The Postminimal is Political: Social Activism in the Music of Julius Eastman and Ann Southam

Abstract

The emergence of postminimalism around 1980 allowed composers to combine minimalist musical techniques with their own distinct compositional approaches. Some composers, including American Julius Eastman and Canadian Ann Southam, exercised a consciousness-raising approach to composition by infusing their postminimalist works with political messages relevant to the gay liberation and feminist movements of the late twentieth century. In the work Gay Guerrilla (1979), Eastman pursued an original compositional approach, which he called ‘organic music,’ to explore themes of heroism and courage in the work’s climax. These musical themes resonated with the post-Stonewall gay liberation movement in the United States, particularly the assassination of Harvey Milk in San Francisco. Additionally, the repetitive processes of Southam's Glass Houses No. 5 (1981) constitute a highly organised compositional approach wherein the same music is constantly repeated in different contexts. These tight patterns referenced the contemporary genre of 'women's music' by physically resembling patient and cyclic work done by hand – work traditionally completed by women – and by critiquing this collective experience of ‘women’s work.’ By including these political associations in their art, Julius Eastman and Ann Southam created consciousness-raising critiques of contemporary trends of North American social activism. Content Note: This paper discusses violence against the queer and trans community, including an assassination, and also mentions two musical compositions which use a racial slur in their titles.