It may be an all-acoustic affair (with the exception of electric bass), but School of the Arts bristles with fusion energy. That will come as no surprise to anyone familiar with even a few of the names on this project spearheaded by pianist T Lavitz, who first came to attention in 1979 when he joined The Dixie Dregs, guitarist Steve Morse's country-tinged progressive fusion group that released a string of outstanding albums between 1975 and 1982, and still reconvenes on rare occasion to this day.
Featuring guitarist Frank Gambale, bassist John Patitucci and drummer Dave Weckl, Lavitz has a core group of virtuosos capable of this largely high velocity set. With the three spending considerable time together in Chick Corea's Elektric Band, Lavitz has also recruited built-in chemistry.
from allaboutjazz