Heinz Sauer is what is known as a ‘local hero’, admired and venerated within his own jazz scene, in this case Germany, but virtually unknown to the wider world. He is a consummate improviser, as in recent times a series of duos with pianist Michael Wollny on the ACT label have shown. His relationship with Dutchman Van’t Hof, who has never been disabused of the quirky humour that is never far from the surface of Dutch spontaneous improvisation (think Han Bennink, Willem Breuker et al), was not quite the marriage made in heaven, but neither was it without interest. Frequently on these tracks, recorded in 1983, he edges Sauer out of any reflective or recitative comfort zone, prompting a more acerbic response that gives these improvisations – there are six of them – a pleasing edge. Van’t Hof is an accomplished keyboard player, best known for his work in the jazz-rock group Pork Pie, and here adjusts to the smaller scale of intimate dialogue while battling to keep his mischievous streak in check.