Only time can tell if a musical composition will be considered a “classical” piece by future audiences, but as Danish music critic Søren Schauser has...

Only time can tell if a musical composition will be considered a “classical” piece by future audiences, but as Danish music critic Søren Schauser has predicted: “In a couple of years we will see pieces by an Ellington or a Peterson in regular concert programs in entirely classical contexts.” With “The Touch” Søren Kristiansen and Thomas Fonnesbæk present their take on a classical piece of jazz, playing the music of Oscar Peterson and Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen - classical but improvised! OP and NHØP gave us something unique and unforgettable, just as the classical composers did and still do. Being the world’s greatest virtuosos on piano and double bass respectively, their immense technique and ‘Touch’ made them unique. Their collaboration was likewise special because they were equals. For instance, Oscar Peterson’s arrangement for “On The Trail” (Great Connection, 1971) was presumably written because he had found a bassist that could keep up both musically and technically. OP & NHØP gave us something extraordinary and unforgettable, exactly like the great classical composers did and continue doing - and now Kristiansen and Fonnesbæk share their idea of how it could be played today.

REVIEW:

One of the swingingest pianists in jazz history, Oscar Peterson, is given tribute with one of his best bassists, Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen ( better known as NHOP) on this concert of duets between Soren Kristiansen/p and Thomas Fonnesbaek/b. The May, 2021 recordings in Copenhagen mix originals by the two as well as a handful of standards, and the two converse and bounce like the original string trio with Ray Brown and Herb Ellis.

Kristiansen provides classy chords on the hip “Soft Winds” while Fonnesbaek delivers a rich bass line on “Nigerian Marketplace”. Peterson’s feel is captured well on “The Trail”, with bopping unison lines and a nifty left hand. Dark and dramatic moods are created for “On Danish Shore” with pretty melodies bouncing on “Wheatland”. Fonnesbaek is stately on the intro and lad on the uptown “There Is No Greater  Love”, and steps out for Kristiansen to give a heartfelt aria on the solemn “Hymn To Freedom”. Classy conversations.

-- JazzWeekly.com (George W. Harris)