It won’t take the mathematically inclined too long to work out that the album title reveals its intention i.e. the teaming of Kate's trio with a string quartet. As ever with Williams, you sense a keen intelligence at work in each of her projects: never one to stand still, she has composed six new pieces for this album, adding two more by Bill Evans, and others by Cole Porter, Jobim and Kenny Kirkland, and pasted in her specially compiled string passages. There's a history to jazz musicians and their desire to work with strings, from Bird onwards of course, and a challenge, too. In what way do the string passages enhance the overall outcome? Do they get in the way of the jazz? They’re at their best here for me as a cushion for the trio, a kind of aural backdrop for Williams’ incisive piano lines.

I like all her pieces, neatly done and nimble, the harmonies calmly stated, the keyboard improvisations lucidly devised with Hayhurst and Ingamells tucked in carefully behind. Here and there, there's a strong string counterpoint and it's clear that Williams feels comfortable in this augmented ensemble. ‘Love For Sale’ has an elegiac string overture, before the excellent Hayhurst solos over soft chords ahead of Williams as she devises a neat ostinato figure, the strings offering an oblique commentary before setting out with bass and drums in pursuit, and Williams enters purring over the strings and the track starts to swing ahead of a string finale.

And so it goes. Her ‘Eleven Tonal’ is full of twists and turns, Monkish almost in its simplicity, and extrapolates in a descending spiral that's very engaging, the strings largely kept under wraps.

Elsewhere the strings are more tightly integrated as on her own ‘Seven Across’ and play a major role in the development of the piece. I liked the rumbling swing of ‘Orchid Avenue’, the strings buoyed up on bass and drums, the piano moves interrupted by strings (or would Williams say enhanced?).

So, it's a cautious welcome to the concept as far as this reviewer is concerned with top marks for the trio, epitomised by their handling of ‘Chance’ by Kirkland, but only a muted cheer for the strings.

A brave try.