The pianist’s November 2020 trip to Dubai was her first overseas tour since the pandemic began. Although there were new hurdles like testing, quarantine, cancelations, and a great deal of uncertainty involved, it was a rewarding experience for the pianist, and she found an even deeper appreciation for traveling and sharing music with people around the world. With these impressions, Yamano created this suite in a burst of inspiration - including her instinctive decision to arrange the music for two pianos. Pianist Yukari Inoue, a popular, skilled, and in-demand pianist in the Tokyo jazz scene, was a natural choice for a musical partner on this album. Fortunately, the album was able to be recorded and produced in short order, and Yamano brought copies of the CD along with her on her second trip to Dubai in December 2021.

The album’s five tracks add up to a brisk 23 minutes and relay a narrative with the descriptive song titles “Hope”, “Reality”, “Run”, “Anxiety”, and “Victory”. The opening track sets up a bright prologue to adventure, and the next two shorter tracks capture the suite’s energy with the frolic and whimsey of a chase scene… or perhaps the fun of hurriedly preparing for travel and facing the realities of packing, scheduling, and racing to catch departures. Next, “Anxiety” delivers a slower, suspenseful atmosphere, and the closing track “Victory” returns to uptempo form with a springy rhythm making for toe-tapping positivity. Like other examples of Yamano’s music, the jazz feeling is permeated with a catchy lightness and shine often found in some J-pop styles.

I was finally able to get to Dubai. The exotic wind after a long absence, the beautiful city of Dubai… I was very happy to be welcomed by the people there.

November 2020 was my first overseas tour since Corona. I was worried, I had to take a PCR test, and it was very different from travel before Corona, but it was a very good experience. After all, I like traveling, I like music, and it’s great to be able to live and be together in this way. I’m glad I went. I created a song from my impressions. I made everything intuitively, and I don’t know why I decided on two pianos (laughs).

Audio and Video

• Yukako Yamano and Yukari Inoue playing piano duet live in 2019:

• Audio for “Hope”, the first track on this album:

• Excerpt from track #5: “Victory”

The pink of Sakura cherry blossoms fits perfectly with her “color of Japan” series of albums, complementing the purple of Murasaki (2010) and fresh green of Moegi (2016), her other albums on her Silver Fingers label. On Sakura, Inoue is alone at the piano, performing songs which suit her personal piano style with influences from standard jazz to pop and classical.

With fifteen songs at about 70 minutes, Inoue embraces variety for her solo performance and makes use of the full, deep sound of the special Bösendorfer piano (coincidentally, the same piano used on Seiji Endo’s Sakura Meditation, another brilliant solo piano album from Japan.)

Starting with the dramatic opening theme on “Hana”, the album unfolds with sounds subtly invoking Japanese music with a bluesy tint. Hana, meaning flower, supplements the album title and theme nicely, along with “Honeysuckle Rose” played in spirited stride piano, Tchaikovsky’s “Waltz of the Flowers”, the jazz ballad “Spring is Here”, and even the French chanson “Le Temps des Cerises (The Time of Cherries)” making nods to the cherry blossoms of the title.

Along with standard jazz tunes including “I Got Rhythm”, “La Fiesta”, and “Someday My Prince Will Come”, Inoue also performs her own compositions and well-known classical piano pieces, interpreting each song freely and adding personal touches by switching between jazz, classical, latin, and pop. Her flair for dramatic control is particularly lovely on Jimi Hendrix’s soulful ballad “Little Wing” as well as her “Sakura Waltz”, which closes the album in grand style.

Audio and Video

• Yukari Inoue Trio performing “Triste”:

• Excerpt from track #13: “いつか王子様が (Someday My Prince Will Come)”