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July 16, 2024
 

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JAZZNICITY

Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Feb 9, 2003
Female vocalists singing a new tune
In the past, female jazz singers in Japan were often just pretty faces up front. They had to sing, of course, but their main role was often to provide a contrast to the usually all-male band.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Jan 12, 2003
Countdown to a 4/4 beat
On New Year's Eve, while thousands of celebrants packed Tokyo's shrines and temples to hear the 108 bells ringing out the sins of mankind, many others crowded into Tokyo's jazz clubs to hear musicians offer their own prayers. For these ritual yearend jam sessions, the doors remain open all night so people...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Dec 8, 2002
More than meets the ear
There's just not enough time to write up every good jazz band in Tokyo. As the year draws to an end, I find myself with a backlog of quality musicians who play regularly in the capital. So, in order not to leave out any great picks, here's a Christmas list for your listening pleasure. These players'...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Nov 10, 2002
Balladeer does it in his own good time
If there are no second acts in American lives, as F. Scott Fitzgerald said, for some musicians at least, there's a second take. After famed recording sessions in the late 1950s that made him popular, Jimmy Scott's unique vocal style was not heard again on a new recording for some 30 years. Then, in the...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Oct 13, 2002
Fiery duo take jazz to task
Pianist Satoko Fujii and her husband, trumpeter Natsuki Tamura, seem an unlikely couple to storm the citadel of jazz with challenging new sounds. Far from the typical black-clad, scowling and self-absorbed avant-garde artist, they are surprisingly casual -- the kind of people you immediately want to...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Sep 8, 2002
Tokyo Jazz 2002: The hybrid of a new generation
Though Herbie Hancock may not have the fancy footwork of the heroes who usually play Tokyo Stadium, as director of Tokyo Jazz 2002, he still managed to draw over 37,000 people to the soccer pitch the weekend of Aug. 24. This attendance alone would rank the festival, the first in a planned annual series,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Aug 11, 2002
A jazz life to the fullest
It used to be that the jazz life followed a relatively set pattern. Young players joined the bands of older pros, learned what they could, went on to become a leader themselves and, maybe, if they were lucky, got a recording contract. Nowadays, however, jazz players are as likely to get their education...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Jul 14, 2002
Skip the jazz club, it's festival season
Most jazz people are night owls who don't get much sun, so summer festivals give the music, players and fans all a good airing out.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Jun 9, 2002
Playing off the beaten track
Certain tensions in the jazz world were clearly evident at the 10th annual Yokohama Jazz Promenade on May 25th and 26th. The performers split into two camps: those focusing on instrumental virtuosity and those avoiding the staple four-beat ching-chick-a-ching-chick-a-ching rhythm. The plasticity of rhythm...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
May 12, 2002
The smallest jazz club in the world -- or close
At the Hot House jazz club in Takadanobaba, you not only rub elbows with great jazz musicians and intense fans, you also rub shoulders, knees, ankles and hips. To get to the toilet, someone has to stand up (me as it turned out); to get in the door, the pianist has to move his bench; and to get a drink...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Apr 14, 2002
Bigger, fresher, louder
In the last Jazznicity column, I focused on meat-and-potatoes big bands in Tokyo. But in addition to those bands that work directly in the jazz tradition, there are many others seeking to extend its range of possibilities.
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Mar 10, 2002
Say it loud, big band and proud
On any given night, one full 16-piece jazz orchestra is sure to be playing somewhere in Tokyo. Considering the generally small stages, lack of practice rooms, band members' tight schedules and competition from small combos, it is amazing that big bands regularly pack Tokyo's jazz clubs. But they do....
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Feb 10, 2002
Jazz that isn't afraid to be entertaining
For a long time in jazz, playing to the crowd was a sign of selling out. Creating music that pleased listeners was considered by many jazz players, and their fans, to be insincere, compromised and unsophisticated. "Entertainment" became something of a dirty word.
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Jan 13, 2002
Take me to your anti-leader
The Shibuya Takeshi Orchestra is one of the most singular, challenging and unusual jazz units in Tokyo. Many local groups strive for accomplished technique, pushing their instruments to the far edge of rapid-fire playing or polishing one style to perfection. The Shibuya Takeshi Orchestra, however, delights...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Dec 9, 2001
A rough guide to buried local treasures
Even though many jazz players in Japan do get a chance to record, it can sometimes be a challenge to find their CDs -- even in the biggest stores. With limited pressings and uneven distribution, last month's release from a popular live performer in Tokyo can be harder to find than an obscure 1950s hard...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Nov 11, 2001
Fusion is dead, long live fusion
Fusion is the style of jazz pioneered by Miles Davis in the 1960s, most famously with his album "Bitches' Brew," in which the power, decibels and feedback of Jimi Hendrix were fused with the searing, exploratory complexity of John Coltrane.
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Oct 14, 2001
Keep on jamming in the free world
One of the ironies of jazz is that it is now more popular in Europe and Japan than in its country of origin. While the fanatic obsession of overseas fans made jazz an important cultural export for the United States after the Second World War, now there is a substantial corps of non-American players no...
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Sep 9, 2001
Kichijoji ain't nuthin' but a jazz thang
Kichijoji offers more jazz per tsubo than almost any place in the city. Not only are rents cheaper than inside the Yamanote Line, but small-niche businesses seem to thrive here. Teeming with shops, restaurants and clubs, it is dynamic without being overwhelming. With clubs presenting live jazz every...
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Aug 19, 2001
The Mike Price experience
Mike Price toured Japan seven times with Toshiko Akiyoshi's big band, and on the eighth, he stayed.
CULTURE / Music / JAZZNICITY
Jul 15, 2001
In praise of the honest approach
Huddled over a back table at the Roppongi jazz club Alfie, out of earshot of her manager and new record company reps, Akiko confessed.
Who needs AI when you have Hatsune Miku?
Over the first six months of 2024, a handful of songs using Vocaloid singer Hatsune Miku’s voice have enjoyed widespread attention, underlining a global interest in the character and the technology she represents.
Bloodied Trump survives assassination attempt at political rally
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is surrounded and evacuated by Secret Service agents at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. Trump was rushed off stage at the rally after shots rang out.
Shooter came within inches of killing Trump, but left few clues as to why
An aerial view shows the stage where Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump had been standing during an assassination attempt the day before, and the roof of a nearby building where a gunman was shot dead by law enforcement, in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Sunday.
Yen’s woes seem too big for even a BOJ hike this month to solve
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
After Trump shooting, U.S. presidential race might take a violent turn
United States Secret Service Counter Snipers stand guard on a rooftop during a campaign rally for U.S. President Donald Trump in Avoca, Pennsylvania, in 2020.
No AC this summer? No problem (for me).
Think air conditioning is a requirement for a Tokyo summer? Think again.
She’s paying ¥1 million to help behind the scenes at the Paris Olympics
Mai Tarumi, who previously volunteered at the postponed Tokyo Olympics in 2021, has a travel budget of ¥1 million for her trip to volunteer at the Paris Games.

Podcast

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.
Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
By Tomoko Otake

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Exploring Japanese culturevia Tohoku’s festivals
Exploring Japanese culturevia Tohoku’s festivals

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