Ralph Towner, guitarist extraordinaire, an ECM artist since 1972, is joined here by Italian trumpet star & multi-award winner Paolo Fresu, making his label debut for ECM. Bright melodies and subtle colours prevail on this Manfred Eicher produced programme of old and new Towner compositions, plus improvisations, sole cover version Blue In Green, from Kind of Blue era Miles, & Fresu’s clear, vibrato-less delivery, all making for a highly attractive sound combination, considering the stripped back personnel. Towner’s approach to the guitar has always been quasiorchestral. As a player with a very strong compositional sense he can imply a lot with a few notes. The idea of working with trumpet and flugelhorn appealed to Towner, so why not hook up with a seasoned peer in Fresu, who has played on well over 300 albums to date.