Home » Jazz Articles » Satoko Fujii: Toward "To West"

Satoko Fujii: Toward "To West"

By Glenn Astarita
June 1, 2000
Sign in to view read count

Following up her aggressive big-band release, Jo pianist-composer-arranger Satoko Fujii reverts back to the piano trio format on Toward “To West” featuring drummer Jim Black and bassist Mark Dresser who also supported Ms. Fujii on her 1999 trio date titled, Kitsune-Bi. Here, the pianist once again garners the laudable talents of this mighty rhythm section as this effort in particular might indeed represent her most substantial and musically rewarding small group outing to date.

The proceedings evolve rather poignantly on the thirty-two minute opus and title track, “Toward, “To West” as the pianist craftily and enticingly propels matters into a climactic overture that boasts a hodgepodge of intertwining themes and shifting movements. Ms Fujii’s charismatic inventiveness as a pianist comes to the forefront here and throughout these 5 pieces as she brandishes a thoroughly percussive attack along with her keen and limber right hand lead soloing. Black and Dresser are near perfect foils for Ms. Fujii as they rework themes into beefy rhythmic abstractions and free-jazz escapades. Pieces such as “Oscillation”, and “The Way To Get There” illustrate Ms. Fujii’s strong arranging and compositional skills as she artfully conveys rich content and structured musical form amid these works that delineate free/modern-jazz style group dialogue and interaction. Besides all of the purposeful soloing, sinuous flow and hard-edged musings, Ms. Fujii injects a potpourri of underlying themes and fluctuating cross-currents into her music .......and perhaps the best is yet to come, as we watch her star rapidly ascend above the horizon! Highly recommended.

* * * * ½ (out of * * * * *)

Personnel

Satoko Fujii; Piano, Composer: Mark Dresser; Bass: Jim Black; Drums

ENJA website; www.enjarecords.com

Album information

Title: Toward "To West" | Year Released: 2000 | Record Label: Enja Records

Post a comment about this album

FOR THE LOVE OF JAZZ

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

WE NEED YOUR HELP

To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.