This album was recorded in Milan, Italy, in 1959, with Chet Baker as trumpet soloist accompanied by an orchestra of fifty strings conducted by arranger and director Ezio Leoni. The project arose during Baker's stay in Italy, where he lived and recorded several albums between 1955 and 1964, blending jazz with European-style orchestral arrangements.
The album was originally released in Italy by the Durium label, and later in the United States by Jazzland, a subsidiary of Riverside Records. The recordings took place at the RAI studios in Milan. The orchestra included musicians from the RAI Symphony Orchestra, and Leoni's arrangements sought to fuse Baker's jazz improvisation with the romantic sound of strings.
The album's producer has not been confirmed. Critics have noted that although the album presents Baker in an unusual context for jazz, his lyrical playing adapts well to the orchestral arrangements. The album is considered a rarity in his discography and has been reissued on CD several times, though with limited production information.