American composer, conductor and educator, Lukas Foss, has contributed profoundly to the circulation and appreciation of music from the 20th century. He began his musical studies in Berlin, where he studied piano and theory with Julius Goldstein (Herford). Goldstein introduced Foss to the music of Bach, Mozart and Beethoven, which proved to have a profound effect on Foss's musical development. In 1933, Foss went to Paris, where he studied piano with Lazare Levy, as well as composition with Noel Gallon, orchestration with Felix Wolfes and flute with Marcel Moyse. Foss remained in Paris until 1937, when he moved, with his family, to the United States, where he continued his musical instruction at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. In addition to his Curtis studies, Foss studied conducting with Koussevitzky during the summers from 1939 to 1943 at the Berkshire Music Center. He also studied composition with Paul Hindemith as a special student at Yale from 1939 to 1940...

Lukas Foss on Napster

The resurgence of interest in music of the Baroque and Classical eras and the formation of now almost countless ensembles performing music from those periods on historical instruments have fostered renewed curiosity in the musical unknown. In some cases, the result of this has evolved into a situation where the details of the interpretation surpass the music being performed, but there is a more practical aspect to this evolution: the establishment of organizations whose purpose is to foster interest in the music of Haydn and Mozart's contemporaries, some of whom include Franz Hoffmeister, Antonio Rosetti, and Antonio Salieri.
The enthusiasm of these organizations has resulted in numerous scores, recordings, and concerts that further the cause of these societies. Ignaz Pleyel (1757-1831) is no exception to the trend. Music history has pronounced an indefinite judgment on this student of Haydn and colleague and friend of Mozart. While some of Pleyel's music is available on disc, we have yet to scratch the surface of his output, preferring to remember Pleyel by his later endeavors as a music publisher and manufacturer of pianos. Some posit that there was no room in the inn for the likes of Pleyel during the 19th century, and the unavoidable stylistic assignment of his work to the cubbyhole of Viennese classicism was the expected consequence, but others counter with the statement that the language of the greats did not always or accurately reflect the entire spectrum of musical life.

Outstanding interplay between refined musicians, stunning sound quality, and great song writing. Plus the tracks flow seemlessly into each other as if making an empirical statement or telling a story.The genre is clearly jazz fusion, but elements of pure straight-ahead and latin jazz permeate throughout.