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Among pianist and composer Satoko Fujii's many and varied ensembles are the orchestras she leads in various cities. These two releases contrast Fujii's approach to orchestral music with the results of another composer writing for one of her orchestras.
Satoko Fujii Orchestra Tokyo
Kikoeru
Libra
2018
Kikoeru ...
The profusion of settings in which multi-instrumentalist/composer Satoko Fujii works is something of a phenomenon. The extent to which she brings something unique to each of those situations is even more astounding. In her husband Natsuki Tamura's Gato Libre quartet, Fujii typically plays the accordion to interpret the trumpeter's more lyrical and folkloric compositions. The pair ...
read moreIf pianist Satoko Fujii is known for anything, it is for the enormous amount of energy that she brings to her work, plus the pace she maintains with groups scattered all over the world.
Her latest offering, Peace, with her Tokyo Orchestra was recorded in 2014, as was Ichigo Ichie (her Berlin Orchestra), Uminari ...
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 ...
read moreJapanese pianist Satoko Fujii is a prolific and versatile musician whose fast pace and relatively large volume are never at the expense of quality. In fact her improvisation heavy records are innovative and cerebral yet they maintain a certain, surprising, accessibility. She has recorded in settings ranging from solo to large orchestra and always with a ...
read more Natsuki Tamura & Satoko Fujii
Muku
Libra
2012
Gato Libre
Forever
Libra
2012
Pianist Satoko Fujii and trumpeter Natsuki Tamura, wife and husband, maintain a staggering productivity, in terms of quantity, quality--and, most incredibly, in terms of variety. At one moment, they lead a powerful post-free ensemble; When ...
The line between jazz and classical music is being increasingly blurred--or, in the case of the multidisciplinary Tim Garland, erased entirely. The British reedman began experimenting with fusing the two disciplines on Rising Tide (Sirocco, 2003), where he both wrote for his trio and a string quartet upfront, and scored strings around a solo saxophone improvisation. ...
read moreThe adventurous two-disc Libra features saxophonist Tim Garland heavily entrenched in trio territory. He is joined by rising star Gwilym Simcock on piano and versatile percussionist Asaf Sirkis, with guest appearances from zany guitarist Paul Bollenback and London's Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
Expansive, well-structured pieces are the record's mainstay, with a tasteful sprinkling of standards. Known for ...
read moreListening to British reed player Tim Garland, it's easy to be reminded of saxophonist Sonny Rollins' remark, decades ago, about Stan Tracey, the Ronnie Scott's house pianist who accompanied Rollins on many of his appearances at the London club. Does anybody here realise how good he is?" asked Rollins rhetorically. Happily, times have changed and many ...
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