Hiromi Uehara
Hiromi Uehara is probably one of the greatest, largely unknown, pianists of our time. She is probably part of the rising Japanese inflation with jazz that has become a growing centerpiece of modern Japanese culture. I think the thing that most makes her stand out (and maybe has put her outside the normal jazz scene) is her absolutely crystal clear technical ability and astounding control of her dynamics. It is like listening to a concert-pianist technical expert, one that has mastered every nuance of the piano’s tones and dynamics, and yet is playing what is usually a more ragged jazz genre.
Here’s a song of hers that I have been listening to and keep listening to again and again. The crystal clear runs without a hint of slur or slop along with dynamics are astounding. Each listen I’m more amazed at how there is not a single sloppy note or missed dynamic in the whole piece – and that each note plays perfectly into the mood and feel she is weaving:
It makes me believe the pruported story by someone who attended a master class with house band member Tony Grey, a bass player, who record and toured with her. He told the class that every morning he and the other bandmates would wake up with a hand written note that detailed every single mistake they got wrong the night before.
Here’s another astounding piece that demonstrates an ever increasing progression of the most crystal clear jazz improvisation on top of a well known tune. She first imitates a harpsicord by putting metal rulers on the strings, but I think it really gets amazing starting around 3:04, 5:15, and 7:05. A modern Japanese artist performing a German composer’s music remixed in the jazz style from African Americans on an instrument invented in Italy. Amazing.
