is a Japanese jazz musician who plays

alto saxophone The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments. Saxophones were invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in the 1840s and patented in 1846. The alto saxophone is pitched in E, smaller than the B tenor ...

, sopranino saxophone,

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

, and

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

. He is known for his

bossa nova Bossa nova () is a style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a "different beat" that altered the harmonies with the introduction of unconventional chords and an innovativ ...

recordings, although his work encompasses many styles, with collaborations from musicians all over the world.

Career

Watanabe was born on 1 February 1933 in

Utsunomiya is the prefectural capital city of Tochigi Prefecture in the northern Kantō region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 519,223, and a population density of . The total area of the city is . Utsunomiya is famous for its '' gyoza' ...

, Japan. His father, a professional musician, sang and played the

biwa The is a Japanese short-necked wooden lute traditionally used in narrative storytelling. The is a plucked string instrument that first gained popularity in China before spreading throughout East Asia, eventually reaching Japan sometime duri ...

. He was attracted to jazz from an early age, in part due to the strong cultural influence stemming from the American post-war presence in Japan. Watanabe learned the clarinet while in high school after convincing his father over the course of six weeks to buy him a second-hand instrument. In 1951, Watanabe moved to

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

and began playing the alto saxophone. He started studying the flute in 1953 with Ririko Hayashi from the

Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra The is recognized as the oldest symphony orchestra in Japan. It was founded in 1911 and debuted at the original Matsuzakaya store in Nagoya as the . It relocated to Tokyo in 1938. As of 2005, it has 166 members. The orchestra plays frequently ...

. He joined Toshiko Akiyoshi’s Cozy Quartet and began leading the group when Akiyoshi moved to the USA.By 1958 he had performed with leading musicians and quartets. In 1961 Watanabe's first album as a leader, the self-titled ''Sadao Watanabe'', was released. In 1962 he left Japan to study at

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cours ...

in Boston. Studying led to a broadened stylistic scope that began to incorporate Brazilian music. During his time in the USA, Watanabe worked with

Gary McFarland Gary Robert McFarland (October 23, 1933 – November 3, 1971) was an American composer, arranger, vibraphonist and vocalist. He recorded for the jazz imprints Verve and Impulse! Records during the 1960s. '' Down Beat magazine'' said he made "on ...

Chico Hamilton Foreststorn "Chico" Hamilton (September 20, 1921 – November 25, 2013) was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. He came to prominence as sideman for Lester Young, Gerry Mulligan, Count Basie, and Lena Horne. Hamilton became a bandleader, ...

, and

Gábor Szabó Gábor István Szabó (March 8, 1936 – February 26, 1982) was a Hungarian American guitarist whose style incorporated jazz, pop, rock, and Hungarian music. Early years Szabó was born in Budapest, Hungary. He began playing guitar at the age ...

. Returning to Tokyo, Watanabe became the director of the new Yamaha Institute of Popular Music, a school which based its curriculum on Berklee's. From 1966 onwards, Watanabe toured Japan and internationally with his own quartet playing bop, Brazilian music, jazz-rock, soul, and pop music. He played with the

John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of br ...

quintet in Tokyo while the group was touring Japan 1966. By the time Watanabe played at the 1970 Newport Jazz Festival he was a well-known and often highly-regarded jazz performer. In 1969, Watanabe began working part time as a radio broadcaster, promoting jazz across Japan. From 1972, his programme ''My Dear Life'' ran for 20 years. He continued to perform internationally, including performances at

Montreux Jazz Festival The Montreux Jazz Festival (formerly Festival de Jazz Montreux and Festival International de Jazz Montreux) is a music festival in Switzerland, held annually in early July in Montreux on the Lake Geneva shoreline. It is the second-largest annual ...

and

Newport Jazz Festival The Newport Jazz Festival is an annual American multi-day jazz music festival held every summer in Newport, Rhode Island. Elaine Lorillard established the festival in 1954, and she and husband Louis Lorillard financed it for many years. They hire ...

. In 1970, he released his album ''Round Trip'', featuring

Chick Corea Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea (June 12, 1941 – February 9, 2021) was an American jazz composer, pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and occasional percussionist. His compositions "Spain", " 500 Miles High", "La Fiesta", "Armando's Rhumba", and ...

, Jack DeJohnette, and

Miroslav Vitouš Miroslav Ladislav Vitouš (born 6 December 1947) is a Czech jazz bassist. Biography Born in Prague, Vitouš began the violin at age six, switching to piano after about three years, and then to bass at age fourteen. As a young man in Europe, ...

. Watanabe continued performing and recording throughout the 1970s and 1980s, amassing a catalogue of more than 70 albums as leader. In addition to his musical career, Watanabe has published six photography books in Japan.Sadao Watanabe web site
biography , with photos
/ref> Sadao Watanabe is in charge of visiting professor of Jazz course in Kunitachi College of Music since 2010.

Honors

Among his awards are the

Order of the Rising Sun The is a Japanese order, established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji. The Order was the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese government, created on 10 April 1875 by decree of the Council of State. The badge features rays of sunlight ...

, the imperial medal of honor for contribution to the arts, and the

Fumio Nanri was a Japanese jazz trumpeter nicknamed the "Satchmo of Japan" by Louis Armstrong. He was one of Japan's first jazz musicians to become known outside his native country. A long-standing prestigious music award, "The Fumio Nanri Award", was named a ...

award. *1995:

awarded him an honorary doctorate degree for his contributions to music. *2005: *2015:

Order of Rio Branco The Order of Rio Branco (''Ordem de Rio Branco'') is an honorific order of Brazil instituted by decree 51.697 of February 5, 1963. It is named in honor of the Brazilian diplomat José Paranhos, Baron of Rio Branco. The President of Brazil serves ...

Discography

As leader/co-leader

As sideman

Toshiko Akiyoshi is a Japanese–American jazz pianist, composer, arranger, and bandleader. Akiyoshi received fourteen Grammy Award nominations and was the first woman to win Best Arranger and Composer awards in ''Down Beat'' magazine's annual Readers' Poll. ...

, ''Toshiko Meets Her Old Pals'' (King, 1974) *

Randy Brecker Randal Edward Brecker (born November 27, 1945) is an American trumpeter, flugelhornist, and composer. His versatility has made him a popular studio musician who has recorded with acts in jazz, rock, and R&B. Early life Brecker was born on No ...

and

Eliane Elias Eliane Elias
BrowseBiography.com, 20 November 2011; retrieved 10 September 2014. is a Brazilian jazz pianist, sin ...

, '' Amanda'' (Passport, 1985) *

Randy Crawford Veronica "Randy" Crawford (born February 18, 1952) is an American jazz and R&B singer. She has been more successful in Europe than in the United States, where she has not entered the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 as a solo artist. However, she has ap ...

, ''Through the Eyes of Love'' (

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

, 1992) *

Hiroshi Fukumura Hiroshi Fukumura (福村博) (born February 21, 1949, Tokyo) is a Japanese jazz trombonist. Fukumura played with Sadao Watanabe for much of the 1970s, excepting a period where he studied in the United States at the New England Conservatory of Mus ...

, ''Hunt Up Wind'' (Flying Disk, 1978) *

Dave Grusin Robert David "Dave" Grusin (born June 26, 1934) is an American composer, arranger, producer, jazz pianist, and band leader. He has composed many scores for feature films and television, and has won numerous awards for his soundtrack and record w ...

, ''Live in Japan'' (

JVC JVC (short for Japan Victor Company) is a Japanese brand owned by JVCKenwood corporation. Founded in 1927 as the Victor Talking Machine Company of Japan and later as , the company is best known for introducing Japan's first televisions and for ...

, 1980) *

Don Grusin Don Grusin (born April 22, 1941) is an American jazz keyboardist, composer, and record producer. He is the younger brother of Dave Grusin. Career Don Grusin grew up in Littleton, Colorado. His father, a native of Latvia, was a classical violinis ...

, ''The Hang'' (C.A.R.E., 2004) *

, '' El Chico'' (

Impulse! Impulse! Records (occasionally styled as "¡mpulse! Records" and "¡!") is an American jazz record company and label established by Creed Taylor in 1960. John Coltrane was among Impulse!'s earliest signings. Thanks to consistent sales and positiv ...

, 1965) *

Terumasa Hino is a Japanese jazz trumpeter. He is considered one of Japan's finest jazz musicians. His instruments include the trumpet, cornet, and flügelhorn. Early life He was born in Tokyo, Japan, and his father was a trumpeter and tap dancer. Hino start ...

, ''Live in Concert'' (

East Wind An east wind is a wind that originates in the east and blows in a westward direction. This wind is referenced as symbolism in mythology, poetry and literature. In mythology In Greek mythology, Eurus, the east wind, was the only wind not associate ...

, 1975) *

Ithamara Koorax Ithamara Koorax (born April 28, 1965) is a Brazilian jazz and pop singer. Early life She was born to a family of Polish Jews who fled Europe during World War II. In her youth Koorax studied piano, opera, and classical music while listening to ...

, ''Red River'' (Paddle Wheel, 1995) * Ithamara Koorax, ''Rio Vermelho'' (Imagem, 1995) * Ithamara Koorax, ''The Luiz Bonfa Songbook'' (Huks, 2002) *

Akira Miyazawa Akira Miyazawa (宮沢昭) (December 6, 1927 in Matsumoto – July 6, 2000 in Tokyo) was a Japanese jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and flautist. Miyazawa played as a teenager in Japanese military bands during World War II, then embarked on a career ...

, ''Yamame'' (King, 1977) *

Armando Manzanero Armando Manzanero Canché (7 December 1935 – 28 December 2020) was a Mexican Mayan musician, singer, composer, actor and music producer, widely considered the premier Mexican romantic composer of the postwar era and one of the most successfu ...

, ''El Piano'' (BMG/RCA, 1995) *

Cesar Camargo Mariano Cesar, César or Cèsar may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''César'' (film), a 1936 film directed by Marcel Pagnol * ''César'' (play), a play by Marcel Pagnolt * César Award, a French film award Places * Cesar, Portugal * C ...

, ''Mitos'' (CBS, 1988) *

, '' The In Sound'' (

Verve Verve may refer to: Music * The Verve, an English rock band * ''The Verve E.P.'', a 1992 EP by The Verve * ''Verve'' (R. Stevie Moore album) * Verve Records, an American jazz record label Businesses * Verve Coffee Roasters, an American coffee ho ...

, 1966) *

Armando Peraza Armando Peraza (May 30, 1924 – April 14, 2014) was a Latin jazz percussionist and a member of the rock band Santana. Peraza played congas, bongos, and timbales. Biography Early life Born in Lawton Batista, Havana, Cuba in 1924 (although the ...

, ''Wild Thing'' ( Skye, 1969) *

Greg Phillinganes Gregory Arthur Phillinganes (born May 12, 1956) is an American keyboardist, singer-songwriter, and musical director based in Los Angeles, California. A prolific session musician, Phillinganes has contributed the role of keyboards to numerous alb ...

, ''Significant Gains'' (Planet, 1981) *

Masabumi Kikuchi was a Japanese jazz pianist and composer known for his unique playing style. He worked with many diverse musicians, including Sonny Rollins, Miles Davis, McCoy Tyner, Elvin Jones, Gary Peacock and Paul Motian, and collaborated with Gil Evans a ...

, ''Collaboration'' (

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...

, 1970) * Masabumi Kikuchi, ''All About Dancing Mist'' (Philips, 1971) *

Santana Santana may refer to: Transportation * Volkswagen Santana, an automobile * Santana Cycles, manufacturer of tandem bicycles * Santana Motors, a former Spanish automobile manufacturer Boats * Santana 20, an American sailboat design by W. D. Sch ...

, ''At Budokan'' (Masterplan, 2007) *

Isao Suzuki was a Japanese jazz double-bassist. Biography Born in Tokyo, Japan, Suzuki learned to play bass on United States military bases, and played early in his career with Shotaro Moriyasu, Hidehiko Matsumoto, and Sadao Watanabe. He led his own ense ...

, ''My Spare Time'' (Flying Disk, 1978) * Gabor Szabo, ''

Gypsy '66 The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...

'' (Impulse!, 1965) *

Masahiko Togashi was a Japanese jazz percussionist and composer. Togashi grew up in a musical household; his father was a double-bassist in a swing jazz ensemble, and Togashi learned violin and drums, playing the latter in his father's band. He worked with Sadao ...

, ''Song for Myself'' (East Wind, 1974) * Masahiko Togashi, ''Spiritual Nature'' (East Wind, 1975) *

Toquinho Antônio Pecci Filho (born July 6, 1946), better known as Toquinho (), is a Brazilian singer and guitarist. He is well known for his collaborations, as composer and performer, with Vinicius de Moraes. Childhood and musical studies Toquinho was b ...

, ''Vamos Juntos Toquinho Live at Bravas Club '86'' (

Polydor Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United States. ...

, 1986)

Compilation albums

*2001: ''Sadao Watanabe My Dear Life 50th Anniversary Collection'' (

) *2005: ''Sketches of Nature'' (Verve) *2005: ''Broadcast Tracks '69–'72'' (Victor) *2018: ''Love Songs'' (Victor)

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Watanabe, Sadao 1933 births Living people 21st-century saxophonists Berklee College of Music alumni Japanese jazz musicians Japanese jazz saxophonists Musicians from Tochigi Prefecture People from Utsunomiya, Tochigi Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun, 4th class