Charlie Haden & Egberto Gismonti - In Montreal (1989)

Bassist Charlie Haden has done a tremendous amount of playing in duo contexts (very little of it on the ECM label, however). This live recording with the remarkable pianist/guitarist Egberto Gismonti is a fine addition to his duo resumé. Recorded at The Montreal Jazz Festival in 1989 and released over a decade later, the album mostly features noted works by Gismonti, although two of Haden's pieces also appear. Gismonti plays guitar rather than piano on Haden's "First Song," making for an interesting comparison with the version that graced Beyond the Missouri Sky, Haden's 1997 duet record with Pat Metheny. Similarly, Gismonti's off-kilter piano solo on Haden's "Silence" contrasts richly with what Keith Jarrett played on the same tune (on 1977's Bop-Be). Gismonti's nylon-string stylings do recall Metheny to some degree, as well as ECM labelmate Ralph Towner, although his ten-string instrument sets his playing apart, particularly on the driving "Em Família." On piano, he's at his most virtuosic on "Lôro" and "Frevo." (A radically different version of the latter appeared on the album Friday Night in San Francisco, as a duet for guitarists John McLaughlin and Paco De Lucia.)