“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.
The multi-Grammy nominated experimental orchestral collective 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.
Wild Up Ensemble:
Christopher Rountree, music director, conductor, vocalist, and arranger
richard valitutto, piano, synth, organ
Andrew Tholl, violin, electronics, and arranger
Mona Tian, violin
Darian Donovan Thomas, violin, electronics, voice, and arranger
Linnea Powell, viola
Archie Carey, bassoon
Seth Parker Woods, cello
Derek Stein, cello
Marlon Martinez, bass
Brian Cannady, percussion
Jodie Landau, percussion, voice, synth, and arranger
Rachel Beetz, flute, piccolo
Brian Walsh, clarinets and bari saxophone
Shelley Washington, saxophones and arranger
M.A. Tiesenga, saxophones
Allen Fogle, french horn
Produced in collaboration with Wild Up
Production Director for Wild Up, Brian Sea
Executive Producer for Wild Up, Elizabeth Cline