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About Yasushi Nakamura

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Musician

Yasushi Nakamura is praised for imaginative, quicksilver bass lines that deepen the groove. His blend of guitar-like precision and gut-level blues has sparked collaborations with artists such as Wynton Marsalis, Wycliffe Gordon, Toshiko Akiyoshi, Hank Jones, Dave Douglas, Steve Miller, etc. With his charismatic stage presence and artful, hard swinging melodic touch, Nakamura is a first-call performer capturing new audiences and fans around the world.

Born in Tokyo, Nakamura moved to the United States at age 9, and considers both places home. He began with clarinet and tenor saxophone, but his older brother’s study of guitar and drums drove him to pick up the bass. His love of rock and funk aside, the music of Charlie Parker, Ray Brown, Miles Davis were a potent influence on him. Nakamura received a BA in Jazz Performance from Berklee School of Music in 2000, and was awarded a full scholarship to The Juilliard School for his Artist Diploma in 2006. He credits Myron Walden as an early champion, and keeps close ties to Juilliard mentors Victor Goines, Wycliffe Gordon, and Carl Allen, Ben Wolfe all of whom maintain him in their bands.

Album

Universal Truth

By Emmet Cohen

Label: Verve Records
Released: 2026
Track listing: Budo; Well You Needn't; My Funny Valentine; Gingerbread Boy; I. Eternal Glimpse; II. Compassion; III. Universal Truth; Blue Trane.

Album

JAfro II

By Toru Dodo

Label: Self Produced
Released: 2026
Track listing: Cavid and All That Jazz: JAfrobic: Bassem Effect : Ya Bladi: Just Blood : 20202021 : ERICLEWIS : Wa-Sa- Beat: Malaika: Obamagic

Album

Around the World with U

By Ulysses Owens, Jr.

Label: Cellar Music Group
Released: 2026
Track listing: Prodigal Son; Bebop & Confirmation; Espresso; Morning Prayer; Mo’ Betta Blues; New York; The Light That Grew Amonst Us; Little Girl Power; Stardust; Road Life; I’m Not So Sure.

Article: Live Review

Detroit Jazz Festival 2026: A Gathering in a Great Jazz City

by Paul Rauch
September 15, 2026

Detroit Jazz Festival 2026 Hart Plaza Detroit, MI September 4-7, 2026 Thursday evening is when artists, media and event staffers begin to file into the Detroit Marriott, arriving from points around the globe. The common purpose is the 47th annual Detroit Jazz Festival, an annual tradition on Labor Day weekend. The ...

Article: Live Review

Moldejazz 2026

by Daniel Mège
August 4, 2026

Located at 62°7 North, Moldejazz (the Molde International Jazz Festival) is the ideal place for a festival in week 29, in early summer. A floral scent drifts through The Town of Roses, a ribbon less than a kilometer wide wedged into a peninsula between fjord and mountains. Even once it has set, the sun is never far ...

Article: Live Review

Brandee Younger at the Music Center at Strathmore

by Mark Edelman
July 10, 2026

Brandee Younger Music Center at Strathmore North Bethesda, MD June 11, 2026 Cecil McLorin Salvant's return to this North Bethesda citadel of great music was a much-anticipated DC jazz event, especially since the demise of the Kennedy Center's esteemed program. It turns out the most memorable part of the gig for ...

Article: Live Review

Vilnius Mama Jazz 2026

by Ian Patterson
June 11, 2026

Vilnius Mama Jazz Lithuanian National Drama Theatre25th Edition Vilnius. LithuaniaMay 22-24, 2026 Vilnius Mama Jazz turned 25. In festival terms that is early middle age. When you consider that 25 years is roughly a quarter of the entire history of jazz, the significance of the milestone assumes greater meaning.

Article: Album Review

Emmet Cohen: Universal Truth

Read "Universal Truth" reviewed by Mike Jurkovic

by Mike Jurkovic
May 21, 2026

There is an old-world saying that some folks are just born with an old soul. Pianist and social media conqueror Emmet Cohen--his pandemic- founded livestream, Live From Emmet's Place, has been viewed by millions across the globe--proves, positively, that the old wisdom still stands and forever will. For within the heart and soul of every jazzman ...

Article: Album Review

Ulysses Owens, Jr. and Generation Y: Around the World with U

Read "Around the World with U" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
April 8, 2026

Drummer Ulysses Owens, Jr. has a keen eye and ear for talent, which is obvious from the first notes of Around the World with U, his second recording as leader of the Art Blakey-style quintet, Generation Y. When marshaling the ensemble, Owens chose his teammates with care, and they repay his confidence by producing a splendid ...