In 2023 we also have artists who are in the mood for work, inspired and confident, contributing inspiration and freshness to the great collection of music, defying any theory that we live in strange times. Their enthusiasm well reflected in their creativity further supports the power of music to make us live more beautifully. For today we have chosen two albums in which the pleasure of singing and full communication is expressed in duet form. We begin with Michael League and Bill Laurance, two core members of the machine called Snarky Puppy, who on a break from touring have made time for yet another first, an album exploring elements of jazz, oriental and Mediterranean music together, with tandem written pieces played on piano, acoustic bass, oud and ngoni. Though developed gradually, over various fragments of time and track, the music on Where You Wish You Were contains the same melodic power that the two display throughout, on a more intimate scale, based solely on the timbre given by the acoustic instruments. Without a rhythm section, the environment is more airy, more lyrical, with compositional ideas focused on melody and harmony. Instinctively, the intention of the two is to take us all to a place where we want to go, to find our resources and balance. Clearly we all need such places.