Search - Fujii, Satoko/Feldman, Mark. :: April Shower

A superb varied introduction to Feldman and Fujii

greg taylor | Portland, Oregon United States | 08/30/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Mark Feldman and Satoko Fujii are two main graces in the current music scene that have traveled very different paths. Feldman is one of the most extraordinary sidemen and studio musicians in the world. He fits in to all types of music. His violin tone is the most classical that I know of in the world of jazz. His playing is always intelligent, precise and heartfelt.

Fujii has traveled a different road. A natural born improvisor, she was classically trained which she discovered seemed to deaden her improvisatory skills. She then abandoned a classical career and studied jazz in a variety of ways including a stint at Berkelee and with Paul Bley and George Russell. She is married to trumpeter Natsuki Tamura with whom she leads an outstanding quartet (In Krakow in November is a great intro to that group). She has released duets w/ Tamura as well as several drummers, she plays solo, in trios, and leads two fabulous large groupings (one is composed of Japanese musicians, the other of New Yorkers- they are both fabulous- Double Take devotes a CD to each, Undulation is a recent release of the NY orchestra, Live! is a great release of the East Orchestra on CD and DVD). She is the principal composer for all her groupings althought she shares that role with Tamura. Her compositions are incredibly varied and display her love of classical, jazz and japanese folk music. As a pianist, she seems to combine some of the stylings of both Bley and Cecil Taylor. I kid thee not. Listen to some of her playing on the orchestra CDs for some of the Tayloresque moments. On this CD, she is closer to Bley.

Her pairing with Feldman is an absolute delight. He plays duets with her on seven of the pieces. Fujii overdubs a second piano part on four others which leaves four solo piano pieces. The music can be intimate and quiet- it demands close and repeated listening. By which I mean that even though I found this CD immediately engaging, upon listening to it again and again I kept hearing something new. My ears would be drawn to a particular harmonization that I hadn't notice before or to a entire song that I hadn't listened to closely enough. Sample Then I Met You or Behind the Notes for some ideas of what to expect.

If you have never heard either Fujii or Feldman before, I imagine this would be a great intro to their music. Make sure to also listen to some of the other Fujii CDs that I mentioned above and to Feldman's solo violin CD on Tzadik, Music for Violin Alone and to his string quartet CD, the Book of Tells. As always, if you have any trouble finding CDs that are not listed on Amazon, drop me an email."