German-born pianist and composer Cornelius Claudio Kreusch studied with Mal Waldron, and his 1994 debut, The Vision, featured rap poetry. Kreusch's second release, Black Mud Sound, appeared in 1995, and lent its name to the pianist's own imprint, BlackMudSound Records (as well as his touring band), and he has used the label to release close to a dozen albums since, each featuring his unique fusion of funk, jazz, and Afro sounds. Classically trained, Kreusch -- called CCK by his many fans -- studied with Waldron, Mordecai Shehori, and Claude-France Journes, among others, including jazz legend Jaki Byard, and is a graduate of the Berklee College of Music in Boston and the Manhattan School of Music in New York City. Kreusch was five when he got his first piano lessons from his mother, classical pianist Dorothée Kreusch-Jacob, and by the age of ten he had discovered jazz, a musical passion that never left him. He has also had a strong, practical, and even visionary business sense, and is the founder and CEO of his own digital music company, MUSICJUSTMUSIC. Tirelessly creative, Kreusch also writes, records, and produces under the guise of Goldfinga, extending his musical fingers into the classical, world, ambient, new age, and film genres in addition to jazz. But jazz remains Kreusch's first love, and he has performed and recorded with some of the most lauded jazz musicians on the planet, including Herbie Hancock, Salif Keita, Kenny Garrett, Greg Osby, Anthony Cox, and Will Calhoun, among many others. ~ Steve Leggett