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The Wonderful Hiromi
Mar. 24th, 2020 09:07 amA few weeks ago, just as things were starting to get interesting, we saw what might be our last show for a while. Out at the Triple Door, we got the pleasure of seeing Hiromi Uehara perform in a solo concert.
Hiromi, often referred to by her first name only, is a jazz pianist and composer from Japan. Her skill as a jazz musician is astounding, and her performances are breath-taking! I had recently stumbled on her as connected to Chick Corea who is another jazz pianist and composer that I follow, and I was floored. Chick, for me, has always has a different take on jazz piano than other performers I've heard. His musical "voice" stands apart from some of the others for me, and I've been drawn to it from the introduction I had some decades ago. When I first heard Hiromi, I was struck by the thought that she "spoke" in a similar voice and I was also immediately drawn to her compositions and performance.
Hiromi has a deep mastery of her instrument. You can hear many classical jazz styles meshed into her performances along with her own unique style. Watching her, even just on YouTube, you get a sense that when she sits in front of a piano, it isn't a discreet structure, but a part of her body. You can almost watch the ideas flow from her head down her arms and through her fingers. It is no longer a musician performing an instrument, but an artist using magic to paint melodies and structure in a way that looks intense, inviting, and effortless.
Betsy Tinney talks about how she teaches improv and how you play a note and savor the sound of that note in comparison to what else is being played even if it's dissonant. Find the place where you hear that note and let it fill you with its existence before moving to something that sounds "easier". I think of that when I see one of Hiromi's toying characteristics come out where she worries over a 2 or 3 note phrase on the piano.. and holds it through chord progressions.. and holds it.. and holds it.. far past where it seems like it should fit in.. And she continues to hold it playfully as she builds suspense with her audience with whom she knows this causes tension and sometimes discomfort and then releasing us gasping back into the established progression.
We saw her manually mute piano strings with her hand as she emulated the sound of what became an upright bass solo in the middle of her solo piano performance. It may not be a unique technique, but she made it seem like a natural part of the composition, and as with the rest, made it seem effortless.
She is a very expressive and passionate performer. You can see the emotion of the music she's playing, and it is very clear that these performances are things she really enjoys in the moment. One of our party members commented that it seemed as though her perspective was that having an audience for her was probably optional. She seemed to be having her own party on stage and we were just observers that happened to be there. I would have agreed except that in addition to her emotional deep-dives, there were moments where she clearly was toying with our musical sensibilities and watching and listening to us react. She would play a phrase and watch us with an adorable and mischievous grin as it became apparent what she was trying to do. She very much knew we were there and she was happy to bring us in to her performance.
She traveled in the past with a trio called the Hiromi Trio Project made up of she, Anthony Jackson, and Simon Philips. The musicianship as you may imagine, was off the charts. There are YouTube videos of performances in the Trio. She also has some of her solo work as well.
It was an amazing delight to behold her, and I hope that she will be by Seattle again. I highly recommend digging around and finding her stuff.
Please go find her, and I hope you enjoy her as much as I have.
Hiromi, often referred to by her first name only, is a jazz pianist and composer from Japan. Her skill as a jazz musician is astounding, and her performances are breath-taking! I had recently stumbled on her as connected to Chick Corea who is another jazz pianist and composer that I follow, and I was floored. Chick, for me, has always has a different take on jazz piano than other performers I've heard. His musical "voice" stands apart from some of the others for me, and I've been drawn to it from the introduction I had some decades ago. When I first heard Hiromi, I was struck by the thought that she "spoke" in a similar voice and I was also immediately drawn to her compositions and performance.
Hiromi has a deep mastery of her instrument. You can hear many classical jazz styles meshed into her performances along with her own unique style. Watching her, even just on YouTube, you get a sense that when she sits in front of a piano, it isn't a discreet structure, but a part of her body. You can almost watch the ideas flow from her head down her arms and through her fingers. It is no longer a musician performing an instrument, but an artist using magic to paint melodies and structure in a way that looks intense, inviting, and effortless.
Betsy Tinney talks about how she teaches improv and how you play a note and savor the sound of that note in comparison to what else is being played even if it's dissonant. Find the place where you hear that note and let it fill you with its existence before moving to something that sounds "easier". I think of that when I see one of Hiromi's toying characteristics come out where she worries over a 2 or 3 note phrase on the piano.. and holds it through chord progressions.. and holds it.. and holds it.. far past where it seems like it should fit in.. And she continues to hold it playfully as she builds suspense with her audience with whom she knows this causes tension and sometimes discomfort and then releasing us gasping back into the established progression.
We saw her manually mute piano strings with her hand as she emulated the sound of what became an upright bass solo in the middle of her solo piano performance. It may not be a unique technique, but she made it seem like a natural part of the composition, and as with the rest, made it seem effortless.
She is a very expressive and passionate performer. You can see the emotion of the music she's playing, and it is very clear that these performances are things she really enjoys in the moment. One of our party members commented that it seemed as though her perspective was that having an audience for her was probably optional. She seemed to be having her own party on stage and we were just observers that happened to be there. I would have agreed except that in addition to her emotional deep-dives, there were moments where she clearly was toying with our musical sensibilities and watching and listening to us react. She would play a phrase and watch us with an adorable and mischievous grin as it became apparent what she was trying to do. She very much knew we were there and she was happy to bring us in to her performance.
She traveled in the past with a trio called the Hiromi Trio Project made up of she, Anthony Jackson, and Simon Philips. The musicianship as you may imagine, was off the charts. There are YouTube videos of performances in the Trio. She also has some of her solo work as well.
It was an amazing delight to behold her, and I hope that she will be by Seattle again. I highly recommend digging around and finding her stuff.
Please go find her, and I hope you enjoy her as much as I have.
