Hugely influential on some of the world's greatest jazz pianists including Brad Mehldau and Ethan Iverson US pianist, composer and bandleader Fred Hersch hasn't until now recorded for ECM before so this factor makes the November release something special.
Italian master Rava is by contrast part of the fabric of the German label, in recent years on jaw dropping form on Roma.
The duo introduce The Song Is You with their beautiful take on the Jobim classic also known as 'Portrait in Black and White' and 'Zingaro' deriving from 1967's A Certain Mr Jobim.
Rava is on flugelhorn on the recording produced by Manfred Eicher and which also includes a free improvisation by the duo.
Laid down in a Lugano studio The Song Is You includes the title track Jerome Kern's 'The Song Is You' a song that dates back to a first recording in 1932 and which has been covered in fairly recent years by Chick Corea in 2013 and Kenny Werner just 5 years ago.
Also making the cut is Hersch original 'Child's Song' which was on the Hersch Pocket Orchestra's 2009 Live at Jazz Standard album and Rava's 1996 Label Bleu Noir piece 'The Trial.'
Enrico Rava, top left, and Fred Hersch
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