Jazz Articles about Yoshi Waki

About Yoshi Waki

Album Review

Shunzo Ohno: Live at Joe's Pub

Read "Live at Joe's Pub" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
May 28, 2026

A string section? In Joe's Pub? Strange as that may seem, it is clearly the case on veteran trumpeter Shunzo Ohno's latest album, recorded Live at Joe's Pub in New York City. The seven-member section, led by Ohno's daughter, cellist Sasha Ohno, is not mere window dressing, as it plays a sizable role on every one of the album's eight numbers and is, in fact, the only voice heard on Ohno's gossamer “Firefly." What better way to get ...

Album Review

Kenny Shanker: Vortex

by Geannine Reid
October 18, 2022

Saxophonist Kenny Shanker is an award-winning composer hailing originally from California, now residing in New York. His debut album Steppin' Up (Positone, 2011) was followed by Action City (Positone, 2014), which helped garner him the ASCAP award for composition. In 2017, Shanker released his third recording, The Witching Hour (Wise Cat, 2017), on his own imprint. In 2021, Shanker released Beautiful Things (Wise Cat, 2021). Only to be followed by Shanker's 2022 release, Vortex (Wise Cat, 2022), a collection of ...

Album Review

The Peter Leitch New Jazz Orchestra: New Life

by Jack Bowers
December 18, 2020

After what Canadian-born guitarist Peter Leitch has been through in the last eight years, it's little wonder he named the ensemble he now leads the New Life Jazz Orchestra. Diagnosed in 2012 with stage 4 lung cancer, Leitch faced the choice of throwing in the proverbial towel or undergoing career-ending cancer treatment. He chose the latter, reluctantly setting aside his instrument of choice and continuing his musical career as a composer, arranger and conductor of an orchestra whose library consists ...