In Loving Memory: Greg Trupiano, 1955-2020

 

I have perceived that to be with those I like is enough,
To stop in company with the rest at evening is enough,
To be surrounded by beautiful curious breathing laughing flesh is enough,
To pass among them . . to touch any one . . . . to rest my arm ever so lightly round
his or her neck for a moment . . . . what is this then?
I do not ask any more delight . . . . I swim in it as in a sea.

Our cherished friend and fellow Whitmanite Greg Trupiano passed away on February 18, 2020.

Greg made a life’s work of bringing people together, joyously and energetically, through music and poetry. He worked at the Sarasota Opera (FL) for more than thirty years, and was the founder and director of the Walt Whitman Project, a Brooklyn-based community arts organization. A lifelong Brooklynite, Greg built community wherever he went and was beloved for his lively information-packed Whitman walking tours; he organized and hosted countless public concerts and events and regularly (and magnificently) read formidable Section 33 since the inception of New York’s “Song of Myself” Marathon in 2003.

Greg was a major force in bringing poetry to public life. He brought Whitman home to his America. We already miss his excellent company, Brooklyn charm, electric enthusiasm for the opera and all things Whitman.

Greg’s husband Lon is planning a memorial service in Brooklyn later this year, and the Whitman Initiative is hoping to hold the first annual Greg Trupiano Whitman Walk during the weekend of our seventeenth annual “Song of Myself” Marathon (to be held on Sunday, May 31st this year).

We love you, Greg. And we know that you, our intrepid tour guide, are stopping somewhere waiting….

–Karen Karbiener

Tributes from Our Community

In 2019, Whitman Initiative board member Di Cui produced a video featuring Greg entitled “Song of Ourselves: Community Activism in Whitman’s New York.”

I could still recall the walks I took with Greg walking around Brooklyn, hearing his charming voice and feeling his passion and deep love for Whitman, opera and the city. He willingly devoted his knowledge and time to help make my documentary grounded with his extensive knowledge on Whitman and the poet’s involvement in the arts. The story of Greg as an artist and activist who connected with the public all the time, on and off stage, really completed my film’s narrative of how Whitmaniacs are embodying the spirit of Whitman and still connecting with the city and its people. Greg was truly a community leader who brought people together and a warm-hearted individual who carried positive energy; he will be missed by us whom he inspired.

Di Cui
https://dicui.weebly.com

Greg was a lovely person and a lovely colleague who I was lucky to have known. He offered encouragement to me as I worked on researching Whitman’s connections to the Brooklyn Museum and its predecessor institutions – the Brooklyn Apprentices’ Library and the Brooklyn Institute. Here is an outline detailing Whitman’s legacy at this institution which I was able to compile after discussions with Greg and others. He knew a great deal about the history of Brooklyn and readily shared his knowledge and ideas with many.

We had lots of great discussions but what stands out in my memory is working with him on a Walt Whitman Project program presented at the Brooklyn Museum Library in May 2009 as part of our Whitman Anniversary celebration. Greg and his colleagues created a lovely program that was presented in the Brooklyn Museum Library’s Reading Room. The outstanding event offered exquisite readings of Whitman’s writings by Greg, Lon Black, assoc. Artistic director of the Walt Whitman Project and Hakim Williams with beautiful singing by contralto Nicole Mitchell. I know Whitman would have enjoyed the event which featured the sound of his words spoken and sung by this team of professionals and enjoyed by an audience of lovers of books.

Since then Greg has encouraged me along in lots of endeavors including participating in readings at the annual Whitman Marathon and thinking further about Whitman’s legacy to Brooklyn and the rest of the world. Greg’s warmth and generous spirit as well as his dedication to the arts is missed by us all.

Deirdre Lawrence
https://www.deirdrelawrence.com/

Greg Trupiano did so much to bring Whitman public programming to NYC. It was through his Whitman Project events where I first met and worked with him at the Brooklyn Public Library and St Francis College. His tireless dedication to all things Whitman in poetry and song made him unique. We, at the Whitman Initiative, are so grateful for all Greg did to bring people from all over the world together to celebrate Whitman. I’m particularly grateful for the service he gave to the St Francis College community, especially through his many excellent Brooklyn walking tours. It brings much happiness knowing that these tours will live on in his memory at the Whitman Initiative.

My sincerest condolences to his partner Lon and to all his family and friends. He was a wonderful Whitmanic personality and he will be dearly missed.

Ian S. Maloney
Whitman Initiative
St Francis College