Following the success of his acclaimed solo albums Reflections of D (a tribute to Duke Ellington) and Classicism – A Point of View, Arbenz turns his focus to the intimacy and freedom of the duo format. In Sheppard, he finds an ideal partner: a singular voice in British jazz whose sound is as imaginative as it is grounded in jazz tradition. 

The pair first connected through their long-standing Trio VEIN, performing widely across Europe in an ensemble context before discovering a new level of interplay and nuance in the duo format.

Recorded Live at Bird’s Eye Jazz Club in Basel, the record explores the musical meeting point between Baroque counterpoint and jazz improvisation across original compositions inspired by specific Bach pieces and reimagined Ellington classics. Treading a line between historical reverence and contemporary reinvention, Arbenz and Sheppard find a cerebral and heartfelt shared language through subtle grooves, chamber-like textures and striking melodic clarity.

Sheppard, a long-standing ECM recording artist and one of the UK’s most internationally celebrated jazz figures, is one of the few soloists to perform in the big bands of all three of the greatest post-war composers, Carla Bley, Gil Evans, and George Russell. 

Arbenz’s career has seen him tour extensively throughout Europe, North America, Asia and South America, performing and recording with trio VEIN and alongside a host of highly respected musicians in international contemporary Jazz including Greg Osby, Ron Carter, Glenn Ferris, Dave Liebman, Marc Johnson, and Wolfgang Puschnig.