Critics and fans alike hail pianist and composer SATOKO FUJII as one of the most original voices in jazz today. She’s “a virtuoso piano improviser, an original composer and a band-leader who gets the best collaborators to deliver," says John Fordham in The Guardian. In concert and on over 35 albums as a leader or co-leader, the Tokyo resident synthesizes jazz, contemporary classical, avant-rock and Japanese folk music into an innovative music instantly recognizable as hers alone. Since she burst onto the scene 11 years ago after earning her graduate diploma from the New England Conservatory of Music, Fujii has led some of the most consistently creative ensembles in modern improvised music. Her trio with bassist Mark Dresser and drummer Jim Black has released five CDs, all of which earned places in critics’ year-end Top 10 lists. In 2001, she debuted an electrifying avant-rock quartet featuring Takeharu Hayakawa, Tatsuya Yoshida, and Natsuki Tamura, and their high-energy CDs were hailed by listeners worldwide. Fujii has also established herself as one of the world’s leading composers for large jazz ensembles. Since 1997, she has released a steady stream of acclaimed releases for large ensemble, culminating in 2006 when she simultaneously released four big band albums: one from her New York ensemble, and one each by three different Japanese bands. In addition to playing accordion in her husband trumpeter Natsuki Tamura’s Gato Libre quartet, she also performs in a duo with Tamura, as an unaccompanied soloist, and in ad hoc groupings with musicians working in different genres. She tours regularly appearing at festivals and clubs in the U.S., Canada, Japan, and Europe. Her ultimate goal: “I would love to make music that no one has heard before.”
4/2/2007
Dear Satoko, thanks for adding me as a friend, I really enjoy your concert. And I'm very pleased to listen to you with Myra Melford in the piano duo, on your CD! So many beautiful moments are to come!!! I do also hope meeting you again one day... Patricia
someone with intelect finally, we loved you satoko in argentina, come and visit us in our country please, is so beautiful what you do, so personal... eternally thanks for your unpeculiar and beatiful music, from buenos aires, FAUSTINO GOYENA!
Great concert here in Lisbon!! I knew your work only because of your Tzadik albums (Kitsune and Erans with Tatsuya Yoshida)and it was a nice surprise to see other instruments on saturday. So keep on surprising us!
I finally caught up with you (and Tamura) when I got the Tobifudo CD a few weeks ago. Then, I checked the Libra site and found there are already three new CDs! My wallet needs you to slow down!
