A beautiful melody eludes precise definition and so presents a knotty problem for jazz education; how do you teach a subject that can't be defined? Gary Burton, one of the greatest jazz educators in the world, feels respect for melody, and melodic development, is something jazz education lacks, explaining: “It's easier to play based on a lot of patterns and things you have learned and practised than develop the ability to play really well-developed themes and build thematic solos,” adding “most teachers of jazz and jazz improvisation probably don't talk about that sort of thing much, because they are not sure of it themselves.” It's a sentiment echoed by Joe Lovano: “I think a lot of teachers are cats who have studied music and can play, but they have learned from playing patterns, so that is what they teach”. The results of this are now becoming plain for all to see, even if they are not acknowledged. Fragmented motifs and angular phrases posing as ‘compositions’, or solos that follow a pattern-based methodology that initially might sound impressive but lack depth. The timely arrival of Summerwind, a minor masterpiece, shows us what so much of jazz today is missing. Teachers and students take note. A duo configuration means there is nowhere to hide – every note has to count. Fresu's beautiful tone, melodic erudition and sheer craftsmanship presents endless lines of well-polished melodic development burnished by years of experience. Danielsson too is no stranger to valuing and caressing melody. The 11 originals, plus ‘Autumn Leaves’, ‘Jag lyfter ögat mot himmelen’, Krzysztof Komeda's ‘Sleep Safe And Warm’ and a piece by J.S. Bach arranged by Danielsson, is rather like listening to an indepth conversation between two members of the brains trust. They both know their subject inside out, but do not seek to flaunt their knowledge. Rather they gently use their combined wisdom to reveal deeper meaning – check out ‘Le Martin’, ‘Stanna Tid’ or ‘Dardodentro’.