The CD version of this album includes ten tracks running at 54 minutes of mostly original music from Yoshimoto. The popular jazz standard “Body and Soul” is the sole cover tune, played as duo of piano and sax as a gentle closing.

The music on Blending Tone is contemporary jazz with a modern, open feeling build on the confidence and closeness that the members of the quartet exhibit with one another.

Throughout, this is a finely attuned album that rewards paying attention to the details. The musician’s individual solos seem to positively search for new expressions, pushing their improvisations for creativity as much to satisfy their own voices as well as to connect with the other players. As leader, Akihiro gets most of the time in the spotlight for his extended solos, and pianist Aaron Choulai gets an almost equal share and solos on nearly every track. The two partners even have an back-and-forth trading session in the greater part of #7 “Dark Matter” before drummer Ishiwaka and bassist Sakazaki take over the music.

Through the themes and adlibs, the locked-in band seems to naturally push one another to heights of greater ambition and near abandon. For balance, tracks #3 “Pale Green” and #10 “Body and Soul” are two ballads that alight to ground during their slower moments, essential for the coming down to calmer settings within the journey though the adventurous terrain.

Liner Notes

(Translated from Toshihiko Hoshino’s original Japanese liner notes.)

The first time I heard Akihiro Yoshimoto was in late November 2009, at the live jazz club Apple Jump which had just opened. The quartet was built from the Jun Furuya Trio, with Kunpei Nakabayashi on bass and Ryo Shibuya on drums, and I was really impressed by the performance. The tenor produced a rolling groove that had nicely thick tone stacked with short phrases. My ears were completely tuned into their fresh contemporary sound that was centered on their unique originals. Then, a giant foreigner who was sitting alone at a corner table joined the band, sitting in for one song. That was Aaron Choulai, the pianist who plays on this album. With just one song, I was knocked out by his brilliant playing and novel ideas that overturned the usual stereotypes. I can still vividly remember the excitement I felt that night, as I walked back to Ikebukuro station, like witnessing the prenatal stirrings of something new as I thought “What I just heard was unbelievable.”

I’ll briefly introduce Akihiro Yoshimoto. He was born in Kobe in 1980. In 2004, he entered Boston’s Berklee College of Music. After graduating from Berklee, he moved to Tokyo and started performing. In 2007, he was awarded the grand prize in the band category at the Yokohama Jazz Promenade Competition. In autumn 2009, he first played with Aaron as a member of the Australian-Japanese crossover band the Aaron Choulai Sextet at an event called Tokyo JAZZ 2009 - Australian Jazz Night. In spring 2010 he played with Italian trumpeter Max Ionata who came to Japan. In fall of that year, he played as a member of the Aaron Choulai Quintet on an Australian tour. In 2001 he performed as leader of a sextet at the third Summer Jazz Revolution event. In summer of that year, his other activities including touring with the band of mainstay bassist Isao Suzuki’s band OMA SOUND and earning the strong trust of players including those from his generation through to veteran players.

It’s undeniable that contemporary jazz has the image of being difficult to understand. The dark, edgy sound can sometimes give a cold impression. I also very much agree with the inclination to wanting to hear hot jazz that simply says “yeah!” The allure of Yoshimoto’s tenor sound is that he can play modern contemporary jazz to deep blues without any sense of conflict. He creates a natural resonance with listeners through his throaty tone and cutting-edge phrases. His tenor captivates everyone from staunch hard bop elders to discriminating contemporary jazz enthusiasts.

When it comes to expressing his personal sound, there is probably no one more inspiring to Akihiro Yoshimoto than Aaron Choulai. At the same time as he formed his quartet with Aaron, they also began performing together as a duo. He had become an indispensable musical partner. Aaron Choulai was born in Papua New Guinea in 1982. He won a number of awards in Australia and was regarded as one of the most promising young players. In New York, he performed with musicians including Clarence Penn and James Genus, and released the albums Place (2004) and RANU (2009) on the Sunnyside label. He actively performs in Japan, New York, Australia, and in places all over the world. With his excellent time sense, sensitive harmonies, beautiful tone, and comping that can sometimes even seem wicked, he’s a pianist worthy of being called a rare genius.

With Blending Tone as the album title, it contains the meaning that each individual sound is blended into a single musical piece. The opening “di di” symbolizes this. As the theme is played by a trio [of sax, bass, drums], the moment Aaron’s piano enters, the sound’s landscape changes completely. Indeed, you can call it the moment that captures where the individual sounds mix together and change into a singular band sound. On the dreamy ballad “Pale Green”, the intertwining of the tenor’s melody and Aaron’s comping is breathtaking. “How About This Cat?” is outstanding, as Aaron’s piano and Ishiwaka’s aggressive drums back the strong and continuous blowing of the tenor as the theme completely changes from mysterious to thrilling. More highlights to listen for include Sakazaki’s foundation of solid bass lines that support the band, and 19-year-old drumming prodigy Shun Ishiwaka, whose playing is a combination of both aggression and finesse.

The prenatal stirrings that I felt in November 2009 developed over a period of two and a half years and was delivered to me in the form of this album. This recording retains that sense of impact I received at the time and captures an even deeper combination together with Aaron. This is an album that will become an important piece in the history of contemporary jazz in Japan.

Toshihiko Hoshino 星野利彦 / Music Writer

Obi Notes

Young, fierce tenor saxophonist Akihiro Yoshimoto with his quartet releases his long awaited debut album Blending Tone!

Audio and Video

• “How About This Cat?” (track #4) — live at Kamome quartet version (ts/p/b/d) #1:

• “How About This Cat?” (track #4) — live at Sometime quartet version (ts/p/b/d) #2:

• “di di” (track #1) — live duo version (ts/b):

• “Boston Subway” (track #2) — live solo version (ss):

• “Pale Green” (track #3) — live duo version (ts/ts):

• “Pale Green” (track #3) — live trio version (ts/b/d):

• “Enpitsu Hiko” (track #5) — live trio version (ss/ts/b):

• Streaming version of Blending Tone (Bandcamp digital album)

• Excerpt from track #1: “di di”

The sound of Chichibu’s music fascinates with creative arrangements of harmonized horn lines, suspenseful rhythms, and multi-part musical sections. As the liner notes indicate, her songs shine with personality inspired by concepts and ideas that move her.

Three of the most striking songs feature Chichi’s large ensemble, a nine-member group with horn players plus guitar, piano, bass, and drums. This complex music develops through breakneck joyrides experienced as tales brimming with flourishes.

These nonets play on the thrilling and propulsive #1 “Crossing Reality”, the complex and dramatic #2 “The Sea - Seven Years Voyage -” (tinged with Chick Corea-ish fusion), and the deep and exploratory #5 “The Preconscious”.

The smaller combos show more of the poppy and splashy pianist side of Chichibu. Her trio of piano, bass, and drums plays on #3 “Kaeru”, some of the most playful music on the album, with fun vamps covered with catchy melodies with sprinkles of surprising notes and polymeters. On #7 “green and winds”, she pares the group down even further for similarly breezy sounds with an upbeat gallop.

In addition to nonet, duo, and trio formations, there are also songs for quintet and octet. #4 “Blackberry Winter” with a quintet is a soundtrack-like reflective piece with a beautiful flugelhorn sound, and #6 “dreams of the wind” features an octet for adventurous mystery infused with mild ambient textures.

The final track on the album, #8 “THE VENDING MACHINE - with DRINK music” is driven by a jamming septet delivering the poppiest hooks and beats on the album, perfectly matching its use as the theme music and video used by a vending machine company in her home region of Tohoku.

Liner Notes

(Translated from Eri Chichibu’s original Japanese liner notes.)

Hello. Thank you for getting my debut album Eri Chichibu’s Crossing Reality. Together with guests from New York (Remy Le Boeuf, Milena Casado), and the energetic Japanese musicians, engineer, and team, we poured our energies into making this album. I included a variety of arrangements of songs from the heart, for trios and large ensembles. I needed to put all of this on this one album.

The inspiration for several of the included songs comes from nature, psychology, and experiences. Upon a base of the acoustic sound, I tried to paint a little with an approach to sound design that is uniquely possible on recordings. I hope you enjoy traveling between universes of reality and fantasy while letting your imagination run wild.

With gratitude.

1.Crossing Reality

Was I awake or was I sleeping… It’s a song I wrote between the evening and the morning. Reality and fantasy, facts and dreams, memories and experience, chaos and release… It’s a scene where things that seem like opposites swirl around in the mind and become reality within each individual… you know?

2.The Sea - Seven Years Voyage -

In 2011, I experienced the Great East Japan Earthquake. It was horribly shocking. After that, I reached a turning point and my life changed 180 degrees to start a career in music. From this experience, I began to feel strongly that one never knows what will happen in life, and in 2018 I decided to write a song about life’s voyage. Since writing this song I’ve continued to have many encounters and experiences. I wonder what else the future holds…

3.Kaeru 2022

In the middle of a forest, there is a small pond with frogs, squirrels, and little creatures hopping around it playfully. Birds are flying, flowers are blooming, and leaves are swaying… I picture that sort of peaceful waterside setting.

4.Blackberry Winter (feat. Milena Casado)

Days of warm weather, then suddenly it’s cold, then it becomes warm again… This is a song I wrote while breathing in the air of nature and the city, as the season changed from winter to spring in Boston.

5.The Preconscious

Based on Freud’s psychoanalysis, the constructions of human consciousness can be described as an iceberg floating in the ocean. Within the large iceberg, the conscious mind resembles land above the water, while the vast subconscious is hidden beneath it. Between them just around the surface level seems to be the range of the preconscious, which normally doesn’t rise to consciousness but can be brought to memory and become conscious with or without some effort. Hmm… Suddenly remembering something lightly floating on the ocean’s surface, strong emotions may somehow well up from the subconscious… Perhaps?

6.dreams of the wind (feat. Remy Le Boeuf)

There was a day in Boston when the sky was tinted with orange, pink, and purple, and a light wind was blowing. Does the wind also admire the beauty of the sky? Does the wind dream? Was the wind going to meet someone? What if I were the wind? What if you were?

7.green and winds

I was going down the roads of my hometown in Tohoku. As always, it was a serene setting that spread out before me with green and winds. I just felt like going out and having fun.

8.THE VENDING MACHINE - with DRINK music

Japanese vending machines… cold drinks, hot drinks, put a coin in and it immediately comes out… it’s so great! (And it’s fun to press a button and have a can come falling down.) Today as well, I want to take a breath, take a break, and spend a great day.

(Music for Sun Vending Tohoku commercial)

Audio and Video

• Promotional video for this album:

• Audio of #1 “Crossing Reality”:

• Video of #1 “Crossing Reality” (non-album version):

• Live video of #2 “The Sea - Seven Years Voyage -” (non-album version):

• Live video of #3 “Kaeru” (non-album version):

• Live video of #6 “dreams of the wind” (non-album version):

• Sun Vending Tohoku music video for #8 “with DRINK music”:

• Excerpt from track #2: “The Sea -Seven Years Voyage-”

As foreshadowed by the album’s opening with a stage-setting deep bass solo, this album is quietly tenacious, and the music initially settles in subtly but quickly sinks its hooks in. The compositional variation, the exciting instrumental solos and tradeoffs, and some brief moments of dual improvisation and free chaos, all contribute to the high repeatability of this package, tempting you back to play it again.

Through fifty minutes and seven tracks on II, the modern swing rhythms, melodic lines, and structural elements briefly give hints of 1950s and 60s Blue Note sounds, with its dynamically-charged drum palettes and bass grounding, cutting-edge piano framing, and captivating horn lines, recalling the hard bop albums from Lee Morgan, Kenny Dorham, and other jazz messengers.

As a trombone leader’s debut album, it’s probably no surprise that the influence of the great jazz trombonist J. J. Johnson is also evident, particularly on Johnson’s beautiful tune “Lament”, a pensive ballad played with genuine feeling by Haruta and the quintet. This ballad, along with Strayhorn’s “Day Dream”, provides lovely slower moments that are set against the other higher-energy tracks. These five tracks are invigorating and memorable, with a hard bop swinger, a cheerfully funky groover, a mysteriously see-sawing tune, a punchy uptempo ride, and a wild boiler. Through it all, each musician gets ample space to improvise and show their stuff.

Of course, as the group leader, Haruta is featured, as is her solid composition “1965” which opens the album (saxophonist Akihiro Yoshimoto also contributes three excellent originals). But Haruta’s spotlight is not at the expense of sidelining the other amazing players in the quintet. Mayuko Kamakura on piano, Yoshimoto on sax, Takumi Awaya on bass, and Shun Ishikawa on drums are given plenty of time to shine as well. This all pays off with a front-to-back jazz album that fits together wonderfully with satisfying dynamics.

As for the potentially confusing title of II, this may be a bit of a head-scratcher for a debut album. If this stands for “2” in Roman numerals, it would be an unexpected title for a first release. Or, is this a reference to the second-decade milestone mentioned in the liner notes? Could II signify something else, maybe not a numeral meaning at all? An uppercased romaji translation of the Japanese word ii (いい) meaning good, all right, and such? Or, internet slang for “I’m Impressed”? Or maybe, when represented as extended index and middle fingers counting “two”, indicating the peace sign often seen in selfies and group photos? Or maybe it’s an inside joke, or someone’s favorite number. Maybe we’re not meant to know, and that’s all right. Either way, I’m definitely impressed.

Liner Notes

(Translated from the original Japanese liner notes written by Kouichi Nishimatsu, executive producer.)

Thoughts on II by Nanami Haruta.

I first met Nanami Haruta on November 20, 2020, at Shinjuku Pit Inn when she was a guest member in the horn section for Yoshiaki Masuo (増尾好秋) MAGATAMA “Cheer for Art! Stage Setup” photography shoot.

My first impression was of someone cute who didn’t look like a real trombone player. But when I heard her playing, it was truly powerful, a delicate and wonderful performance. Because I was busy with work on that day, I wasn’t able to speak to her for very long, but ended up going to her concerts several times after that.

Around that time, Yoshiaki Masuo’s individual project “ONE WORD” was selected for the same “Cheer for Art!”, and we spent days at my studio recording and mixing. Originally, the company’s studio was used exclusively for English healing teaching materials, radio commercial narration, and the like. However, this project led me to start recording music as well.

Which led me to ask Nanami, “Why don’t you make an album?” At first, she didn’t seem interested, but at some later performance Nanami said to me “Well, I think I’d like to make an album!” Nanami was only nineteen years old at the time, and I had always wanted to try producing an album from start to finish. So when she asked me “Can I leave everything up to you?”, I said “Yes”, and that was how the project started.

And, Yoshiaki Masuo. It goes without saying that Masuo is a world-class jazz guitarist. He even owns a studio in New York and has been involved in producing jazz music for twenty years. Having listened to Masuo’s guitar countless times and assisting him with performance activities in Japan, I thought I would love to play a part in his music production as well. I asked him to help, but Masuo’s stay in Japan was short and he was busy with live events at the time, so he had to firmly decline…at first. But after repeated requests, he agreed to help. And this was the moment that this project took on even more depth and substance.

First of all, the album concept. It was to be “The milestone of 20 years of age, with gratitude to the mentors who supported me in my hometown of Sapporo.” We started out focusing on slow ballad standards. After several meetings, we decided to focus on original songs. [For her ballad-centered album, see For My Lady from 2023.] Nanami Haruta’s “1965” became the first song on the album, and Akihiro Yoshimoto (tenor sax) graciously supplied three songs.

Next, the members. Nanami assembled some of the best young players in the world of young jazz today: Akihiro Yoshimoto (tenor sax), Mayuko Katakura (piano), Takumi Awaya (bass), and Shun Ishiwaka (drums). And in search of the best sound quality, we visited several Tokyo recording studios equipped with pianos. In the end, through introductions from Masami (Sam) Toyoshima (豊島政美), who designed the Beatles’ famous Abbey Road Studios and Victor Studios, we ended up recording at Victor’s Aoyama Studio.

On the day of the recording, November 29, 2021, we completed seven songs in a single day under the supervision of New York-trained Yoshiaki Masuo. Mixing at the company studio would start the following week. We spent many full days carefully mixing each song over three months. Mastering was completed using an analog open tape recorder.

This album was brought about through Nanami Haruta’s gathering of the best musicians, the best music, and the best creators, resulting in an amazing product. It’s not just for listening in one place, and whether on mobile devices, audio systems, or in different environments, you are sure to discover something new each time you listen. She is now twenty-one years old, as it took over a year of careful work to complete this album. Please, thoroughly enjoy Nanami Haruta’s first album II.

Koiuichi Nishimatsu (Music Stylist) September 23, 2022

Audio and Video

• Promotional video for this album:

• Live trio version of “Lament”, track #5 on this album:

• Excerpt from track #1: “1965”

The tracks are solidly modern jazz tunes, with sizzling improvisation from Yoshimoto and pianist Choulai melodically laying out fiery, stimulating lines. There are a few moments of avant-garde exploration, where Sugawa’s bowed bass is used extremely effectively.

A brooding atmosphere arises on #4 “Nostalgic Farm” and especially #7 “Ice Castle”, where a museum-like calm settles, foreboding and somewhat Nordic with its dark, chilling sound. There’s even a bit of goofy humor on two songs (#2 “The Mystery of Onion Rings” and #6 “Reminiscing About Banana Beer”), where Monkish exuberance and swing add a loose, jolly balance to the album.

The two longest tracks, #5 “Sabaku No Akari” and #8 “Water Drops”, build patiently. These two compositions portray Yoshimoto’s thoughtful and edgy songwriting strength, masterfully refined in balancing honed compositions with space for group dynamics and spontaneity.

These tracks and #3 “Possom” also summon a sense of Wayne Shorter’s modern quartet. This is exciting jazz with unextinguishable energy powered locomotively by drummer Ishiwaka and bassist Sugawa. All throughout, Yoshimoto’s liquid tenor swings over the chords like a daredevil trapeze artist, flowing and moving colorfully in impressive patterns.

Liner Notes

(Translated from the original Japanese liner notes written by Toshihiko Hoshino, music writer.)

Often, when seeing the children of family members after a long time, you can be surprised at how much they’ve grown. I was struck by a similar sensation when I heard this album. This was in spite of the fact that I went to almost all of this group’s live shows in Tokyo and should have recognized their growth firsthand.

The debut release Blending Tone from the Akihiro Yoshimoto Quartet pairs the ideal combination of allies Akihiro Yoshimoto and Aaron Choulai with the addition of the youthful rhythm section of Takashi Sugawa and Shun Ishiwaka. This was an epoch-making album from 2012.

A band grows by keeping its members fixed and regularly performing together. When I listened to Blending Tone and Moving Color in succession, a clear evolution in the band’s sound became apparent.

There are two dimensions to this evolution: maturity and transformation. Maturity refers firstly to the greatness of the Yoshimoto and Choulai combination. This is exactly what the phrase “Aun breathing” (two people performing together in sync and in harmony) is all about. In particular, hats off to Choulai, who perfectly understands Yoshimoto’s musicality and adds his own unique musical personality to it. There are probably not many pianists with such chord stacking, striking, timing, and pace that can be heard just from their backing accompaniment.

The beautiful interaction between tenor sax and piano on the ballad “Nostalgic Farm” is breathtaking. On “The Mystery of Onion Rings”, while the style is contemporary, traditional jazz roots are also filled with humorous playing through their personally-stamped homage to good old-fashioned jazz. For encores, this band often plays standards like ballads and bebop tunes, and being able to mix cutting-edge originals with traditional standards without any sense of unease is an example of the depth of their understanding.

While the previous release Blending Tone was aiming towards a band sound, it’s undeniable that Yoshimoto’s and Choulai’s collaboration played a large role at that time. Yet with each live performance by the band, the rhythm section’s involvement grew larger and the band’s individuality became established. This transformation is one of the key successes of this album.

It would not be improper to say that Shun Ishiwaka has become the number one young player today. Not only in this quartet, but Ishikawa and Choulai have also involved each other in their own groups, maintaining an unshakably trusting relationship. Highlights of their live performances include the moments when Ishiwaka and Choulai react through eye contact and engage aggressively with Yoshimoto’s tenor.

Check out Ishiwaka’s drumming in “Sabaku No Akari” behind Choulai’s piano solo, when a switch is suddenly flipped and the drums start pounding away. Just at the point behind the piano solo where Ishikawa may have gone too far to the edge of collapse, Choulai responds and starts to play furiously. Their momentum continues as the two fiercely and mercilessly challenge Yoshimoto’s tenor, a highlight of the middle portion of the album.

In December 2012, bassist Takuya Sakazaki left the group and Takashi Sugawa joined as a new member. Sugawa has been a long-standing member of the Terumasa Hino group and can be called the number one young bassist. He’s also an old friend of Yoshimoto and Choulai. While Sakazaki’s bass was of the unsung hero type, Sugawa’s bass is a type that aggressively connects with the front. The addition of Sugawa also resulted in a clear transformation of the band’s sound, such as the bowed melody on “Ice Castle” and the avant-garde solo on “Reminiscing About Banana Beer”.

The culmination of this evolution surely must be the last number, “Water Drops”. The mysterious melody is covered in darkness, led by a striking bass phrase. Yoshimoto’s tenor starts quietly, uses bold low-note phrases effectively, and ascends towards the climax. Perfectly closing in on this tenor, Choulai’s piano comping shape-shifts like a kaleidoscope, adding an amazing sense of color. Ishiwaka’s drums respond to the soloist’s phrases instantly and inject explosive energy.

Yoshimoto’s excellent music and leadership together with the strong individuality of the members has resulted in a band sound that has come to fruition. At over eight minutes, and the longest performance on the album, this dense world of sound doesn’t reveal any flaws and shines brightly on this album.

The shape of Akihiro Yoshimoto Quartet, which has achieved remarkable growth, was recorded in February 2014. As they continue to evolve day by day, we look forward to the sounds they express when they next appear before us.

Toshihiko Hoshino 星野利彦 / Music Writer

Audio and Video

• The Akihiro Quartet playing live in 2012:

• Excerpt from track #5: “Sabaku No Akari”

Starting with the title track “Haru No Kaze”, the sense of an overture is felt through the light Japanese touches of a sweet melody which turns into the whirling winds of a solid jazz piano trio locking into a tune together. The next track, “Last Tango In Paris”, introduces a mood of evocative drama and intrigue with a relaxed beat.

The album’s nine songs feature classic jazz standards, songs by Bills Evans and Thelonious Monk, two original compositions, and a charming reconstruction of “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” which swings gracefully. Ikuta even puts her well-rounded solo piano on display with a confident rendition of “Everything Happens To Me”, showcasing her dedication to the tradition of great jazz pianists.

Audio and Video

• The Sachiko Ikuta Trio performing “Haru no Kaze”:

• Excerpt from track #1: “春の風 (Spring Breeze)”

This album consists of well-written original compositions with a few covers thrown in (Freddie Hubbard, Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones). Overall, this is an excellent debut with a variety of moods, tempos, and exciting solos showcasing some premium J Jazz from the current crop of musicians.

Audio and Video

• Live performance of track #4 “Round Table”:

• Excerpt from track #1: “SPEED HARASSMENT”