Eastman
An AMOC* Production
JONNY ALLEN, percussion
MATHEW AUCOIN, piano
DOUG BALLIETT, double bass
MIRANDA CUCKSON, violin
EMI FERGUSON, flute
CONOR HANICK, piano
DAVÓNE TINES, bass-baritone
SETH PARKER WOODS*, cello
ZACK WINOKUR, director
In the words of AMOC* bass-baritone Davóne Tines, EASTMAN is “a continually developing concert” that reflects the performers’ consideration of Julius Eastman’s art and the larger context of his life, creativity, and humanity. The project came out of the proposition “What is possible if all members of a performing ensemble are present for every step of the creation of the performance?” This led to a commitment that each collaborator made to meet weekly for over a year to discover and digest Julius Eastman’s work, share personal stories about what his absence from our education has meant, play his music and the music of his contemporaries, and build collective knowledge and informed performance practice together. This sustained work has culminated in more than just a concert: EASTMAN represents a way of working collegially and collaboratively, with care and holistic inquiry that seeks to honor the material through deep contextualization. This is our effort to pay homage.
Seminal works include Our Father, Gay Guerrilla, Buddha, Stay On It, and Prelude to the Holy Presence of Joan d’Arc. EASTMAN is 80 minutes long and features seven company members.
*denotes guest artist
Premiered at Manhattan’s Little Island, September 2021
Performed at 76th Ojai Music Festival, June 2022
Production Photos by Toby Tenenbaum
“unforgettable for both its programming and the conviction of the musicians who performed it”
Wall Street Journal