Curtis Institute of Music
The Curtis Institute of Music is a conservatory in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that offers courses of study leading to a performance Diploma, Bachelor of Music, Master of Music in Opera, and Professional Studies Certificate in Opera. According to statistics compiled by U.S...
in Philadelphia. There he studied piano with Mieczyslaw Horszowski
Mieczyslaw Horszowski
Mieczysław Horszowski was a Polish-American pianist who had the longest known career in the history of the performing arts.-Early life:...
and composition with Constant Vauclain, and switched majors from piano to composition. He made his debut as a pianist in 1966 at Town Hall in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He also had a rich, deep, and extremely flexible singing voice, for which he became noted for his 1973 Nonesuch
Nonesuch
The word nonesuch means something with nothing like it; an unrivalled thing; a paragon. Nonesuch can also refer to the following:*Nonesuch Press*Nonesuch Records*Nonesuch River*Nonesuch River Golf Course...
recording of Eight Songs for a Mad King
Eight Songs for a Mad King
Eight Songs for a Mad King is a monodrama by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies with a libretto by Randolph Stow, based on words of George III. The work was written for the South-African actor Roy Hart and the composer's ensemble the Pierrot Players, and premiered on 22 April 1969...
by the British composer Peter Maxwell Davies
Peter Maxwell Davies
Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, CBE is an English composer and conductor and is currently Master of the Queen's Music.-Biography:...
. Eastman's talents brought the attention of composer-conductor Lukas Foss
Lukas Foss
Lukas Foss was a German-born American composer, conductor, and pianist.-Music career:He was born Lukas Fuchs in Berlin, Germany in 1922. His father was the philosopher and scholar Martin Fuchs...
, who conducted the composer's music in performance at the Brooklyn Philharmonic
Brooklyn Philharmonic
The Brooklyn Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra, commonly known as the Brooklyn Philharmonic, is an American orchestra based in the borough of Brooklyn, in New York City...
.
Eastman often wrote his music following what he called an "organic" principle. Each new section of a work contained all the information from previous sections, though sometimes "the information is taken out at a gradual and logical rate." The principle is most evident in his three works for four pianos, Evil Nigger, Crazy Nigger, and Gay Guerrilla, all from around 1979. The last of these appropriates Martin Luther
Martin Luther
Martin Luther was a German priest, professor of theology and iconic figure of the Protestant Reformation. He strongly disputed the claim that freedom from God's punishment for sin could be purchased with money. He confronted indulgence salesman Johann Tetzel with his Ninety-Five Theses in 1517...
's hymn, "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God," as a gay manifesto
Manifesto
A manifesto is a public declaration of principles and intentions, often political in nature. Manifestos relating to religious belief are generally referred to as creeds. Manifestos may also be life stance-related.-Etymology:...
. Eastman's Stay On It from 1973 was an influential postminimalist
Postminimalism
Postminimalism is an art term coined by Robert Pincus-Witten in 1971 used in various artistic fields for work which is influenced by, or attempts to develop and go beyond, the aesthetic of minimalism...
piece that incorporated pop music influences.
In 1970, Eastman joined the Center for the Creative and Performing Arts at SUNY Buffalo
University at Buffalo, The State University of New York
University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, also commonly known as the University at Buffalo or UB, is a public research university and a "University Center" in the State University of New York system. The university was founded by Millard Fillmore in 1846. UB has multiple campuses...
, where he met the Czech-born composer, conductor, and flutist Petr Kotik
Petr Kotik
Petr Kotik is a composer, conductor and flutist living in New York City. He was educated in Europe...
. Eastman and Kotik performed together extensively in the early to mid 1970s. Eastman was a founding member of the S.E.M. Ensemble
S.E.M. Ensemble
S.E.M. Ensemble is a leading American group dedicated to the performance of contemporary classical music. It was founded in 1970 by the Czech composer Petr Kotik, who serves as its director, and is based in New York City....
. From 1971 he performed and toured with the group, and composed numerous works for it. Many of the earliest performances of Eastman's works were given by the Creative Associates ensemble of SUNY Buffalo, of which he was a member from 1968.
A 1980 piece for Eastman's voice and cello ensemble, The Holy Presence of Jeanne d'Arc, was performed at The Kitchen
The Kitchen
The Kitchen is a non-profit, multi-disciplinary art and performance space located at at 512 West 19th Street, between Tenth and Eleventh Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City...
in New York City. In 1986 the choreographer Molissa Fenley
Molissa Fenley
Molissa Fenley is a choreographer, modern dancer, and part-time associate professor of dance at Mills College. She has accepted commissions from Deutsche Oper Ballet of Berlin, Australian Dance Theatre, The Ohio Ballet, and The Pacific Northwest Ballet, and has won two New York Dance and...
set his dance Geologic Moments to Eastman's Thruway, which was premiered at the Brooklyn Academy of Music
Brooklyn Academy of Music
Brooklyn Academy of Music is a major performing arts venue in Brooklyn, a borough of New York City, United States, known as a center for progressive and avant garde performance....
. Also a vocalist, Eastman recorded with Meredith Monk
Meredith Monk
Meredith Jane Monk is an American composer, performer, director, vocalist, filmmaker, and choreographer. Since the 1960s, Monk has created multi-disciplinary works which combine music, theatre, and dance, recording extensively for ECM Records.-Life and work:Meredith Monk is primarily known for her...
's ensemble for her influential album Dolmen Music (1981).
Despondent about what he saw as a dearth of worthy professional opportunities, Eastman grew increasingly dependent on alcohol and possibly on crack-cocaine after 1983. His life fell apart. He had taught theory at SUNY Buffalo. A promised job at Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
failed to materialize. At one point he was evicted from his apartment, his belongings (including scores) confiscated by the sheriff, and he was forced to live in Tompkins Square Park
Tompkins Square Park
Tompkins Square Park is a 10.5 acre public park in the Alphabet City section of the East Village neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is square in shape, and is bounded on the north by East 10th Street, on the east by Avenue B, on the south by East 7th Street, and on the...
.
Despite a temporary attempt at a comeback, Eastman died alone at the age of 50 in Millard Fillmore Hospital in Buffalo
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
of cardiac arrest
Cardiac arrest
Cardiac arrest, is the cessation of normal circulation of the blood due to failure of the heart to contract effectively...
. No public notice was given to his death until an obituary by Kyle Gann
Kyle Gann
Kyle Eugene Gann is an American professor of music, critic and composer born in Dallas, Texas. As a critic for The Village Voice and other publications he has been a supporter of progressive music including such Downtown movements as postminimalism and totalism.- As composer :As a composer his...
appeared in the Village Voice; it was dated January 22, 1991, eight months after he died. Eastman's notational methods were loose and open to interpretation. Revival of his music has been a difficult task, dependent on people who worked with him.
Artistic legacy
The composer Mary Jane LeachMary Jane Leach
Mary Jane Leach is an American composer based in New York City. She has been a member of the Downtown Ensemble, composer in residence at Sankt Peter, Köln, and has recordings on XI, New World Records, and Lovely Music. In the late 1970s Leach composed mainly with tape, overdubbing her own playing...
has sought out scores by Eastman and posted her finds of his work to her website.
Eastman's piece Crazy Nigger was performed March 15, 2008, during 7th Edition Dag in de Branding Festival, The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
, the Netherlands.
Known works
- Tripod (1960s) for unspecified instruments
- Piano Piece I (1968) for solo piano
- Piano Piece II (1968) for solo piano
- Piano Piece III (1968) for solo piano
- Piano Piece IV (1968) for solo piano
- Thruway (1970) for chorus (plus other unspecified instruments)
- The Moon's Silent Modulation (1970) for dancers, vocalists and chamber ensemble
- Touch Him When (?) for piano 4 hands
- Macle (1971) for voices and electronics
- Comp 1 (1971) for solo flute
- Mumbaphilia (1972) for solo performer and dancers
- Wood in Time (1972) for metronomes
- Stay on It (1973) for voice, clarinet, 2 saxes, violin, piano and percussion
- 440 (1973) for voice, violin, viola and double bass
- Femenine (1974) for chamber ensemble
- If You're So Smart, Why Aren't You Rich? (1977) for violin, 2 French horns, 4 trumpets, 2 trombones, tuba, piano, 2 chimes and 2 basses
- NF (1978) for piano
- Piece for 2 pianos (1979)
- Evil Nigger (1979) for 4 pianos
- Gay Guerilla (ca. 1980) for 4 pianos
- Crazy Nigger (ca. 1980) for 4 pianos
- The Holy Presence of Joan d'Arc (1981) for ten cellos
- Untitled [Prelude to The Holy Presence of Joan d'Arc] (1981?) for solo voice
- His Most Qualityless Majesty (1983) for piano and voice
- Piano 2 (1986) for solo piano
Recordings
- 2005 - Unjust Malaise, by various artists (New World 80638) (Includes Stay On It; If You're So Smart, Why Aren't You Rich; Prelude to The Holy Presence of Joan d'Arc; The Holy Presence of Joan d'Arc; Gay Guerrilla; Evil Nigger; Crazy Nigger; and Spoken Introduction to Northwestern University Concert)
- 1987 - Davies, Peter MaxwellPeter Maxwell DaviesSir Peter Maxwell Davies, CBE is an English composer and conductor and is currently Master of the Queen's Music.-Biography:...
. Miss Donnithorne's Maggot; Eight Songs for a Mad KingEight Songs for a Mad KingEight Songs for a Mad King is a monodrama by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies with a libretto by Randolph Stow, based on words of George III. The work was written for the South-African actor Roy Hart and the composer's ensemble the Pierrot Players, and premiered on 22 April 1969...
. London: Unicorn-KanchanaUnicorn-KanchanaUnicorn-Kanchana was a British independent record label. Originally known as Unicorn Records, the name Kanchana was added later to distinguish the company from Unicorn Records of Montréal, Canada...
. (Includes Julius Eastman, baritone.) - 1983 - Monk, Meredith. Turtle DreamsTurtle DreamsTurtle Dreams is an album by American composer and vocalist Meredith Monk recorded in 1983 and released on the ECM New Series label.-Reception:...
- 1981 - Monk, MeredithMeredith MonkMeredith Jane Monk is an American composer, performer, director, vocalist, filmmaker, and choreographer. Since the 1960s, Monk has created multi-disciplinary works which combine music, theatre, and dance, recording extensively for ECM Records.-Life and work:Meredith Monk is primarily known for her...
. Dolmen MusicDolmen MusicDolmen Music is an album by American composer and vocalist Meredith Monk recorded in 1980-81 and released on the ECM New Series label.-Reception:Allmusic awarded the album 2 stars. In his review, Michael G...
. (Includes Julius Eastman, voice.) - 1972 - Kolb, BarbaraBarbara KolbBarbara Kolb is an American composer. Her music uses sound masses and often creates vertical structures through simultaneous rhythmic or melodic units . She was the first American woman composer to win the Prix de Rome. She received her B.M. and M.M...
, and Richard Moryl. New York: Desto. (Includes Julius Eastman, narrator, on Side A.)