This latest meeting of pianists Alexander von Schlippenbach and his partner (and wife) Aki Takase features a unique dialogue between musicians totally in tune with each other.

Although the pieces might sound wholly improvised, they are developed from that practice into compositions for four hands, each of which has its own sound and character – with no real indication as to which player is performing which part. The result is an interesting musical partnership where one is unsure just what is taking place. Some clues are in the titles. The opening ‘Jumping Jack’ goes off like a box of fireworks into which a lit match has been carelessly tossed, while ‘Dialogue’ evokes a lively keyboard conversation between the two pianists. The works that anchor the album, however, are ‘Stoneblock 1’ and its sequel ‘Stoneblock 2’, where repetitive stabs at the keys become synchronised into a more detailed flurry of mechanised sonic pattern and texture, similar to the piano roll compositions of Conlon Nancarrow.

Essentially 30 years in the making, the album has a timeless quality that encourages one to listen deeper, as the various pieces slot into place to form a portrait of two masterful musicians at the peak of their powers.