Richard Fields (6)

A native of Oakland, California, Richard Fields was in the forefront of black American pianists. A graduate of the Juilliard School of Music, he became a prizewinner in the Viotti International Competition and was a recipient of grants from the Ford Foundation and the Rockefeller Fund for Music. He garnered a rave review from the New York Times after his 1988 recital debut, and appeared as soloist with such major orchestras as the L.A. Philharmonic, the Atlanta Symphony, and the San Francisco Symphony. As a recitalist he was presented by the Cleveland Orchestra, the Chicago Symphony, and the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Richard was a professor of piano at the College Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati and a champion of the works of black American composers such as William Grant Still and George Walker.