Jazz Articles about Satoko Fujii

About Satoko Fujii

Album Review

Satoko Fujii's work has been well documented across her many musical outlets. A restless creative force, the pianist--and occasional accordionist--she has plied her trade in the intimate duo settings with trumpeter-husband Natsuki Tamura and recently with bassist Joe Fonda on Duet (Long Song Records, 2016). But more often than not, Fujii's presence has been in the context of her numerous orchestras from New York, Berlin and Tokyo. Of her dozens of recordings, few have shown a spotlight on her solo ...

Album Review

Satoko Fujii Orchestra Tokyo: Peace

Read "Peace" reviewed by Dan McClenaghan

by Dan McClenaghan
December 18, 2016

The rumor rolled out in mid-2016 that Japanese pianist/composer/bandleader Satoko Fujii had another orchestral album on the way. Peace was the title. “Peace" isn't a word that normally comes to mind when considering Fujii's music. “Bedlam," maybe, but not “peace." In preparation for the oncoming Peace, three previous Fujii orchestral CDs on Libra Records came down off the shelf and spun onto the sound system: Ichigo Ichie (2015), by her Berlin Orchestra; Shiki (2014) from her New York ...

Album Review

Satoko Fujii / Joe Fonda: Duet

by Budd Kopman
October 1, 2016

The story behind the creation of the miraculous album, Duet by pianist Satoko Fujii and bassist Joe Fonda is one of those things that makes one a believer in karma. Although both have played with reed man Gebhard Ullmann in various configurations, Fujii and Fonda had never met, and had not heard much, if any, of each other's music. Now, this might seem strange since both are acknowledged leaders of free/avant-garde jazz, and both have powerful musical personalities ...

Album Review

Satoko Fujii / Joe Fonda with Natsuki Tamura: Duet

by Karl Ackermann
September 30, 2016

Two of creative music's most inventive forces come together on Duet. Musical restiveness is at the core of pianist/accordionist and composer Satoko Fujii. With a catalogue three-score deep, she has covered formations from large orchestra to solo where the common denominator is her wide and daring exploration of improvisational spaces. Her adroit aptitude for moving through--and sometimes combining--elements of her native Japanese folk music, classical and discordant free improvisation, have made her one of the more consistently interesting artists in ...

Album Review

Satoko Fujii Tobira: Yamiyo Ni Karasu

Read "Yamiyo Ni Karasu" reviewed by Vincenzo Roggero

by Vincenzo Roggero
December 28, 2015

Tobira--porta in giapponese--è la nuova formazione di Satoko Fujii nata accorpando al New Trio--Todd Nicholson al contrabbasso, Takashi Itani alla batteria--il marito e trombettista Natsuki Tamura. Decisione presa dopo alcune occasionali partecipazioni durante i tour del 2014 in Europa e Nord America e scelta, come è sempre accaduto riguardo le numerose formazioni allestite nel corso della carriera della pianista giapponese, assolutamente riuscita. Se da una parte il trio ha congenite energia, esuberanza, originalità e personalità da vendere ...

Album Review

Satoko Fujii Orchestra Berlin: Ichigo Ichie

Read "Ichigo Ichie" reviewed by Angelo Leonardi

by Angelo Leonardi
September 28, 2015

Ecco il primo documento discografico della Satoko Fujii Orchestra Berlin, l'organico europeo più stabile tra quelli che la pianista ha diretto in questi anni. L'album è stato registrato nel gennaio 2014, esattamente un anno dopo Shiki, la sua ultima pubblicazione orchestrale con la formazione che dirige a New York. L'organico è formato da musicisti tedeschi o che vivono stabilmente a Berlino più il marito trombettista Natsuki Tamura e il prodigioso batterista francese Peter Orins, già partner in altre ...

Multiple Reviews

Satoko Fujii with her various ensembles: Ichicgo Icihie, Yamiyo Ni Karasu and Kaze's Uminari

by Hrayr Attarian
September 13, 2015

Words like superb, outstanding or splendid are redundant when writing about pianist, accordionist and composer Satoko Fujii. With an average of five releases per year over the past decade, she is indeed one of the most prolific musicians. The abundance of her output though is never at the expense of its quality or originality. As the trio of 2015 albums demonstrates Fujii, with her various ensembles, is restlessly innovative with an unparalleled skill and a singularly captivating musical vision.