Born in Chile, Claudio Arrau (1903-1991) wasone of the greatest pianists of the 20th century,an artist who was totally serious about his role inlife, a man completely dedicated to the music ofthe great composers who shared his insights andunderstanding of their work with his public.Where other famous pianists play the piano forexcitement, power or display, Arrau plays to probe,to divine, to interpret. Says Arrau, 'An interpretermust give his blood to the work interpreted.' Arrauis definitely not onesided or without spiritualgrandeur. Having won particular fame as a greatBeethoven interpreter, he is no less celebrated forhis Mozart, Schubert, Chopin, Liszt, Schumann,Brahms and Debussy. Among the famed peers ofhis generation, it is a range without equal.Located on the campus of Ambassador College inPasadena, California, the 1262 seat AmbassadorAuditorium was a major West Coast concerthall between 1974 and 1995 presenting around2500 concerts, and attracted the greatestinstrumentalists and orchestras.role in the musical life of our ensemble. It's musicalcomplexity and the depth of expression whichMozart achieves through only three voices areseemingly miraculous it is one of those pieces whichconstantly rewards rehearsal. One simply never getstired of playing it!When the opportunity to record this masterpiecearose, we were faced with the challenge of whatto play alongside it. Our dear friend Rob Fokkenshad written two short movements for string triowhich seemed to fit beautifully with Mozart's music Rob's translucent harmonic and rhythmic styleoffers unique expressive possibilities. The chanceto commission the great Julian Joseph was notto be missed, and his work, Bring it!, wonderfullydemonstrates his brilliance and lyricism, and thesubtly of his harmonic language. We sincerely hopeyou enjoy listening to the music on this album asmuch as we loved preparing it!to Islamic