when i was in my early teens, i went to a concert of music by julius eastman at the unitarian church in buffalo new york. it was a concert for which my father was, more or less, the “official” photographer. julius eastman is considered (by me, anyway) to be one of the founders (along with philip glasss) of what is called “minimalist” music. i didn’t know this at the time, but my father very much disliked the music that he heard. he was only there to take pictures. he took several, including one that he called “In Like Fashion“…

while i definitely DID NOT “understand” the music i heard, it inspired me, and has continued to inspire me to this very day. julius eastman died in 1990, at the age of 49, of what was likely HIV-related issues, but, at the time, it was reported as “cardiac arrest”. his january 1991 obituary said that he was on the verge of starvation.

it turns out, julius eastman was a singer, as well as a composer. he appears on the 1981 recording i have of “Dolmen Music” by Meridith Monk.