Takaaki: New Kid In Town
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Give this one a listen and you'll understand why we went "outside the classical box."

Composer Bernard Hoffer first heard jazz pianist Takaaki Otomo at a restaurant in New York and was impressed by his musicality, dynamic sensitivity, and beautiful harmonic sense. With bass player Noriko Ueda and drummer Jared Schonig, Takaaki selected five originals, four jazz standards plus one Broadway show tune and two novelties from Gustav Holst's The Planets for this recording. Beginning his training as a classical pianist Takaaki switched to jazz when he was a teenager and won first prize in a jazz competition in Japan in 2007. He moved to New York City in 2014. Originally from Japan Noriko Ueda began playing the electric bass, then switching to upright bass at age 18. She is a graduation of the Berklee College of Music where she majored in jazz composition. She has her own trio and quartet and has performed at the Blue Note Jazz Club. She won the Charlie Parker Jazz Composition Prize in 2002. Hailing from Los Angeles, drummer Jared Schonig studied at Eastman where he won seven Downbeat Student Music Awards. A favorite among vocalists, Schonig tours with Grammy Award-winners Kurt Ellling and The New York Voices. He is in demand as a drummer for studio recordings and session work.
Contents:
Takaaki Otomo, composer
Evening Glow
Takaaki Otomo, piano; Noriko Ueda, bass; Jared Schonig, drums

Bernard Hoffer, composer
New Kid In Town
Takaaki Otomo, piano; Noriko Ueda, bass; Jared Schonig, drums

John Lewis, composer
Django
Takaaki Otomo, piano; Noriko Ueda, bass; Jared Schonig, drums

Noriko Ueda, composer
LullWater
Takaaki Otomo, piano; Noriko Ueda, bass; Jared Schonig, drums

Neil Hefti, composer
Repetition
Takaaki Otomo, piano; Noriko Ueda, bass; Jared Schonig, drums

Bob Merrill, composer
People
Takaaki Otomo, piano; Noriko Ueda, bass; Jared Schonig, drums

Gustav Holst, composer
Mars
Takaaki Otomo, piano; Noriko Ueda, bass; Jared Schonig, drums

Takaaki Otomo, composer
Grandma's Song
Takaaki Otomo, piano; Noriko Ueda, bass; Jared Schonig, drums

Dave Brubeck, composer
In Your Own Sweet Way
Takaaki Otomo, piano; Noriko Ueda, bass; Jared Schonig, drums

Thad Jones, composer
To You
Takaaki Otomo, piano; Noriko Ueda, bass; Jared Schonig, drums

Bernard Hoffer, composer
Rush Hour
Takaaki Otomo, piano; Noriko Ueda, bass; Jared Schonig, drums

Gustav Holst, composer
Venus
Takaaki Otomo, piano; Noriko Ueda, bass; Jared Schonig, drums

Review:
"A young piano cat that transplanted from Japan to New York is fitting right in with his adopted town and delivering jazz piano trio work that stands mightily against any comparisons. Blessed with the touch, he leads, writes and plays like a champ that’s already arrived. Solid stuff throughout that specializes in hitting all the right notes." (Chris Spector, midwestrecord.com)

"The three musicians involved here form a high-quality trio that is still able to say its own in a rather fashionable formation thanks to the successes of Keith Jarrett or Brad Mehldau. The Japanese pianist Takaaki studied classical music in his homeland, then he discovered jazz and decided to move to the USA. The same goes for the double bass player Noriko Ueda, also Japanese. To complete the trio, an American musician, Jared Schonig, a rather requested drummer, listening to the album, he understands the reason, so musical and able to interpret the music at best, present and at the same time so empathetic towards others. The fourth man behind the recording is Bernhard Hofler as producer and arranger of some tracks. They did a good job, perfect, no doubt about it. The lineup consists of two pieces of the leader, one of the double bass player, the standards, New Kid in Town and Rush Hour by Hoffer and two themes taken from the orchestral work The Planets of the English composer of the early twentieth century Gustav Holst. Takaaki knows perfectly the mechanisms of the trio, has assimilated the lesson of a Fred Hersch or a Brad Mehldau, to remain among his contemporaries. The album runs all in one breath, are compositions, performances, arrangements, which are perfectly in the lineup, one after the other, here you know the wise hand of the producer. Obviously there are many intense moments emotionally and others more intense rhythmically like the theme that gives the title to the album, but everything is dosed as in a magic alembic, everything in its place, no more notes and not even one less. There is a lot of swing along with beautiful harmonic inventions that make it all worthy of repeated listening." (musiczoom.it)
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