Richard Fountain: American Ivory

For Richard Fountain’s debut album on Navona Records, American Ivory, the pianist celebrates the variety and vitality of American art music by performing a decades-spanning collection of works by time-honored and contemporary composers alike. Not just a chronological account, the album carefully pairs pieces to create conversational back-and-forths between contemporary composers, highlighting the similarities—and differences—in their musical styles. Alongside works by Fountain’s collaborator Gary D. Belshaw, American Ivory features works by Edward MacDowell, Aaron Copland, and Samuel Barber.