Pianist Fred Hersch and trumpeter Ralph Alessi are long time collaborators and both regularly perform in a duo setting. Here they come together for their own duo and it has the feel of two musicians in tune with each other, but at the same time separated by their unique differences. There is a hypnotic quality to the set that includes just two covers: Hersch is witty and playful on Monk’s ‘San Francisco Holiday’ and Paul Motian’s ‘Blue Midnight’ is performed with its writer in mind. Hersch shows his versatility with a neo-impressionism on his ‘Calder’. Alessi’s use of unusual intervals and his wide glowing tone are balanced well throughout with Hersch’s elegant substitutions. This is the second CD on Cam Jazz from Ralph Alessi following his Cognitive Dissonance. The suite by Alessi titled ‘Someone Digging in the Ground’ is the prelude to the finale ‘Snap’. Only Many is a gripping reminder of the power of the duo when in the hands of a pair of eloquent jazz artists such as these.