Elergy for the Disco

In Elegy for Discothèque, four DJs mixed homemade music recorded by more than seventy participants in an homage to a bygone nightclub replaced by a second hand furniture shop. The performance took place in and among the inventory of the store. An elusive nostalgia, the wistful calling of an absence, was felt not only in the shadowy presence of the building’s history, but also in the old things with past lives for sale once again. This mood was amplified by the songs we sang, recorded, sampled and mixed: songs about friendship, heartbreak and longing.

I met Sister Tesa Fitzgerald in 2013 after reading about her in the newspaper. She had just purchased, and was in the process of renovating STUDIO 34 in Astoria, Queens. Revenue from the store supports Hour Children, her growing non-profit organization.

Along with Johanna Flores and several other women from the Hour Children community, I began recording songs from our families, friends and people we met in the neighborhood. The guidelines for these recordings were simple: sing something linked to a strong memory. We gave the audio files to the composer and musician Alistair Paxton and the artist and DJ Azikiwe Mohammed. DJ Black Helmet and I accompanied Azikwe and Alistair during the performance.

Emily Izakowitz and Lauren Wolchik produced the event and helped me develop the concept and assemble our team. Artist Raphael Grizwold deigned a beautiful zine with portraits of the objects from the store and made a mixtape for sale at the event using the archive of our recordings. Raphael and I, along with the artist Ashley May,  constructed a light sculpture out of the myriad lamps at the store, which I ceremoniously turned on during the performance. Owen Roberts and Chad Karty helped enormously with the equipment and set up. We received song contributions from people of all ages. Afterwards we ate a late lunch.

Elegy for the Discothèque

Hour Children Thrift Store, Long Island City, NY

Performance, June 3rd, 2013, 2 hours

A piece by Sidney Russell

Produced by Lauren Wolchik and Emily Izakowitz

Sound collage and performance by Alistair Paxton and Azikiwe Mohammed, accompanied by DJ Black Helmet and Sidney Russell

Made in collaboration with the Hour Children community: Johanna Flores, Ebony Lawson, Sister Tesa Fitzgerald and everyone at the Hour Children After School Program

Audio mix for video documentation by Sidney Russell and Alistair Paxton

Zine and mixtape by Raphael Griswold

Graphic Design by Lauren Wolchik and Claire Typaldos

Thanks to Hallie Cooper-Novack for helping us develop the piece