02 May

[ May the 7th, 2021 release via Libra Records: Satoko Fujjii’s Tokyo Trio – Moon on the Lake ]

By grzech In All That Jazz / No Comments

release date: 04.05.2021 via Libra Records

“The music rattles the bones as often as it soothes the soul and no composer is more masterful at balancing and grounding those extremes…continually absorbing and unlike anything else.”

– Karl Ackermann, All About Jazz

Pianist-composer Satoko Fujii brings together a new piano trio on her latest release Moon on the Lake captured live at Tokyo’s famous jazz venue, Pit Inn. The Tokyo Trio features Fujii with two of the most in-demand younger musicians on the Japanese jazz scene, bassist Takashi Sugawa and drummer Ittetsu Takemura. They form a lithe, quick witted trio, capable of terrific speed and excitement as well as subtle textures and tone colors. Moon on the Lake puts their wide range and capabilities on full display

02 Apr

[ April the 9th,2021 release via Libra Records: Satoko Fujii & Natsuki Tamura – Keshin ]

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release date: 09.04.2021 via Libra Records

“ The wife-husband team from Japan . . . consistently reveals a wide-open and unpredictable nature that makes its performance a thrilling ride for the listener.” – Steve Feeney, Portland Press Herald

“ Intuition and communication like that is rare.” – Adam Kinner, The Montreal Gazette

12 Mar

[ March the 19th, 2021 release via Libra Records: Satoko Fujii – Hazuki ]

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release date: 19.03.2021 via Libra Records

“She could be the most important creative musician of our time.” ― Michael Nastos, AllMusic

“Over the decades, Japanese pianist Satoko Fujii has demonstrated uncanny power and musicality . . . This music is infused with a wide-open spirit.” — Josef Woodard, DownBeat

Pianist-composer Satoko Fujii normally spends months on the road each year, but the COVID-19 pandemic has made touring impossible. On her new solo album, Hazuki, she lets the music travel for her.

10 Jan

[ January the 22nd, 2021 release via Libra Records: Satoko Fujji & Taiko Saito Futari – Beyond ]

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release date: 22.01.2021 via Libra Records

“Persistent and inexhaustible imagination with emotion, power and everything else…[Fujii] does not leave a single second to be bored or indifferent.” – Phontas Troussas, Vinylmine

“Taiko not only displayed exceptional technique, but more importantly she projected her own voice on an instrument that dares one to uncover . . . even more impressive was her daring to dive in some uncharted waters which she glided through with ease.”—Mike Mainieri, vibraphonist

Beyond, the recorded debut of Futari, a duo of pianist-composer Satoko Fujii and vibraphonist Taiko Saito, features lyrical intensity from two fearless explorers of new sounds. The combination of piano and vibes is an uncommon one, but Fujii and Saito navigate the new terrain of their collaboration with imagination and a spirit of adventure.

06 Nov

[ November the 6th,2020 release via Not Two Records: Satoko Fujii, Natsuki Tamura & Ramon Lopez – Mantle ]

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release date: 6.11.2020 via NOT TWO records

“Over the decades, Japanese pianist Satoko Fujii has demonstrated uncanny power and musicality as a considerable force in the avant-garde end of the jazz spectrum.”— Josef Woodard, DownBeat

“Lopez does a fine job of fusing genres and styles while dispelling those old rumors that drums are not musical instruments.” — Glenn Astarita, All About Jazz

“…Tamura’s trumpet is lyrically beautiful and commanding.” ― Andy Hamilton, Wire

On their debut release, Mantle , pianist Satoko Fujii, trumpeter Natsuki Tamura, and drummer Ramon Lopez challenged themselves. Working together for the first time as a trio, they not only developed themselves into a working ensemble, but they wrote music that explored the potential of the group, each piece pushing and inspiring them in a different way. The result is an album of unfailing surprise and invention played by a group that listens closely and responds to one another on a deep intuitive level.

05 Nov

[ November the 6th,2020 release via Not Two Records: Satoko Fujii & Natsuki Tamura – Pentas ]

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release date: 6.11.2020 via NOT TWO records

They “…draw deeply from a seeming perpetual wellspring of inspiration…. The bare bones instrumentation allows full appreciation of their virtues: inventive composerly craft; prodigious improvising prowess; a taut balance between melody and mayhem; and individual excursions which confirm the parameters of the charts as stimulating rather than limiting factors.” – John Sharpe, Point of Departure

“It’s rare to sense this level of intuition between musicians…” —Kurt Gottschalk, New York City Jazz Record

“Fujii and Tamura offer unsentimental beauty, space, silence and humour… Proof that improvised music can be emotionally engaging as well as ear tickling…” ― Peter Marsh, BBC Music Magazine

Pentas marks another milestone in Fujii and Tamura’s remarkable 23-year history as one of the most celebrated duos in contemporary improvised music. The new CD is among their most lyrical and polished, without sacrificing the exploratory invention and spontaneity that marks their best playing.

07 Sep

[ September the 18 th,2020 release via Circum/Libra Records: KAZE & Ikure Mori- Sand Storm ]

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release date: 18th of September, 2020 via Circum / Libra Recs.

“…genius….[Sand Storm] reveals the true spirit of jazz in the way the ideas and themes slowly emerge from that odd sonic landscape.” – Marc Phillips, Part Time Audiophile

“Intense and playful, down-to-earth and international, Kaze communicates in a musical language of contrasts and continuity.” —Virginia Schaefer, JazzTimes

“If you think you can imagine what piano, drums, and two trumpets will sound like, think again.” ― Derk Richardson, KPFA Radio

On Sand Storm , Kaze – the cooperative quartet featuring Japanese composer-pianist Satoko Fujii and trumpeter Natsuki Tamura along with French trumpeter Christian Pruvost and drummer Peter Orins – welcomes pioneering laptop player Ikue Mori as a special guest. It’s no easy task for a band that’s been together for 10 years to add a player without upsetting a well-developed group balance, but the merger proves to be a natural one.

30 Jun

[ July the 10th, 2020 release via Libra Records – Gato Libre – Koneko ]

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release date: July 10, 2020 via Libra Records

“…a remarkable trumpeter, individual, lyrical and dramatic. Gato Libre seems perfect for this aspect of Tamura’s varied musical personality.” ― Ray Comiskey, The Irish Times

“…composition and improvisation seem to melt into one…interaction, affinity, creativity, and intense listening are what make their music work.” – Amy Duncan, Jazz History Online

07 Feb

[ February the 14th release via Libra Records: The Satoko Fujii Orchestra New York – Entity ]

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release date: 14th February 2020

“This big band packs fierce solo power, but Fujii flexes all that muscle masterfully.” ― Tom Hull, The Village Voice

“Balances rousing swing with probing experimentation, updating the big band tradition with inspired verve and an abiding reverence for venerable customs.” ― Troy Collins, All About Jazz

“Interlocking riffs, driving rhythms and a tight band who do full justice to her imaginative conceptions, showing the benefits of a lineup barely changed since their 1997 debut.” ― John Sharpe, The New York City Jazz Record

07 Dec

[ 2019 December of 13th release via Libra Records: Satoko Fujii & Tatsuya Yoshida – Baikamo ]

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release date: December the 13th

“ Relentlessly inventive, energetic and definitely recommended.” ― Eric Hill, Exclaim!

“ These two seemingly disparate musicians seem to have formed a comfortable musical bond.” ― Robert Iannapollo, Signal to Noise

“ The music that comes out of the space between rock and contemporary classical music.” ― Masayuki Baba, Musee

Fifteen years after their last recording together, pianist-composer Satoko Fujii and drummer Tatsuya Yoshida reignite the burning intensity of their Toh-Kichi duet project on Baikamo (December 13, 2019 via Libra). Merging art-rock muscle with free jazz and contemporary classical abstractions, Fujii and Yoshida make music that is both gleefully playful and in-your-face energetic.