Jazz Articles about Natto Quartet

Natto Quartet: Thousand Oaks

by John Kelman
June 5, 2005

Recorded at a live performance in the Maybeck Studio of Berkeley, California, Natto Quartet's second recording, Thousand Oaks, builds upon the group's first recording, Headlands. It continues to explore a variety of junctures--most specifically the meeting points of different cultures, and of texture and tonality.

The quartet's unconventional lineup includes Philip Gelb (one of but a few shakuhachi players concentrating on new and improvised music), koto player Shoko Hikage, pianist Chris Brown (who has recorded with artists including Wayne Horvitz, ...

Natto Quartet: Headlands

by Frank Rubolino
May 1, 2003

Sounds of the mystical Orient and the more assertive Western world clash head-on when the Natto Quartet ignites. Philip Gelb, an extremely versatile and resourceful shakuhachi player, and Shoko Hikage, an astute proponent of the ancient koto, contribute the Eastern sensibilities that flow well beyond the cultural borders of their instruments’ roots. On the Western front, pianist Chris Brown and electronics specialist Tim Perkis provide the 21st century impetus to sustain the transformation. Together, the California-based quartet becomes an exploratory ...