For those unaware, this is the ninth duo album by Natsuki Tamura and Satoko Fujii, the first being How Many in 1996. The six pieces are improvised here on Aloft and it is clear to see that the duo has made a career out of improvisation.

As with their previous eight albums, the album is full of creativity and surprises. Fujii and Tamura’s duo performance has been described as telepathic and so it goes without saying that there is a mutual trust and a curiosity that inspires each other.

The two play with serenity, clash with a roaring sound, and engage in a unique dialogue of witticisms, sometimes in harmony with elegance and fluidity, creating music. At the same time, however, what is surprising is the story of the music.

For the performance is a series of seemingly intangible improvisations, but Fujii’s unparalleled talent for composition leads the audience to believe that there is a conjunctive piece of music, and that what comes forth is planned, laid out. But that is as far from the truth as it could be.

1. Migration
2. Wintering
3. Traveling Bird
4. Lifting
5. On The Flyway
6. Waiting For Dawn

The recording opens on the veritably crystalline Migration and the jaunty, scratchy ambiance of Wintering and then we get the statically-charged, sharply-contoured Traveling Bird, the veritably cinematic Lifting, the album closing on the organically cultured On The Flyway and the stoically-chambered Waiting For Dawn.

Official Apple Purchase Link

Official Satoko Fujii Website