Hakidame ni Tsuru translates into English as “crane in the wasteland,” an image that occurred to trumpeter Kappa Maki as he watched the beautiful gestures percussive dancer Mizuki improvises in response to the wild, swirling soundscapes created by this avant-jazz-rock quartet. First assembled to tour Japan in March 2012, these internationally renowned performers, based in Germany, Japan and the U.S. continue to perform in clubs, theaters, galleries, and improvised performance venues around the world. Most recently, Hakidame ni Tsuru brought their ‘body music’ to life during their third Japanese tour in April 2016.
Heralded as one of modern jazz’s “leading composers and musical thinkers” (Middleton, London Jazz), pianist/composer Satoko Fujii left Tokyo to study in Boston, graduating from both Berklee College of Music and New England Conservatory. Renowned for fusing “formidable chops” and “relentless” musical energy (Chamberlin, DownBeat), Fujii performs incessantly as a soloist, with the big bands she leads in Tokyo, New York, Berlin, Kobe, and Nagoya, and in a variety of groups, including Kaze, Gato Libre, and Junk Box, among others. She has also recorded over eighty albums, with eight new recordings including her solo release Invisible Hand coming in 2017. She celebrated the 20th anniversary of her independent label, Libra, in 2016. http://www.satokofujii.com
Percussionist Takaaki Masuko left Osaka, Japan in 1979 to study improvisation and global folk music at New England Conservatory. A much-lauded performer, dance accompanist, teacher, and music and movement clinician now based in Boston, Taki’s passion for twisting time and blending the old and borrowed with the bold and new fuels his international solo performances and collaborations with The Horse Flies (MCA, Rounder, PestControl), Tapestry, the Zamir Chorale, and Telltale Crossing, among others. http://www.takimasuko.com
Japanese trumpeter/composer Kappa Maki plays outside of genre expectations. The All Music Guide declared the existence of two Makis: “The one playing angular jazz-rock or ferocious free improv… and the one writing simple melodies of stunning beauty” (Couture). Others praise Maki’s “extended technique” and describe his musical duality as combining “the stark, melancholy lyricism of Miles” with “the bristling rage of late 60s Freddie Hubbard” (Keresman, JazzReview.com). Maki tours internationally in a variety of ensembles including Gato Libre, Kaze, First Meeting and NatSat, among others.
Based in Nagoya, guitarist Yasuhiro Usui’s unique improvisational style mixes jazz, noise, and minimal effects. In addition to running an independent label, Bakamo Records, Usui performs and tours throughout the world with a variety of artists, including Elliott Sharp, Ned Rothenberg, William Parker, Phil Minton, Peter Brotzmann, the Shibusa Shirazu Orchestra, and the Satoko Fujii Orchestra. http://www.usui-yasuhiro.com
Mizuki’s unique percussive dance vocabulary comes of her flamenco training and eclectic musical appetites. In addition to performing with her flamenco-crossover project, Double Kick, Mizuki regularly collaborates with jazz, rock, and experimental / free improv musicians from across Europe, Asia, and North America.
show less
Heralded as one of modern jazz’s “leading composers and musical thinkers” (Middleton, London Jazz), pianist/composer Satoko Fujii left Tokyo to study in Boston, graduating from both Berklee College of Music and New England Conservatory. Renowned for fusing “formidable chops” and “relentless” musical energy (Chamberlin, DownBeat), Fujii performs incessantly as a soloist, with the big bands she leads in Tokyo, New York, Berlin, Kobe, and Nagoya, and in a variety of groups, including Kaze, Gato Libre, and Junk Box, among others. She has also recorded over eighty albums, with eight new recordings including her solo release Invisible Hand coming in 2017. She celebrated the 20th anniversary of her independent label, Libra, in 2016. http://www.satokofujii.com
Percussionist Takaaki Masuko left Osaka, Japan in 1979 to study improvisation and global folk music at New England Conservatory. A much-lauded performer, dance accompanist, teacher, and music and movement clinician now based in Boston, Taki’s passion for twisting time and blending the old and borrowed with the bold and new fuels his international solo performances and collaborations with The Horse Flies (MCA, Rounder, PestControl), Tapestry, the Zamir Chorale, and Telltale Crossing, among others. http://www.takimasuko.com
Japanese trumpeter/composer Kappa Maki plays outside of genre expectations. The All Music Guide declared the existence of two Makis: “The one playing angular jazz-rock or ferocious free improv… and the one writing simple melodies of stunning beauty” (Couture). Others praise Maki’s “extended technique” and describe his musical duality as combining “the stark, melancholy lyricism of Miles” with “the bristling rage of late 60s Freddie Hubbard” (Keresman, JazzReview.com). Maki tours internationally in a variety of ensembles including Gato Libre, Kaze, First Meeting and NatSat, among others.
Based in Nagoya, guitarist Yasuhiro Usui’s unique improvisational style mixes jazz, noise, and minimal effects. In addition to running an independent label, Bakamo Records, Usui performs and tours throughout the world with a variety of artists, including Elliott Sharp, Ned Rothenberg, William Parker, Phil Minton, Peter Brotzmann, the Shibusa Shirazu Orchestra, and the Satoko Fujii Orchestra. http://www.usui-yasuhiro.com
Mizuki’s unique percussive dance vocabulary comes of her flamenco training and eclectic musical appetites. In addition to performing with her flamenco-crossover project, Double Kick, Mizuki regularly collaborates with jazz, rock, and experimental / free improv musicians from across Europe, Asia, and North America.
Hakidame ni Tsuru translates into English as “crane in the wasteland,” an image that occurred to trumpeter Kappa Maki as he watched the beautiful gestures percussive dancer Mizuki improvises in response to the wild, swirling soundscapes created by this avant-jazz-rock quartet. First assembled to tour Japan in March 2012, these internationally renowned performers, based in Germany, Japan and the U.S. continue to perform in clubs, theaters, galleries, and improvised performance venues around the world. Most recently, Hakidame ni Tsuru brought their ‘body music’ to life during their third Japanese tour in April 2016.
Heralded as one of modern jazz’s “leading composers and musical thinkers” (Middleton, London Jazz), pianist/composer Satoko Fujii left Tokyo to study in Boston, graduating from both Berklee College of Music and New England Conservatory. Renowned for fusing “formidable chops” and “relentless” musical energy (Chamberlin, DownBeat), Fujii performs incessantly as a soloist, with the big bands she leads in Tokyo, New York, Berlin, Kobe, and Nagoya, and in a variety of groups, including Kaze, Gato Libre, and Junk Box, among others. She has also recorded over eighty albums, with eight new recordings including her solo release Invisible Hand coming in 2017. She celebrated the 20th anniversary of her independent label, Libra, in 2016. http://www.satokofujii.com
Percussionist Takaaki Masuko left Osaka, Japan in 1979 to study improvisation and global folk music at New England Conservatory. A much-lauded performer, dance accompanist, teacher, and music and movement clinician now based in Boston, Taki’s passion for twisting time and blending the old and borrowed with the bold and new fuels his international solo performances and collaborations with The Horse Flies (MCA, Rounder, PestControl), Tapestry, the Zamir Chorale, and Telltale Crossing, among others. http://www.takimasuko.com
Japanese trumpeter/composer Kappa Maki plays outside of genre expectations. The All Music Guide declared the existence of two Makis: “The one playing angular jazz-rock or ferocious free improv… and the one writing simple melodies of stunning beauty” (Couture). Others praise Maki’s “extended technique” and describe his musical duality as combining “the stark, melancholy lyricism of Miles” with “the bristling rage of late 60s Freddie Hubbard” (Keresman, JazzReview.com). Maki tours internationally in a variety of ensembles including Gato Libre, Kaze, First Meeting and NatSat, among others.
Based in Nagoya, guitarist Yasuhiro Usui’s unique improvisational style mixes jazz, noise, and minimal effects. In addition to running an independent label, Bakamo Records, Usui performs and tours throughout the world with a variety of artists, including Elliott Sharp, Ned Rothenberg, William Parker, Phil Minton, Peter Brotzmann, the Shibusa Shirazu Orchestra, and the Satoko Fujii Orchestra. http://www.usui-yasuhiro.com
Mizuki’s unique percussive dance vocabulary comes of her flamenco training and eclectic musical appetites. In addition to performing with her flamenco-crossover project, Double Kick, Mizuki regularly collaborates with jazz, rock, and experimental / free improv musicians from across Europe, Asia, and North America.
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Heralded as one of modern jazz’s “leading composers and musical thinkers” (Middleton, London Jazz), pianist/composer Satoko Fujii left Tokyo to study in Boston, graduating from both Berklee College of Music and New England Conservatory. Renowned for fusing “formidable chops” and “relentless” musical energy (Chamberlin, DownBeat), Fujii performs incessantly as a soloist, with the big bands she leads in Tokyo, New York, Berlin, Kobe, and Nagoya, and in a variety of groups, including Kaze, Gato Libre, and Junk Box, among others. She has also recorded over eighty albums, with eight new recordings including her solo release Invisible Hand coming in 2017. She celebrated the 20th anniversary of her independent label, Libra, in 2016. http://www.satokofujii.com
Percussionist Takaaki Masuko left Osaka, Japan in 1979 to study improvisation and global folk music at New England Conservatory. A much-lauded performer, dance accompanist, teacher, and music and movement clinician now based in Boston, Taki’s passion for twisting time and blending the old and borrowed with the bold and new fuels his international solo performances and collaborations with The Horse Flies (MCA, Rounder, PestControl), Tapestry, the Zamir Chorale, and Telltale Crossing, among others. http://www.takimasuko.com
Japanese trumpeter/composer Kappa Maki plays outside of genre expectations. The All Music Guide declared the existence of two Makis: “The one playing angular jazz-rock or ferocious free improv… and the one writing simple melodies of stunning beauty” (Couture). Others praise Maki’s “extended technique” and describe his musical duality as combining “the stark, melancholy lyricism of Miles” with “the bristling rage of late 60s Freddie Hubbard” (Keresman, JazzReview.com). Maki tours internationally in a variety of ensembles including Gato Libre, Kaze, First Meeting and NatSat, among others.
Based in Nagoya, guitarist Yasuhiro Usui’s unique improvisational style mixes jazz, noise, and minimal effects. In addition to running an independent label, Bakamo Records, Usui performs and tours throughout the world with a variety of artists, including Elliott Sharp, Ned Rothenberg, William Parker, Phil Minton, Peter Brotzmann, the Shibusa Shirazu Orchestra, and the Satoko Fujii Orchestra. http://www.usui-yasuhiro.com
Mizuki’s unique percussive dance vocabulary comes of her flamenco training and eclectic musical appetites. In addition to performing with her flamenco-crossover project, Double Kick, Mizuki regularly collaborates with jazz, rock, and experimental / free improv musicians from across Europe, Asia, and North America.
show less
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