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Satoko Fujii: Crustal Movement
by Jeff Schwartz
In the first few minutes of “Masoandro Mitsoka," a soft wash of white noise becomes differentiated into piano, percussion, electronics and two trumpets as the acoustic instruments move from breath and friction sounds to identifiably instrumental ones. Next the ensemble reduces to the trumpets, and they move from parallel play to a clear conversation. When piano, percussion and electronics return, they function as a free jazz rhythm section, backing one trumpet, then both, then the other. Instrumental ...
read moreKaze & Ikue Mori: Crustal Movement
by Karl Ackermann
Crustal Movement is the seventh album from the Peter Orins/Satoko Fujii founded quartet-turned-quintet, Kaze. Now billed as Kaze & Ikue Mori, it represents the second consecutive album from the French- Japanese collective where the electronics artist has played a significant role. The two trumpeters, and original group members, Natsuki Tamura, and Christian Pruvost round out the group. Over the course of more than ten years, Kaze, and their one-time extended sextet, Trouble Kaze, have played at the outer ...
read moreKaze: Sandstorm
by John Sharpe
French-Japanese cooperative Kaze continues to thrive on Sandstorm, its fifth release. This time out, the enduring line-up of pianist Satoko Fujii, trumpeters Natsuki Tamura and Christian Pruvost, and drummer Peter Orins, is supplemented by New York-based electronic artist Ikue Mori, on a program of seven cuts from a NYC studio session in February 2020. While previous albums have either presented charts from across the band or off-the-map explorations, here they combine both. Three short collectives separate four longer ...
read moreTrouble Kaze: June
by John Sharpe
In its original form, the French-Japanese collective Kaze was already a novel proposition, with the double trumpet spearhead of Natsuki Tamura and Christian Pruvost allied to Satoko Fujii's piano and Peter Orins' drums. But on June, the novelty quotient ratchets up a notch further with the doubling of the piano and drum set. That the additional pianist is Sophie Agnel, renowned for her exploration of the piano as a sound generation device, piques the interest yet further. Rather than the ...
read moreTrouble Kaze: June
by Dan McClenaghan
Avant-garde pianist/composer Satoko Fujii augments her quartet, Kaze, with an additional piano and another drummer, to create Trouble Kaze, for the release of June. In Fujii's eighty-plus CD discography, Kaze can be counted as one of her most adventurous modes of artistic expression. With trumpeters Natsuki Tamura and Christian Pruvost working an array of extended techniques to push the limits of their instruments to the maximum; with Fujii's prepared and inside-the-piano ministrations, and the often explosive drumming from ...
read moreTrouble Kaze: June
by Karl Ackermann
Wherever pianist Satoko Fujii and her husband, the trumpeter Natsuki Tamura ply their trade, the unusual follows. Without fail, both--individually and together--have been the purveyors of a collective catalog that has never failed to astound. One of their many outlets has been the free-improvisational group Kaze with drummer Peter Orins and trumpeter Christian Pruvost. While Fujii and Tamura are the drawing card names, Orins--a fine composer in his own right--was the original initiator of the quartet. This variation--Trouble Kaze--was again ...
read moreKaze: Uminari
by John Sharpe
The prolific husband and wife team of pianist Satoko Fujii and trumpeter Natsuki Tamura has found yet another fertile vehicle in Kaze. French drummer Peter Orins and trumpeter Christian Pruvost combines with the Japanese pair In an unusual instrumentation. On their third offering Uminari the combo stretches the boundaries even more than on previous outings, and not only in terms of time (clocking in at over 70 minutes). However the session retains the positive attributes of its predecessors: blistering excitement, ...
read moreKaze: Uminari
by Budd Kopman
Uminari is the third release, following Rafaele and Tornado, from the cooperative quartet Kaze, made up of pianist Satoko Fujii, the dual trumpets of Christian Pruvost and Natsuki Tamura and drummer Peter Orins. While the quartet's configuration is unusual, it is also different from Fujii's viewpoint in that she is not the leader, but rather one of four equal participants, allowing her to relax a bit more than usual. The first thing that must be said is that ...
read moreCircum Grand Orchestra: 12
by Eyal Hareuveni
12, the fourth album of the French, Lille-based Circum Grand Orchestra and flagship of the Muzzix musicians collective, marks a significant change in the Orchestra's history. After being led for a decade by guitarist Olivier Benoit, now new artistic director of the prestigious Orchestre National Jazz, they are guided by bassist Christophe Hache, who wrote each composition on this release. The move from a six-string leader to a four-string guide did not affect the restless, inclusive spirit of this orchestra. ...
read moreStefan Orins Trio: Liv
by Eyal Hareuveni
The French, Lille-based trio of pianist Stefan Orins, together with double bassist Christophe Hache and (brother) drummer Peter Orins, are members of the Japanese-French quartet Kaze--which is part of the Muzzix musicians collective--a working unit since 1996. The trio released three albums--Natt Resa (Circum-disc, 2004), Bonheur Temporaire (Circum-disc, 2006) and Stöt (Circum-disc, 2010) and toured throughout Europe. As a known Buddhist maxim tells, Liv, the trio's fourth album, demonstrates how “the deeper the roots, the more ...
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