Taeko Kunishima (September 2) is a Japanese
jazz pianist, who has released four albums on the UK label 33Jazz. Initially influenced by classical composers, she switched to jazz music after listening to
Miles Davis. She incorporates traditional Japanese music into her repertoire, frequently composing for and collaborating with shakuhachi (Japanese flute) and shamisen (Japanese three-stringed lute) .
Life
Taeko Kunishima's first contact with the piano was at the age of seven. Initially influenced by classical composers such as
Beethoven and
Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...
, she studied classical piano at university. However, after listening to jazz
trumpeter Miles Davis her style changed significantly. She later moved to England and began to develop her personal style - in the words of
AllAboutJazz, "her startling, angular
contemporary jazz approach, echoing
Thelonious Monk and influences of her native Japan."
In the United Kingdom she worked with various musicians in assorted styles such as
Latin pop
Latin pop (in Spanish and in Portuguese: Pop latino) is a pop music subgenre that is a fusion of US–style music production with Latin music genres from anywhere in Latin America and Spain. Originating in Spanish-speaking musicians, Latin po ...
and
electronic music.
Kunishima recorded her debut album, ''Space to Be'', in 2004, and her second, ''Red Dragonfly'', in 2006,
both issued by 33Jazz. Radio station
Jazz FM played tracks from her debut album. Kunishima also performed live sessions on London art radio station
Resonance FM . She performed in the Isle of Wight International Jazz Festival,
London Jazz Festival, and the
Vortex Jazz Club. Since 2006 she has collaborated with UK
shakuhachi
A is a Japanese and ancient Chinese longitudinal, end-blown flute that is made of bamboo.
The bamboo end-blown flute now known as the was developed in Japan in the 16th century and is called the . player Clive Bell. In January, June and July 2008 she played across Germany, backed by American drummer David Bowler from the
Ahmad Jamal Trio .
Her third album, ''Late Autumn'', was recorded in May 2011. The album featured and was produced by Clive Bell, inspired by the works of Japanese film maker
Yasujirō Ozu. It "mixes her natural lyricism with Japanese surrealism and fast swing American jazz".
"Taeko
Kunishima's ''Late Autumn'' is the perfect storm of repertoire, arrangements and players, with something for everyone" (Lawrence Peryer).
The fourth album, ''Iridescent Clouds'', was released on the 33Jazz label in September 2016. Musicians featured include Clive Bell (shakuhachi, khene mouth organ), Paul Moylan (bass), percussionist Camilo Tirado on tablas, cahon and gongs, and the Tsugaru shamisen of Hibiki Ichikawa. Jeremy Hawkins's field recordings add sounds of Japanese birdsong and seaside. BBC Radio 3's ''Late Junction'' played the track "Everything Is In The Air."
James Nadal from All About Jazz chose ''Iridescent Clouds'' as one of his best albums of 2016.
All About Jazz review: "Acknowledged for her trademark lyricism, pianist Taeko Kunishima reflects upon the wonders of nature on ''Iridescent Clouds'', offering elegant improvised passages encased in a meditative concept."
Ian Mann (The Jazz Mann): "This is carefully crafted, consistently beautiful music that has a way of getting under your skin and staying there, something that the intriguing and exotic instrumentation positively encourages."
In 2017 Taeko Kunishima's group performed as part of the London Jazz Festival.
References
External links
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kunishima, Taeko
Japanese jazz pianists
Japanese women pianists
Living people
21st-century pianists
21st-century Japanese women musicians
Year of birth missing (living people)
21st-century women pianists