Aki Takase
| Aki Takase | |
|---|---|
 Aki Takase in June 2008 | |
| Background information | |
| Born |
January 26, 1948 Osaka, Japan |
| Origin | Tokyo, Japan |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, composer |
| Instruments | Piano |
| Years active | 1978–present |
| Associated acts | Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra |
| Website | www.aki-takase.de |
Aki Takase (高瀬 アキ) (born January 26, 1948) is a Japanese jazz pianist and composer.
Biography
Takase was born in Osaka. Raised in Tokyo, Takase studied music at Toho Gakuen School of Music.[1] Starting in 1978, she performed and recorded in the US.[1] Her collaborators included with Lester Bowie, David Liebman, and John Zorn. Since 1981, she performed repeatedly at the Berlin Jazz Festival in Germany.
For many years, she has been working with her husband[2] Alexander von Schlippenbach, as well as with Eugene Chadbourne, Han Bennink, Evan Parker, Paul Lovens, Fred Frith and others, and in duets with Maria João, David Murray and Rudi Mahall.
In various projects, Takase has dealt with famous jazz musicians: Duke Ellington (1990), Thelonious Monk (1994), Eric Dolphy (1998), W.C. Handy (2002), Fats Waller (2004), and Ornette Coleman (2006).
In 2002, Takase recorded with writer Yoko Tawada. Takase had read some of Tawada's poems, and, as the writer reported, she "started composing melodies and settings for my texts. When we got together, I read my poems in the same way that I always read them out loud. Aki played, listened carefully to the poems, and started improvising."[3] In later performances, Takase used more unconventional instruments when accompanying Tawada.[3]
Since 1987, Takase has lived in Berlin.
Discography
An asterisk (*) after the year indicates that it is the year of release.
As leader/co-leader
| Year recorded | Title | Label | Personnel/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Aki | King | Trio, with Nobuyoshi Ino (electric bass, cello), Takuji Kusumoto (drums, percussion) |
| 1981* | Minerva's Owl | Quartet, with Dave Liebman (tenor sax, soprano sax), Nobuyoshi Ino (bass), Motohiko Hino (drums) | |
| 1981 | Esprit | One track solo piano; most tracks duo, with Yoshio Ikeda (bass) | |
| 1981 | Song for Hope | Enja | Trio, with Nobuyoshi Ino (bass), Takeo Moriyama (drums); in concert |
| 1982 | ABC | East Wind | With Cecil McBee (bass), Bob Moses (drums), Sheila Jordan (vocals) |
| 1982 | Perdido | Enja | Solo piano and koto; in concert |
| 1985 | Teni Muho | Duo, with Nobuyoshi Ino (bass, percussion) | |
| 1987 | Looking for Love | Enja | Duo, with Maria João (vocals); in concert |
| 1990 | Shima Shoka | Enja | Solo piano |
| 1990 | Gunther Klatt & Aki Takase Play Ballads of Duke Ellington | Tutu | Duo, with Gunther Klatt (tenor sax) |
| 1991 | Blue Monk | Enja | Duo, with David Murray (tenor saxophone, bass clarinet) |
| 1992 | Close Up of Japan | Enja | With Nobuyoshi Ino (bass), Toki String Quartet |
| 1993 | Clapping Music | Enja | Trio, with Reggie Workman (bass), Sunny Murray (drums) |
| 1993–94 | Piano Duets: Live in Berlin 93–94 | FMP | Duo, with Alexander von Schlippenbach (piano) |
| 1994 | Oriental Express | Enja | Septet, with Hiroaki Katayama (baritone sax, tenor sax), Eiithi Hayashi (alto sax, soprano sax), Issei Igarashi (trumpet), Hiroshi Itaya (trombone), Nobuyoshi Ino (bass), Shota Koyama (drums) |
| 1997 | Duet for Eric Dolphy | Enja | Duo, with Rudi Mahall (bass clarinet, contrabass clarinet) |
| 1997 | Tarantella | Psi | Quintet, with Aleks Kolkowski (violin), Maurice Horsthuis (viola), Tristan Honsinger (cello), Nobuyoshi Ino (bass); released 2006 |
| 1997 | Valencia | Duo, with David Murray (tenor saxophone, bass clarinet); in concert | |
| 2001 | Le Cahier du Bal | Leo | Solo piano |
| 2001 | St Louis Blues | Enja | With Nils Wogram (trombone), Fred Frith (guitar), Rudi Mahall (bass clarinet), Paul Lovens (percussion) |
| 2001 | Nine Fragments | Leo | As DEMPA; trio, with Aleksander Kolkowski (violin, turntables, electronics), Tony Buck (drums, electronics) |
| 2002* | Diagonal | Duo, with Yoko Tawada (vocals) | |
| 2002 | News from Berlin | Victo | Duo, with Konrad Bauer (trombone) |
| 2003 | The Dessert | Leo | Duo, with Rudi Mahall (bass clarinet, contrabass clarinet) |
| 2003 | Plays Fats Waller | Enja | With Thomas Heberer (trumpet), Nils Wogram (trombone), Rudi Mahall (bass clarinet), Eugene Chadbourne (guitar, banjo, vocals), Paul Lovens (percussion) |
| 2004 | Plays Fats Waller in Berlin | jazzwerkstatt | With Thomas Heberer (trumpet), Rudi Mahall (bass clarinet), Eugene Chadbourne (guitar, banjo, vocals), Paul Lovens (percussion); in concert |
| 2004 | Procreation | Enja | Quintet, with Walter Gauchel (tenor sax, flute), Rudi Mahall (bass clarinet), Johannes Fink (bass), Heinrich Köbberling (drums) |
| 2004 | Lok 03 | Leo | With Alexander von Schlippenbach (piano), DJ Illvibe (samples, turntables) |
| 2004 | Spring in Bangkok | Intakt | Duo, with Lauren Newton (vocals) |
| 2006 | Ornette Coleman Anthology | Intakt | Duo, with Silke Eberhard (alto sax, clarinet, bass clarinet) |
| 2007* | Tenimuhou | Duo, with Nobuyoshi Ino (bass, percussion) | |
| 2007 | Something Sweet, Something Tender | Enja | Solo piano |
| 2007 | Beauty Is the Thing | Doubtmusic | As Kanon; trio, with Axel Dörner (trumpet), Kazuhisa Ushihashi (guitar) |
| 2008 | Live at Willisau Jazz Festival | jazzwerkstatt | Quintet, with Tobias Delius (tenor sax, clarinet), Rudi Mahall (bass clarinet), Johannes Fink (bass), Heinrich Köbberling (drums); in concert |
| 2008 | Iron Wedding – Piano Duets | Intakt | Duo, with Alexander von Schlippenbach (piano) |
| 2008 | Evergreen | Intakt | With Rudi Mahall (bass clarinet) |
| 2008 | A Week Went By | Psi | Some tracks solo piano; one track duo, with John Tchicai (alto sax); some tracks trio, with John Edwards (double bass) and Tony Levin (drums); in concert |
| 2009 | Yokohama | Intakt | With Louis Sclavis (clarinet, bass clarinet, soprano saxophone) |
| 2009 | Rolled Up | jazzwerkstatt | As Tama; trio, with Jan Roder (bass), Oliver Steidle (drums) |
| 2011 | Two for Two | Intakt | Duo, with Han Bennink (drums) |
| 2011 | New Blues | Enja | Most tracks quintet, with Rudi Mahall (bass clarinet), Nils Wogram (trombone), Eugene Chadbourne (guitar, banjo, vocals), Paul Lovens (drums); one track with Alexander von Schlippenbach (trumpet) added |
| 2012 | My Ellington | Intakt | Solo piano |
| 2012 | Flying Soul | Intakt | Quartet, with Louis Sclavis (clarinet, bass clarinet), Dominique Pifarély (violin), Vincent Courtois (cello) |
| 2014 | So Long, Eric!: Homage to Eric Dolphy | Intakt | With Tobias Delius (tenor sax), Henrik Walsdorff (alto sax), Alex Dörner (trumpet), Nils Wogram (trombone), Rudi Mahall (bass clarinet, clarinet), Alexander von Schlippenbach (piano), Karl Berger (vibraphone), Wilbert de Joode and Antonio Borghini (bass), Han Bennink and Heinrich Köbberling (drums) |
| 2014 | Hotel Zauberberg | Intakt | Duo, with Ayumi Paul (violin) |
As sidewoman
| Year recorded | Leader | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra, Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra | Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra | ECM |
| 1993 | Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra, Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra | The Morlocks and Other Pieces | FMP |
| 1996 | Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra, Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra | Live in Japan '96 | DIW |
| 1990 | João, MariaMaria João | Alice | Enja |
| 2007* | Various, Various | Free Zone Appleby 2006 | Psi |
| 2007* | Various, Various | Ich hebe meine Augen in die Welt | |
| 2007 | Johansson, Sven-ÅkeSven-Åke Johansson | Für Paul Klee | jazzwerkstatt |
Awards
- The German Record Critics' Award 2001, 2004, 2006. In total she received the awards seven times.
- Jazz Award of the German public broadcasting company SWR 2002[7]
References
- 1 2 Ankeny, Jason "Artist Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved September 18, 2013.
- ↑ Aki Takase discography at Discogs
- 1 2 Brandt, Bettina (January/February, 2006) "An Interview with Yoko Tawada". World Literature Today (80:1) pp. 43-45.
- ↑ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings. Penguin. pp. 1372–1373. ISBN 978-0-141-03401-0.
- ↑ "Intakt Records – Artists: Aki Takase, Piano, Composition". Intakt Records. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
- ↑ "Aki Takase". discogs.com. Retrieved 27 June 2015.
- ↑ SWR - Südwestrundfunk
External links
- Official site (in German, English and Japanese)
- Aki Takase interview at allaboutjazz.com
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