Charles Amirkhanian talks with the young black composer Primous Fountain III of Chicago who traveled to the West Coast to witness a performance of his “Manifestation” by the Oakland Symphony Orchestra. Also in the studio are Maestro Harold Farberman and Charles Shere. Fountain has had his orchestral compositions performed by the Chicago and Boston Symphonies, but composes jazz for Quincy Jones and rhythm and blues music as well. The most remarkable aspect of this composer is his age: he was born in 1949 and his “Manifestations” was composed when he was only 18.
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I am delighted to find this. I am currently writing about Joe Jackson and several other persons in Madison at that time. Joe Jackson, along with Cecil Taylor, Carolyn DdJoie and Elrie Chrite formed the Association for the Advancement of Black American Culture there, in 1971. One of their first projects was to sponsor a concert of Primous Fountain’s work held at St Paul’s Church in August 1971. The concert was well received and a review by Dave Wagner, “Fountain’s Free Music a Jazz Treat,” appeared in the Capital Times 11 Aug 1971: 50. Fountain was just 17 or 18 at the time.