Tatsuya Takahashi and The Tokyo Union (also credited as Tokyo Union Big Band and Tokyo Union Orchestra) 高橋達也と東京ユニオン were one of Japan's best known

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s an ...

s. The Tokyo Union was created in 1964, under the leadership of alto-saxophonist Ryusuke Nomura, and as such represents one of Japan's oldest performing jazz ensembles.

Tatsuya Takahashi Tatsuya Takahashi may refer to: * Tatsuya Takahashi (saxophonist) (19312008), Japanese jazz saxophonist * Tatsuya Takahashi (engineer) (born 1983 or 1984), Japanese music engineer {{hndis, Takahashi, Tatsuya ...

, tenor saxophonist, became the leader in 1966. Under Takahashi's leadership, Tokyo Union has toured internationally including several appearances at the

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 ...

, the first being in 1978. Their awards include "Jazz Record of the Year" in 1978 and "Best Big Band" for nine years running in Japan's influential ''Swing Journal'' They traveled to California in 1980, playing with Herbie Hancock, Slide Hampton and Richie Cole, prior to performing at the

Monterey Jazz Festival The Monterey Jazz Festival is an annual music festival that takes place in Monterey, California, United States. It debuted on October 3, 1958, championed by Dave Brubeck and co-founded by jazz and popular music critic Ralph J. Gleason and jaz ...

, and then recording their album "Black Pearl" in San Francisco.

Discography

* ''The Rock Seasons'' (Express, 1973) * ''Scandinavian Suite'' (

Three Blind Mice "Three Blind Mice" is an English-language nursery rhyme and musical round.I. Opie and P. Opie, ''The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1951, 2nd edn., 1997), p. 306. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number o ...

, 1977) * ''Maiden Voyage'' (Three Blind Mice, 1977) * ''The City'' (Zen, 1979) * ''Impression'' (Audio Lab, 1980) * ''Black Pearl'' (Zen, 1980) * ''Up in the Blues'' (

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. ...

, 1981) * ''Keeping Count'' (

Paddle Wheel A paddle wheel is a form of waterwheel or impeller in which a number of paddles are set around the periphery of the wheel. It has several uses, of which some are: * Very low-lift water pumping, such as flooding paddy fields at no more than about ...

, 1986) * ''Plays Miles & Gil'' (Paddle Wheel, 1988) * ''Secret Love'' (Aeolus, 1992)

References

Japanese jazz ensembles Musical groups from Tokyo Musical groups established in 1964 {{Japan-band-stub