After graduating from the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University in 1982, I went to London to study with William Pleeth, and in the process of looking for a place to stay, I found a house with flats that were rented only to international music students. A wall separated my flat from José’s and we soon got together to fix meals or order takeout. More importantly, José began to accompany me at my lessons where we both learned the cello repertoire at the same time, producing music so cohesive that we almost became one when we played. Two years passed since I left London and, in June of 1985, José was in the finals of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in Fort Worth, Texas, my home town. I was living in Houston and getting ready to move to my new job with the Honolulu Symphony, so I went home to Fort Worth to hear the rest of the competition. We were sitting together at the awards ceremony and I will never forget when it came down to two people, one of whom was José. The next name called wasn’t his, so José took the Gold Medal! After winning the Cliburn, José did a lot of domestic as well as international touring, and in the spring of 1988, he was a guest artist with the Honolulu Symphony. It was my last season there because I had won an opening in the Houston Symphony. We decided to play a recital together as a farewell gesture to all my friends and colleagues. The venue was the Academy Theatre at the Honolulu Academy of Arts. This CD is the result of that recital. José went on to become Artist-in-Residence at T.C.U. in Fort Worth, so over the years since 1988 when I moved back to Houston, he and I see each other every time I visit my mother or on occasions when he has judged competitions in Houston or just visited. He was my houseguest on the morning of 9/11 and we watched that unforgettable day together. We’ve also spent many a Thanksgiving or Christmas sharing good food and better memories. And now, we offer this CD to you as a token of our 31 year friendship. It is a live recording, so there are mistakes we could not edit out, as one would in the recording studio, but José is also a recording engineer and he did a fantastic job of mastering. The fact that it is a live recording is what makes it so special to us — its humanity. It was recorded by amateurs on amateur equipment and was never meant to be released to the public; however, on the 25th anniversary of this recital, José and I would like to share it with you. Enjoy! — Jim Denton