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108-460: Charles Arthur Russell Jr. (May 21, 1951 – April 4, 1992) was an American cellist, composer, producer, singer, and musician from Iowa , whose work spanned a disparate range of styles. After studying contemporary composition and Indian classical music in California, Russell relocated to New York City in the mid-1970s, where he became involved with both Lower Manhattan 's avant-garde community and
216-475: A no wave -influenced single edit), and "Tell You Today". D'Aquisto, a non-musician who favored such extemporaneous touches as off-key singing and the input of street buskers , repeatedly clashed with the perfectionist Russell throughout the sessions. Despite the acrimony, Hall felt that "[D'Aquisto] allowed shy Arthur to come out of his shell in the gayest sense. He also taught him how to let go in terms of slavishly and clairvoyantly searching for and then locking in
324-487: A buyer at Rock and Soul Records in Midtown . Despite Gibbons's religious predilections, the two forged a dependable (if occasionally tempestuous) working relationship. Further Gibbons/Russell collaborations include "C-Thru" (a dance version of "See Through" on World of Echo that remained unreleased until 2010) and a remix of Russell's "Calling All Kids" (eventually released on the 2004 compilation Calling out of Context ). At
432-411: A collaboration with dancer Karole Armitage . Drastic Classicism was first released in 1982 on the compilation New Music from Antarctica , put together by Kit Fitzgerald, John Sanborn and Peter Laurence Gordon . It was also included on the 1987 album that also included his 1982 composition Die Donnergötter (German for " The Thundergods "). In 1978, Artists Space served as a site of inception for
540-463: A decline in air quality. Other factors negatively affecting Iowa's environment include the extensive use of older coal-fired power plants , fertilizer and pesticide runoff from crop production, and diminishment of the Jordan Aquifer . The 2020–2023 North American drought has affected Iowa particularly: As of January 2024, Iowa was in its 187th consecutive week of at least moderate drought ,
648-595: A documentary "Arthur Russell: Vanished into Music" on September 27, 2016. The album Tower of Meaning was re-released in 2016 on Audika Records, while material of the album was performed live by the London Contemporary Orchestra in January 2017. Iowa Iowa ( / ˈ aɪ . ə w ə / EYE -ə-wə ) is a state in the upper Midwestern region of the United States . It borders
756-595: A feature-length documentary on Russell called Wild Combination: A Portrait of Arthur Russell . It premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival on February 13, 2008. Tim Lawrence, an author and academic at the University of East London , has written a biography of Russell, titled Hold On to Your Dreams: Arthur Russell and the Downtown Music Scene , published in 2009. BBC Radio 4 broadcast
864-418: A finished product but more to do with exploring his different ways of working musically." He left behind more than 1,000 tapes when he died, 40 of them different mixes of one song. According to Russell archivist Steve Knutson, the musician's estate consists of around 800 reels of 2" and ¼" tape, "another few hundred cassettes, several dozen DAT tapes, hundreds and hundreds of pages of song lyrics and poetry". As
972-542: A leading bastion of minimalism . Russell's booking of Fluxus stalwart Henry Flynt 's "punkabilly" ensemble Nova'billy, concluding his season as director, was likewise unsettling to the avant-garde establishment. According to biographer Tim Lawrence, "the decision to program the Modern Lovers and Talking Heads was Russell's way of demonstrating that minimalism could be found outside of compositional music, as well as his belief that pop music could be arty, energetic and fun at
1080-492: A sixth-story walkup apartment at 437 East 12th Street in the East Village ; Ginsberg (who maintained his primary residence in the building from 1975 to 1996 and helped Russell secure the apartment) supplied electricity to the impoverished composers through an extension cord. Russell resided in the apartment for the rest of his life. During his tenure at The Kitchen (from the autumn of 1974 to the summer of 1975), he greatly expanded
1188-623: A young adult, Russell led a seemingly heterosexual lifestyle; at least two of these relationships (with Muriel Fujii in San Francisco and later Sydney Murray in New York) have been substantiated. Although he briefly dated Allen Ginsberg in 1973, Russell did not identify as a gay man until becoming involved with hairdresser Louis Aquilone in 1976. After the relationship with Aquilone dissolved, Russell dated Donald Murk (who subsequently became Russell's manager) for several years. According to Steven Hall,
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#17331047537611296-595: Is a line along 43 degrees, 30 minutes north latitude. The southern border is the Des Moines River and a not-quite-straight line along approximately 40 degrees 35 minutes north, as decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in Missouri v. Iowa (1849) after a standoff between Missouri and Iowa known as the Honey War . Iowa is the only state whose east and west borders are formed almost entirely by rivers. Carter Lake, Iowa ,
1404-737: Is an American composer, guitarist, trumpet player, multi-instrumentalist (flutes in C, alto and bass, keyboard), primarily active in avant-garde and minimalist music. He is best known for his "guitar orchestra" compositions. He has lived in France since 1987. Chatham began his musical career as a piano tuner for avant-garde Minimalist composer La Monte Young as well as harpsichord tuner for Gustav Leonhardt , Rosalyn Tureck and Glenn Gould . He studied flute under Sue Ann Kahn, with whom he first encountered contemporary classical music , and studied soon afterwards under electronic music pioneer Morton Subotnick and minimalist icon La Monte Young . He
1512-621: Is categorized as the Central forest-grasslands transition ecoregion. The Northern, drier part of Iowa is categorized as part of the Central tall grasslands . There is a dearth of natural areas in Iowa; less than 1% of the tallgrass prairie that once covered most of Iowa remains intact; only about 5% of the state's prairie pothole wetlands remain, and most of the original forest has been lost. As of 2005 Iowa ranked 49th of U.S. states in public land holdings. Threatened or endangered animals in Iowa include
1620-573: Is derived from the Iowa River , and ultimately from the ethnonym of the indigenous Ioway people . The Ioway are a Chiwere -speaking Siouan Nation , who were once part of the Ho-Chunk Confederation that inhabited the area now corresponding to several Midwest states. The Ioway were one of the many Native American nations whose territory comprised the future state of Iowa before the time of European colonization. When Indigenous peoples of
1728-587: Is notable for the Iowa Caucuses , an influential event in national politics, as well as its high levels of voter turnout and foundational leadership in civil rights including early adoption or support of black suffrage , women's rights , and same-sex marriage . Iowa's standard of living is ranked among the best states and it performs highly on metrics such as governance, education, infrastructure, and safety. Like many other states , Iowa takes its name from its predecessor, Iowa Territory , whose name in turn
1836-520: Is part of the Driftless Area , consisting of steep hills and valleys which appear as mountainous. Several natural lakes exist, most notably Spirit Lake , West Okoboji Lake , and East Okoboji Lake in northwest Iowa ( see Iowa Great Lakes ). To the east lies Clear Lake . Man-made lakes include Lake Odessa, Saylorville Lake , Lake Red Rock , Coralville Lake , Lake MacBride, and Rathbun Lake. Before European settlement, 4 to 6 million acres of
1944-481: Is the brain drain , in which educated young adults leave the state in search of better prospects in higher education or employment. During the 1990s, Iowa had the second highest exodus rate for single, educated young adults, second only to North Dakota. The United States Census Bureau determined the population of Iowa was 3,190,369 on April 1, 2020, a 4.73% increase since the 2010 United States census . Rhys Chatham Rhys Chatham (born September 19, 1952)
2052-575: Is the only city in the state located west of the Missouri River. Iowa has 99 counties , but 100 county seats because Lee County has two. The state capital, Des Moines , is in Polk County . Iowa's bedrock geology generally decreases in age from east to west. In northwest Iowa, Cretaceous bedrock can be 74 million years old; in eastern Iowa Cambrian bedrock dates to c. 500 million years ago. The oldest radiometrically dated bedrock in
2160-631: The 1900 census , though Iowa now has a predominantly urban population. The Iowa Economic Development Authority, created in 2011 has replaced the Iowa Department of Economic Development and its annual reports are a source of economic information. Iowa is bordered by the Mississippi River on the east along with the Missouri River and the Big Sioux River on the west. The northern boundary
2268-599: The 24→24 suite) were frequently played at the Paradise Garage. Russell continued to release dance singles such as "Tell You Today" (4th and Broadway, 1983), an upbeat dance groove and Loose Joints holdover featuring the vocals of Joyce Bowden. Additional releases that followed included "Wax the Van" (Jump Street, 1987) and "I Need More" (Vinylmania, 1988), which paired Russell with erstwhile James Brown foil Lola Blank (then married to Bob Blank, Russell's preferred studio engineer);
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#17331047537612376-665: The Ali Akbar College of Music and Western composition part-time at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music . He met Allen Ginsberg , with whom he began to work, accompanying him on the cello as a soloist or in groups while Ginsberg sang or read his poetry. In 1973, Russell moved to New York and enrolled in a formal degree program at the Manhattan School of Music , cross-registering in electronic music and linguistics classes at Columbia University . While studying at
2484-584: The French and Indian War , transferred ownership to their ally, Spain. Spain practiced very loose control over the Iowa region, granting trading licenses to French and British traders, who established trading posts along the Mississippi and Des Moines Rivers . Iowa was part of a territory known as La Louisiane or Louisiana , and European traders were interested in lead and furs obtained by Indigenous people. The Sauk and Meskwaki effectively controlled trade on
2592-808: The Indiana Territory ) that surrendered much of Illinois to the U.S. enraged many Sauk and led to the 1832 Black Hawk War . The Sauk and Meskwaki were forced to sell some of their land in the Mississippi Valley to the U.S. in 1832 in the Black Hawk Purchase Treaty and sold their remaining land in Iowa in 1842, most of them moving to a reservation in Kansas. In 1837, some the Potawatomi from Illinois were resettled in Iowa, while many Meskwaki later returned to Iowa and settled near Tama, Iowa ;
2700-577: The Late Archaic period , Native Americans in Iowa began utilizing domesticated plants. The subsequent Woodland period saw an increased reliance on agriculture and social complexity, with increased use of mounds, ceramics, and specialized subsistence. During the Late Prehistoric period (beginning about AD 900) increased use of maize and social changes led to social flourishing and nucleated settlements. The arrival of European trade goods and diseases in
2808-760: The Meskwaki Settlement remains to this day. In 1856 the Iowa Legislature passed an unprecedented act allowing the Meskwaki to purchase the land. However, in contrast to the unprecedented act of the Iowa Legislature, the United States Federal Government, through the use of Treaties, forced the Ho-Chunk from Iowa in 1848, and forced the Dakota from Iowa by 1858. Western Iowa around modern Council Bluffs
2916-506: The Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the east and southeast, Missouri to the south, Nebraska to the west, South Dakota to the northwest, and Minnesota to the north. Iowa is the 26th largest in total area and the 31st most populous of the 50 U.S. states , with a population of 3.19 million. The state's capital , most populous city , and largest metropolitan area fully located within
3024-427: The Mississippi River , averages 52 °F (11 °C). Snowfall is common, with Des Moines getting about 26 days of snowfall a year, and other places, such as Shenandoah getting about 11 days of snowfall in a year. Spring ushers in the beginning of the severe weather season. As of 2008, Iowa averaged about 50 days of thunderstorm activity per year. As of 2015, the 30-year annual average of tornadoes in Iowa
3132-587: The U.S. Congress established the Territory of Iowa . President Martin Van Buren appointed Robert Lucas governor of the territory, which at the time had 22 counties and a population of 23,242. Almost immediately after achieving territorial status, a clamor arose for statehood. On December 28, 1846, Iowa became the 29th state in the Union when President James K. Polk signed Iowa's admission bill into law. Once admitted to
3240-629: The War of 1812 , and Fort Shelby in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin , also fell to the British. Black Hawk took part in the siege of Fort Madison. Another small military outpost was established along the Mississippi River in present-day Bellevue . This poorly situated stockade was similarly attacked by hundreds of Indigenous people in 1813, but was successfully defended and later abandoned until settlers returned to
3348-584: The interior least tern , piping plover , Indiana bat , pallid sturgeon , the Iowa Pleistocene land snail , Higgins' eye pearly mussel , and the Topeka shiner . Endangered or threatened plants include western prairie fringed orchid , eastern prairie fringed orchid , Mead's milkweed , prairie bush clover , and northern wild monkshood . The explosion in the number of high-density livestock facilities in Iowa has led to increased rural water contamination and
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3456-665: The 18th and early 19th centuries, Iowa was a part of French Louisiana and Spanish Louisiana ; its state flag is patterned after the flag of France . After the Louisiana Purchase , pioneers laid the foundation for an agriculture-based economy in the heart of the Corn Belt . In the latter half of the 20th century, Iowa's agricultural economy began to transition to a diversified economy of advanced manufacturing, processing, financial services , information technology , biotechnology , and green energy production. Politically, Iowa
3564-492: The 90s to its present more dreamy and laid back approach to playing the instrument, influenced by players such as Don Cherry and Jon Hassell . Examples of this style can be heard on Chatham's releases, The Bern Project , released by Hinterzimmer Records in 2010, and Outdoor Spell , released in 2011 by Northern Spy. In 2023 Chatham and his No Wave XS: The Opera Opus was featured at the Paris Centre Pompidou in
3672-663: The Americas first arrived in what is now Iowa more than 13,000 years ago, they were hunters and gatherers living in a Pleistocene glacial landscape. By the time European explorers and traders visited Iowa, Native Americans were largely settled farmers with complex economic, social, and political systems. This transformation happened gradually. During the Archaic period (10,500 to 2,800 years ago), Native Americans adapted to local environments and ecosystems, slowly becoming more sedentary as populations increased. More than 3,000 years ago, during
3780-765: The Army of the Potomac in Virginia and fought under Union General Philip Sheridan in the Shenandoah Valley . Many died and were buried at Andersonville. They marched on General Nathaniel Banks ' ill-starred expedition to the Red River. Twenty-seven Iowans have been awarded the Medal of Honor , the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government, which was first awarded in
3888-503: The Civil War. Iowa had several brigadier generals and four major generals— Grenville Mellen Dodge , Samuel R. Curtis , Francis J. Herron , and Frederick Steele —and saw many of its generals go on to state and national prominence following the war. Following the Civil War, Iowa's population continued to grow dramatically, from 674,913 people in 1860 to 1,624,615 in 1880. The American Civil War briefly brought higher profits. In 1917,
3996-470: The Depression. The crisis spurred a major, decade-long population decline. After bottoming out in the 1980s, Iowa's economy began to reduce its dependence on agriculture. By the early 21st century, it was characterized by a mix of manufacturing, biotechnology, finance and insurance services, and government services. The population of Iowa has increased at a slower rate than the U.S. as a whole since at least
4104-585: The Flesh . (This parallels the way that members of fellow NYC noise rockers Sonic Youth began their careers in Branca's ensembles; Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth did play with Chatham as well.) Chatham began playing trumpet in 1983, studying under Carmine Curuso and Andrew Crocker, and his more recent works explore an early minimalist vocabulary employing loop and delay techniques for trumpet; these are performed by Chatham himself. Examples of this work can be heard on
4212-510: The Indochina War. An exception was required for this resettlement as State Dept policy at the time forbid resettlement of large groups of refugees in concentrated communities; an exception was ultimately granted and 1200 Tai Dam were resettled in Iowa. Since then Iowa has accepted thousands of refugees from Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Bhutan, and Burma. The farm crisis of the 1980s caused a major recession in Iowa, causing poverty not seen since
4320-690: The Little All-Stars) was formed with Russell, onetime DJ Steve D'Aquisto , Columbia student and Russell confidante Steven Hall, three singers found on The Loft 's dancefloor, miscellaneous other musicians, and the Ingram Brothers rhythm section (best known for later backing Patti LaBelle ). With a stated ambition to create "the disco White Album ", the group—under contract to leading underground disco label West End Records—recorded hours of music but only released three songs: "Is It All Over My Face", "Pop Your Funk" (in two disparate arrangements, including
4428-572: The Louisiana Purchase into two parts—the Territory of Orleans and the District of Louisiana, with present-day Iowa falling in the latter. The Indiana Territory , created in 1800, exercised jurisdiction over this portion of the District; William Henry Harrison was its first governor. Much of Iowa was mapped by Zebulon Pike in 1805, but it was not until the construction of Fort Madison in 1808 that
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4536-464: The Mississippi in the late 18th century and early 19th century. Among the early traders on the Mississippi were Julien Dubuque , Robert de la Salle , and Paul Marin . Along the Missouri River at least five French and English trading houses were built before 1808. In 1800, Napoleon Bonaparte took control of Louisiana from Spain in a treaty . After the 1803 Louisiana Purchase , Congress divided
4644-580: The No Wave movement, hosting a five night underground No Wave music festival, organized by artists Michael Zwack and Robert Longo , that featured ten local bands; including Chatham's The Gynecologists and Tone Death. Members of the New York City noise rock band Band of Susans began their careers in Chatham's ensembles; they later performed a cover of Chatham's "Guitar Trio" on their 1991 album, The Word and
4752-465: The Peter Zummo collaboration "School Bell/Treehouse" (Sleeping Bag, 1986); and "Let's Go Swimming" (Upside/ Rough Trade , 1986), which anticipated later developments in tech house and was Russell's only dance single to be released under his own name. The latter two records were remixed by legendary 70s-era DJ Walter Gibbons , who had renounced his career for evangelical Christianity and was employed as
4860-476: The Protohistoric period led to dramatic population shifts and economic and social upheaval, with the arrival of new tribes and early European explorers and traders. There were numerous native American tribes living in Iowa at the time of early European exploration. Tribes which were probably descendants of the prehistoric Oneota include the Dakota , Ho-Chunk , Ioway , and Otoe . Tribes which arrived in Iowa in
4968-506: The U.S. established tenuous military control over the region. Fort Madison was built to control trade and establish U.S. dominance over the Upper Mississippi, but it was poorly designed and disliked by the Sauk and Meskwaki, many of whom allied with the British, who had not abandoned claims to the territory. Fort Madison was defeated by British-supported Indigenous people in 1813 during
5076-403: The Union, the state's boundary issues resolved, and most of its land purchased from Natives, Iowa set its direction to development and organized campaigns for settlers and investors, boasting the young frontier state's rich farmlands, fine citizens, free and open society, and good government. Iowa has a long tradition of state and county fairs. The first and second Iowa State Fairs were held in
5184-455: The United States entered World War I and farmers as well as all Iowans experienced a wartime economy. For farmers, the change was significant. Since the beginning of the war in 1914, Iowa farmers had experienced economic prosperity, which lasted until the end of the war. In the economic sector, Iowa also has undergone considerable change. Beginning with the first industries developed in the 1830s, which were mainly for processing materials grown in
5292-571: The Woods . A tribute EP, Four Songs by Arthur Russell , curated by Jens Lekman , was released in 2007 through Rough Trade Records. In 2014 the HIV/AIDS focused Red Hot Organization released a tribute triple LP compilation, Master Mix: Red Hot + Arthur Russell , included artists Jose Gonzalez , Robyn , Hot Chip , Sufjan Stevens and Devendra Banhart among others. In 2015 Red Hot presented Red Hot + Arthur Russell Live featuring musicians and songs from
5400-477: The age of 40. In an April 28 column, Kyle Gann of The Village Voice wrote: "His recent performances had been so infrequent due to illness, his songs were so personal, that it seems as though he simply vanished into his music." Russell was prolific, but was also notorious for leaving songs unfinished and continually revising his music. Ernie Brooks said Russell "never arrived at a completed version of anything." Peter Gordon stated, "his quest wasn't really to do
5508-595: The album Outdoor Spell , released by Northern Spy in 2011, and a recent duo album with Charlemagne Palestine , entitled Youuu + Mee = Weee , released on the Belgium SubRosa Label in 2014. In 2002, he enjoyed a resurgence following the release of a limited-edition 3 CD retrospective box set on the record label Table of the Elements , An Angel Moves Too Fast to See: Selected Works 1971-1989 , complete with 130-page booklet. The An Angel Moves Too Fast to See part of
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#17331047537615616-465: The album's original moniker in 2015) by Socolov in 1985, coupled with creative disagreements between the two over "Wax the Van", resulted in Russell divesting himself from Sleeping Bag Records shortly after the release of "Schoolbell/Treehouse" in 1986. According to Bob Blank in a followup to an Internet reposting of the (purportedly fallacious) 1986 article that detailed the subterfuge, Socolov "wanted to take
5724-513: The area in the mid-1830s. After the war, the U.S. re-established control of the region through the construction of Fort Armstrong , Fort Snelling in Minnesota , and Fort Atkinson in Nebraska . The United States encouraged settlement of the east side of the Mississippi and removal of Indians to the west. A disputed 1804 treaty between Quashquame and William Henry Harrison (then governor of
5832-550: The area, Iowa has experienced a gradual increase in the number of business and manufacturing operations. The transition from an agricultural economy to a mixed economy happened slowly. The Great Depression and World War II accelerated the shift away from smallholder farming to larger farms, and began a trend of urbanization. The period after World War II witnessed a particular increase in manufacturing operations. In 1975, Governor Robert D. Ray petitioned President Ford to allow Iowa to accept and resettle Tai Dam refugees fleeing
5940-628: The armed forces, over one-sixth of whom were killed before the Confederates surrendered at Appomattox . Most fought in the great campaigns in the Mississippi Valley and in the South . Iowa troops fought at Wilson's Creek in Missouri , Pea Ridge in Arkansas , Forts Henry and Donelson, Shiloh, Chattanooga, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, and Rossville Gap as well as Vicksburg, Iuka, and Corinth. They served with
6048-575: The band at the approach to the Holland Tunnel before an important concert in Washington, D.C. In 1976, Russell was in talks to join Talking Heads , who were a trio at the time. He recorded an acoustic version of the song " Psycho Killer " with the band, playing cello. He would also collaborate on arrangements for early Talking Heads songs. He stated that they became friends but he "ended up not joining
6156-418: The band. They were all from art school and were into looking severe and cool. I was never into that. I was from music school and I had long hair at the time." Around 1976, Russell became a habitue of New York's nascent underground disco scene, namely Nicky Siano 's Gallery on Houston Street in SoHo . In a 2007 interview with Wax Poetics magazine, Siano downplayed the popular myth that Russell's interest in
6264-456: The behest of experimental composer Christian Wolff , whom he had sought out and befriended upon arriving in the Northeast. But after a chance meeting at a Wolff concert in Manhattan, he became close with Rhys Chatham , who arranged for Russell to succeed him as music director of The Kitchen , a downtown avant-garde performance space. As a result, he abandoned his studies and remained in New York. Russell and Chatham later briefly roomed together in
6372-404: The breadth and purview of the venue's offerings, crafting a program that "support[ed] other local and relatively low profile composers rather than... accentuat[ing] the work of composers who were beginning to acquire an international reputation." This approach elicited controversy when Russell booked Boston-based proto-punk band The Modern Lovers for an engagement at the venue, widely regarded as
6480-432: The city's burgeoning disco scene. His eclectic music was often marked by adventurous production choices and his distinctive voice. Russell worked as musical director of the New York avant-garde venue the Kitchen in 1974 and 1975, but later embraced dance music , producing or co-producing several underground club hits under names such as Dinosaur L , Loose Joints , and Indian Ocean between 1978 and 1988. He co-founded
6588-430: The conservatory, Russell repeatedly clashed with Pulitzer Prize -winning serialist composer and instructor Charles Wuorinen , who disparaged the composition "City Park" (a minimalist, non-narrative suite incorporating readings from the works of Ezra Pound and Gertrude Stein ) as "the most unattractive thing I've ever heard". Embittered by his experience, Russell briefly considered transferring to Dartmouth College at
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#17331047537616696-632: The couple's rent-controlled East Village apartment until February 2011, is the executor of Russell's estate. Their relationship is detailed at length in Matt Wolf's Wild Combination: A Portrait of Arthur Russell . Though never achieving great success during his lifetime, Russell has been acknowledged as an important influence on a variety of musical developments and artists in recent years. In 2004, Stylus described him as "criminally overlooked for far too long" and "a genius—never to be recognized in his own time, but to be enjoyed by generations to come." PopMatters noted "the contributions Russell made to
6804-692: The disco LP 24→24 Music (1981) under his Dinosaur L alias. Over the last two decades of his life, he amassed a large collection of unreleased and unfinished recordings, in part due to his perfectionist working tendencies. He died from AIDS-related illnesses in 1992, still in relative obscurity and poverty. Russell's profile rose in the 21st century owing to a series of musical releases (including collections of previously unreleased material) and biographical works. Several posthumous compilations of his music were released, including The World of Arthur Russell (2004) and Calling Out of Context (2004). The documentary Wild Combination: A Portrait of Arthur Russell
6912-427: The disease caused throat cancer (forcing Russell to undergo chemotherapy), he remained prolific, working on voice-and-cello songs for an album to be released by Philip Glass's Point Music (some of which surfaced on the posthumous Another Thought in 1994) and an electronic pop album (influenced by the likes of 808 State and William Orbit and provisionally titled 1-800-Dinosaur ) for Rough Trade Records . Much of
7020-1157: The disparate genres of dance , disco , dub , and experimental music " and wrote that "his absolute fearlessness in lending his own unique style to even the most unlikely sound combinations is peerless." Vice noted that he "never settled on one genre of music [...] He made winsome country and hypersexual disco and delicate art pop ," while drifting through the downtown rock and classical scenes of New York. Bandcamp Daily credited him with "spanning and shaping sounds as far afield as disco, minimalism, avant-garde , new wave , and folk-pop ." Pitchfork called Russell "a changeling artist whose only parallel might be Miles Davis , constantly placing his individual sound in new contexts, constantly searching." Artists who have cited Russell as an influence include Dev Hynes , The Lemon Twigs and James Murphy . James Blake named his club night and record label after Russell's provisionally titled album "1-800-Dinosaur". Planningtorock covered Russell's song "Janine" on their album W in 2011, and former Everything But The Girl singer Tracey Thorn covered "Get Around to It" on her 2007 solo album Out of
7128-420: The downtown luminaries culminated in Wilson barring the composer from attending rehearsals and eventually ousting Russell from the project altogether in favor of British composer Gavin Bryars . The "compelling and meditative recording", conducted by Julius Eastman, represents just a fragment of Russell's score, which includes voices along with its instrumentation. While Russell tangentially remained affiliated with
7236-437: The expense of more rural counties. Iowa, in common with other Midwestern states (especially Kansas , Nebraska , North Dakota , and South Dakota ), is feeling the brunt of rural flight , although Iowa has been gaining population since approximately 1990. Some smaller communities, such as Denison and Storm Lake , have mitigated this population loss through gains in immigrant laborers. Another demographic problem for Iowa
7344-425: The fairgrounds were being used as an army supply depot; and in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States . Iowa supported the Union during the Civil War , voting heavily for Abraham Lincoln , though there was an antiwar " Copperhead " movement in the state, caused partially by a drop in crop prices caused by the war. There were no battles in the state, although the Battle of Athens , Missouri, 1861,
7452-427: The genre solidified over the course of a single night, noting that "Louis [Aquilone, Siano's best friend and Russell's then-lover] was at the Gallery every single Saturday night. After spending a few Saturday nights without Louis, Arthur decided to come. After the third or fourth time there, he started to come without Louis". Though an eager dancer, Siano has described Russell's style as "strange... outrageous, weird... he
7560-419: The groove." The experimental recordings bemused many of downtown New York's disco cognoscenti, including West End head Mel Cheren and Loft proprietor David Mancuso , a predicament that led Larry Levan to remix "Is It All Over My Face" for club play; the ensuing track, based around a female vocal wiped from the original mix (and recorded on stolen studio time with Francois Kevorkian as an uncredited co-mixer)
7668-543: The idiom. Selections from the Instrumentals sessions were eventually collected on an eponymously titled album, released by Belgian label Disques du Crepuscule in 1984. The collaboration among Russell (once again as a keyboardist), Brooks, and Chamberlain extended into The Necessaries, a power pop quartet fronted by guitarist Ed Tomney. Their lone 1981 album on Sire Records (initially released as Big Sky before being tweaked and re-released as Event Horizon ) featured few songwriting contributions from Russell, who abruptly left
7776-469: The independent label Sleeping Bag Records with Will Socolov in 1981, and collaborated with a wide variety of artists, including musicians Peter Gordon , Peter Zummo , and Talking Heads , DJs such as Walter Gibbons , Nicky Siano , and Steve D'Aquisto ; and poet Allen Ginsberg . The only full-length studio albums Russell issued under his name were the orchestral recording Tower of Meaning (1983) and vocal LP World of Echo (1986); he also released
7884-549: The label to 'another level". During the mid-1980s, Russell gave many performances, either accompanying himself on cello with a myriad of effects, or working with a small ensemble consisting of Steven Hall, Ernie Brooks, Peter Zummo, percussionist Mustafa Ahmed, and composer Elodie Lauten . September 1986 saw the release of World of Echo (Upside/Rough Trade, 1986). Heralded as "a magnum opus of sorts" by contemporary critics, it incorporated many of his ideas for pop, dance and classical music for both solo and cello format. The album
7992-488: The late prehistoric or protohistoric periods include the Illiniwek , Meskwaki , Omaha , and Sauk . The first known European explorers to document Iowa were Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet who traveled the Mississippi River in 1673 documenting several Indigenous villages on the Iowa side. The area of Iowa was claimed for France and remained a French territory until 1763. The French, before their impending defeat in
8100-456: The likes of Chatham, David Byrne , Jon Gibson, Peter Gordon , Jerry Harrison , Garrett List (who succeeded Russell as musical director of The Kitchen), Andy Paley , Lenny Pickett and Peter Zummo . During the same period, various permutations of this ensemble, together with Glenn Iamaro, Bill Ruyle and Jon Sholle, performed & recorded excerpts from Instrumentals , a 48-hour-long orchestral work that constituted Russell's first major work in
8208-403: The longest stretch since the 1950s. 96% of areas are affected by drought. Iowa has a humid continental climate throughout the state ( Köppen climate classification Dfa ) with extremes of both heat and cold. The average annual temperature at Des Moines is 50 °F (10 °C); for some locations in the north, such as Mason City, the figure is about 45 °F (7 °C), while Keokuk , on
8316-428: The material intended for this project was included on 2004's Calling Out of Context . Although Russell reportedly planned to submit the album in the summer of 1987, he continued tinkering with potential songs for another four years. According to Rough Trade founder Geoff Travis , "It was frustrating, but I knew he needed my support to keep financing his music." Russell died of AIDS-related illnesses on April 4, 1992, at
8424-643: The more developed eastern part of the state at Fairfield . The first fair was held October 25–27, 1854, at a cost of around $ 323. Thereafter, the fair moved to locations closer to the center of the state and in 1886 found a permanent home in Des Moines. The State Fair has been held annually since then, except for a few exceptions: 1898 due to the Spanish–American War and the World's Fair being held in nearby Omaha, Nebraska ; from 1942 to 1945, due to World War II , as
8532-495: The new music sphere in New York until his death, continuing to perform in solo and group configurations at The Kitchen and Experimental Intermedia Foundation, Tower of Meaning was his final orchestral effort. The rejection of Russell's Corn album (an eclectic suite of material centered around hip-hop -infused electropop , including several tracks later released on Calling Out of Context ; other songs were eventually released under
8640-402: The northwest of the state receiving less than 28 inches (71 cm). The pattern of precipitation across Iowa is seasonal with more rain falling in the summer months. Virtually statewide, the driest month is January or February, and the wettest month is June owing to frequent showers and thunderstorms some of which produce hail, damaging winds or tornadoes. In Des Moines, roughly in the center of
8748-407: The original film by Robert Longo that was projected behind the performance, entitled Pictures for Music (1979). The sets consisted of local musicians from each city of the performances, including members of Sonic Youth, Tortoise , Godspeed You! Black Emperor , Hüsker Dü , Brokeback , 90 Day Men , Town & Country , Die Kreuzen , Bird Show and others. A three-CD box set of these performances
8856-437: The relationship was tempestuous, "with lots of threesomes and fighting and very dramatic emotional scenes". As this relationship drew to a close, Russell became acquainted with silkscreen operator Tom Lee; their friendship rapidly evolved into a domestic partnership. Although Russell continued to see other men and women, their partnership endured until his death in 1992. Lee, who became a schoolteacher and continued to reside in
8964-411: The same time, the album Tower of Meaning (Chatham Square, 1983) was released in a limited pressing on Philip Glass 's private label. The recording was made up of incidental music intended to accompany director Robert Wilson 's staging of Medea , a partnership arranged by Glass. Although widely perceived as an important breakthrough for Russell in the compositional world, creative squabbling between
9072-443: The same time." From 1975 to 1979, Russell was a member of The Flying Hearts, recorded by John Hammond , which consisted of Russell (keyboards/vocals), ex- Modern Lovers member Ernie Brooks (bass/vocals), Larry Saltzman (guitar), and David Van Tieghem (drums, vocals); a later incarnation in the 1980s included Joyce Bowden (vocals) and Jesse Chamberlain (drums). This ensemble was frequently augmented in live and studio performances by
9180-522: The state is Des Moines . A portion of the larger Omaha, Nebraska, metropolitan area extends into three counties of southwest Iowa. Other metropolitan statistical areas in Iowa include Iowa City , Cedar Rapids , Waterloo-Cedar Falls , Ames , Dubuque , Sioux City , and the Iowa portion of the Quad Cities . Iowa is home to 940 small towns, though its population is increasingly urbanized as small communities and rural areas decline in population. During
9288-470: The state is the 2.9 billion year old Otter Creek Layered Mafic Complex. Precambrian rock is exposed only in the northwest of the state. Iowa can be divided into eight landforms based on glaciation , soils , topography , and river drainage. Loess hills lie along the western border of the state, some of which are several hundred feet thick. Northeast Iowa along the Upper Mississippi River
9396-532: The state was covered with wetlands, about 95% of these wetlands have been drained. Iowa's natural vegetation is tallgrass prairie and savanna in upland areas, with dense forest and wetlands in flood plains and protected river valleys, and pothole wetlands in northern prairie areas. Most of Iowa is used for agriculture; crops cover 60% of the state, grasslands (mostly pasture and hay with some prairie and wetland) cover 30%, and forests cover 7%; urban areas and water cover another 1% each. The southern part of Iowa
9504-630: The state, over two-thirds of the 34.72 inches (88.2 cm) of rain falls from April through September, and about half the average annual precipitation falls from May through August peaking in June. Iowa's population is more urban than rural, with 61 percent living in urban areas in 2000, a trend that began in the early 20th century. Urban counties in Iowa grew 8.5% from 2000 to 2008, while rural counties declined by 4.2%. The shift from rural to urban has caused population increases in more urbanized counties such as Dallas , Johnson , Linn , Polk , and Scott , at
9612-597: The title comes from Chatham's 1989 composition for one hundred guitars. He has been since touring with his one-hundred guitar orchestra in Europe. In 2005, he was commissioned by the city of Paris, in his adopted homeland, to write a composition for 400 electric guitars entitled A Crimson Grail , as part of the Nuit Blanche Festival. Approximately 10,000 people were present at the performance, and 100,000 more watched it on live television. A CD of excerpts from this concert
9720-438: The title) that had been commissioned by and first performed at The Kitchen in 1979. The first limited pressing of this record had a hand made silk-screened cover. Steven Hall later described its debut as "the best performance of Arthur's work that I ever attended... it was like really hot dance music and no one got it. The idea that Arthur would turn around and bring that [dance] music into their venue and present it as serious music
9828-432: The tribute at Brooklyn Academy of Music 's Howard Gilman Opera House for two nights. In 2016, rapper Kanye West released a track titled " 30 Hours " which prominently samples Russell's "Answers Me." In 2018, American musician and composer Peter Broderick released the compilation album Peter Broderick & Friends Play Arthur Russell containing cover versions of songs written by Russell. Filmmaker Matt Wolf completed
9936-558: Was 47. In 2008 , twelve people were killed by tornadoes in Iowa, making it the deadliest year since 1968 and also the second most tornadoes in a year with 105, matching the total from 2001. Iowa summers are known for heat and humidity, with daytime temperatures sometimes near 90 °F (32 °C) and occasionally exceeding 100 °F (38 °C). Average winters in the state have been known to drop well below freezing, even dropping below −18 °F (−28 °C). As of 2018, Iowa's all-time hottest temperature of 118 °F (48 °C)
10044-440: Was a fairly large club hit, reportedly selling "some ungodly amount, like two hundred thousand copies". Despite the modicum of commercial success and "ecstatic reaction" elicited by the record in the New York underground, according to Siano, "Ray Caviano [head of Warner/Sire's disco division] never really pushed it," and the record failed to cross over into the mainstream. The song's main hook was interpolated by Desmond Child (who
10152-527: Was a member of Young's avant-garde group, Theatre of Eternal Music during the early seventies. Chatham also played with Tony Conrad in an early version of Conrad's group, The Dream Syndicate . In 1971, while still in his teens, Chatham became the first music director at the experimental art space The Kitchen in lower Manhattan. His early musical work, such as Two Gongs (1971) owes a significant debt to La Monte Young and other minimalists such as Terry Riley and Philip Glass . By 1977, Chatham's music
10260-476: Was about the daily grind of actually playing music." In 1977, trenchantly attracted to the minimalist rhythms of disco and funded by Siano's "Gallery war chest", Russell wrote and co-produced "Kiss Me Again" in collaboration with a diverse array of musicians—Flynt, Zummo, Byrne (on rhythm guitar) and Gloria Gaynor veterans Wilbur Bascomb (bass) and Alan Schwartzberg (drums)—under the moniker of Dinosaur L . The first disco single to be released by Sire Records, it
10368-592: Was acquainted with Russell via Larry Salzman) on his minor 1979 hit "Our Love Is Insane," leading Russell to accuse the musician of infringement among his friends. Although the duo was signed to Sire to produce a follow-up single featuring Gerri Griffin of the Voices of East Harlem , the sessions stalled because of Siano's burgeoning drug habit (leading him to take temporary refuge in California) and Russell's myopic approach to recording. In 1980, Loose Joints (initially known as
10476-592: Was an enduring staple of Levan's sets at the Paradise Garage and a formative influence on Chicago house , in addition to becoming a bona fide commercial hit in the New York area via airplay on WBLS . In 1981, Russell and entrepreneur Will Socolov (who partially financed the Loose Joints sessions) founded Sleeping Bag Records . Their first release was a recording of 24→24 Music , a controversial disco-influenced composition (with rhythmic shifts every 24 bars, hence
10584-422: Was definitely a 'white-boy' dancer." By the time Russell was involved with Tom Lee in the 1980s, his nightlife activities had subsided to a large extent. "It wasn't like Arthur and I were in some gay disco world, getting dressed to go out to the club and dancing the night away," Lee has said. "We'd go to CBGB , we'd go to Max's Kansas City , we'd go to Tier 3 but we'd listen to the group and then go home. For him it
10692-590: Was fought just across the Des Moines River from Croton, Iowa , and shots from the battle landed in Iowa. Iowa sent large supplies of food to the armies and the eastern cities. Much of Iowa's support for the Union can be attributed to Samuel J. Kirkwood , its first wartime governor. Of a total population of 675,000, about 116,000 men were subjected to military duty. Iowa contributed proportionately more soldiers to Civil War military service than did any other state, north or south, sending more than 75,000 volunteers to
10800-610: Was heavily influenced by punk rock , having seen an early Ramones concert. He formed the No Wave groups Tone Death (that performed early versions of his Guitar Trio ) and The Gynecologists after being intrigued and influenced by the group of artists that music critics would label No Wave in 1978. That year, he began performing Guitar Trio around downtown Manhattan with an ensemble that included Glenn Branca , as well as Nina Canal of Ut . During this period, he wrote several works for large guitar ensembles, including Drastic Classicism ,
10908-677: Was on August 8, 2008. Two-hundred electric guitarists performed the piece at the Damrosch Park Bandshell in New York City. The performance was part of a free concert series, Lincoln Center Out of Doors, that was being commissioned by the Lincoln Center . But rain canceled the concert for safety reasons. For the 2009 premiere, precautions were taken so that the concert could go on even if it rained. Concurrent with his work for guitar orchestras and smaller ensembles, Chatham's trumpet style has evolved from its characteristic distorted sound of
11016-461: Was really very challenging to them, and very threatening to them." "Go Bang," originally released on this album but recorded three years earlier by an ensemble that included Zummo, Peter Gordon, academic/composer Julius Eastman , Bascomb, and John and Jimmy Ingram was remixed as a 12" single by Francois Kevorkian . Kevorkian's remix of "Go Bang" and Levan's remix of "In the Cornbelt" (another track from
11124-457: Was recorded at Keokuk on July 20, 1934, during a nationwide heat wave; as of 2014, the all-time lowest temperature of −47 °F (−44 °C) was recorded in Washta on January 12, 1912. Iowa has had a relatively smooth gradient of varying precipitation across the state; from 1961 to 1990, areas in the southeast of the state received an average of over 38 inches (97 cm) of rain annually, and
11232-543: Was released by Table of the Elements in March 2008. Rhys Chatham made his first American presentation of a composition for a one-hundred guitar orchestra in Williamsport, Pennsylvania , on May 23, 2008, with an orchestra composed of local students and teachers, as well as many professional guitarists. This performance was the premiere of a new composition entitled Les 100 Guitares: G100 . The American premiere of A Crimson Grail
11340-514: Was released in 2008. Russell was born and raised in Oskaloosa, Iowa ; his father was a former naval officer who eventually served as mayor of the small city. As a child and adolescent, he studied the cello and piano and began to compose his own music. When he was 18 he moved to San Francisco, where he lived in a Buddhist commune led by Neville G. Pemchekov Warwick . After earning his high school equivalency, he studied North Indian classical music at
11448-512: Was released in January 2007 by Table of the Elements. Rhys Chatham was touring the original 30 minute version of Guitar Trio in the USA and Europe, renamed G3 because the instrumentation had been increased to between six and ten electric guitars, electric bass and drums. In February 2007 he completed a twelve-city tour called the Guitar Trio (G3) Is My Life North America Tour , which was accompanied by
11556-517: Was used as an Indian Reservation for members of the Council of Three Fires . The first American settlers officially moved to Iowa in June 1833. Primarily, they were families from Ohio , Pennsylvania , New York , Indiana , Kentucky , and Virginia who settled along the western banks of the Mississippi River , founding the modern day cities of Dubuque and Bellevue near the site of Julien Dubuque's 1785–1810 lead mining operation. On July 4, 1838,
11664-534: Was well-reviewed in Britain and included in Melody Maker 's "Top Thirty Releases of 1986", but failed commercially. Russell also collaborated with a number of choreographers, including John Bernd, Diane Madden , Alison Salzinger, Stephanie Woodard, and Charles Moulton. He was also honored with a posthumous Bessie Award in 1993. Shortly after the release of World of Echo , Russell was diagnosed as HIV-positive. Though
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