Dave Holland, Barry Altschul, and the late Sam Rivers played together extensively in the 1970's, but were somehow criminally under-documented on record, besides a couple sporadic sessions such as their The Quest LP and Holland's Conference of the Birds (with Anthony Braxton). Thankfully after nearly 30 years apart they reunited for this special concert, a recording of which comprises this two disc set. Unsurprisingly, the music they produced (without even a single rehearsal) is free jazz of the highest caliber and a testament to true musical artistry.

Each disc contains a single set-long piece of music, and the performances and sound quality are impeccable, especially for a live recording. I would guess there are more live recordings of improvised music released than studio dates due to the financial restraints of the genre. Sadly the results are usually somewhat compromised by inferior sound quality, a lack of group coherence, or both. You will find no such faults with this release, however. Reeds flutter and soar, bass notes weightlessly anchor, and drums ricochet between the two with crystal clarity in total group communication. According to the liner notes they spent hours in daily rehearsal during their initial 70's go around, and have miraculously maintained their ESP despite the passing of time and physical distance between them.

Mr. Rivers switches between flutes, saxes, and piano, which gives the illusion of an expanded ensemble. He is in top form here, playing at a level that belies his 80 years on this planet. His age is only apparent in his total command of each apparatus, not by a sluggish or clich�d performance. Dave Holland and Barry Altschul sound equally vibrant, in duo and solo passages that are either married with the other performers or searching out each vector of the sound space they mutually inhabit. This is music as effortless as an animated conversation between dear old friends, without hiccup or awkward pause. I cannot recommend this enough. Stellar.