Whitman Death Songs

2000
Alexis Bhagat
Whitman Death Songs is the soundtrack to an installation of the same title, which was exhibited in the 19th Century Sculpture Gallery at the Albany Institute of History and Art in 2000. The piece is a mix (with heavy effects) of two recordings: First, Bhagat selected a group of passages from Leaves of Grass pertaining to death and deathlessness, and sang them during one night of intense thunderstorms in Grafton, New York. His volume was modulated from whispers to shouting depending very much upon the ambient noise of raindrops hitting the roof. He then asked his grandmother, Magdalene Dysleski, to read the selected passages. During the course of their recording, his grandmother discussed how the will to-not-to-die faces the reality of a body losing its functions, and recounts a story of the death of her husband.

Cameo appearance by Lydia Mulero. Cover art by NSWalker

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