Vinyl - Will Liverman - The Dunbar/Moore Sessions: Complete Collection

Set to the poetry of Paul Laurence Dunbar and Alice Dunbar-Moore, Liverman’s original songs draw from the full spectrum of sounds and traditions that have shaped Liverman’s musical life —classical, musical theater, gospel, jazz, and more. The album features performances by GRAMMY® winners Isabel Leonard, Erin Morley, and Liverman himself; GRAMMY® nominee and Broadway star Mykal Kilgore; international opera stars Jacqueline Echols, Joshua Blue, Adam Richardson, and Ann Toomey; violin virtuoso Lady Jess; and cello virtuoso Lindsey Sharpe.

The first single, Farewell, is out today featuring soprano Erin Morley and Liverman on piano.

Volume II follows the October 27, 2023 debut issue of the project, which was nominated for a Libera Award for Best Classical Album. Lexicon Classics will release the full collection (Volumes I and II) on limited-edition CD and vinyl on Friday, July 25, 2025.

The songs on this project showcase Liverman’s dynamic vocal talent and his unique approach to songwriting, blending harmony and melody in ways that redefine what classical art song can be. A second single, Night, featuring vocalist Mykal Kilgore, will be released on May 23.

Liverman shares, “This album is my first full collection of original art song compositions—a personal milestone in my creative journey. In undergrad, I didn’t enjoy singing art songs, but my teacher insisted I learn them. Over time, I came to appreciate the form for its intimacy and emotional focus. Art song, to me, has become a space of creative freedom—one that can embrace multiple forms of expression.

Though I’ve always loved writing music, I never studied composition and didn’t feel I had permission to create. That changed during the pandemic, when space and stillness invited me to explore. I began writing songs from a deep love of melody, text, and storytelling. I felt most fulfilled when combining those passions.

A special joy in this project has been collaborating from the piano—returning to my first musical love. To shape these pieces from the keyboard, as both composer and performer, has made the experience deeply personal and creatively complete.

This album features settings of poems by Alice Moore Dunbar-Nelson and Paul Laurence Dunbar—two writers whose words have inspired so much of this project. Their voices helped me find mine.” - Will Liverman