Close Spaces. These two recordings find Scandinavian bassist Mads Vinding operating in the relatively close spaces of the jazz trio and duo. Vinding is a kind of Nordic George Mraz, playing with a rare full-throated and confident tone capable of providing the environment of a full rhythm section while in the absence of such. Vinding is comfortable in these small settings, a comfort reflected on these two recordings.

Trio Theory. Daddio Don is a serene collection of standards driven by Roger Kellaway's Bill Evans-influenced piano playing. Alex Reil's sedate drumming does nothing to ruin the warmly introspective mood of this disc. The overall tone of this disc is set in the opener "Blue in Green". The Bill Evans' classic lightly swirls out of a gentle vortex of notes, resolving into the now familiar line. The same temperate approach is applied to "Days of Wine and Roses", "How deep is the Ocean", and "A Child is Born" and a smattering of originals by Kellaway. Daddio Don is a beautifully quiet addition to the art of jazz trio.

Further Reduction. Mads Vinding gathers up the ageless Bob Brookmeyer for a set of slanted valve trombone/bass and piano/bass duo performances. Here Vinding shows his true value as he performs all of the functions of a rhythm section: rhythmic, harmonic, percussive. Cole Porter's "Anything Goes" and Irving Berlin's "How Deep is the Ocean" (again!) are given a direct performance, with Brookmeyer's dry-ice trombone squeezing out the sparse melodies and improvisations. Brookmeyer's piano playing is oblique (hear Brookmeyer's own "New Song" and "Everything Happens to Me"). As Duo recitals go, this one works better than a lot. Recommended.

Track Listing ( Daddio Don ):Blue In Green; Days Of Wine And Roses; How Deep Is The Ocean; A Child Is Born; Daddio Don; Seven; Squeeze Me; You Must Believe In Spring. (Total Time: 73:59)

Track Listing ( Together ):Anything Goes; New Song; How Deep Is The Ocean; Everything Happens To Me; I Can't Get Started; Someday My Prince Will Come; Pretty Song; Time On My Hands; Nobody Knows. (Total Time: 71:32)

Personnel ( Daddio Don ):Mads Vinding: Bass; Roger Kellaway: Piano; Alex Reil: Drums.

Personnel ( Together ):Mads Vinding: Bass; Bob Brookmeyer: Valve Trombone and Piano.