Since Hiromis debut album Another Mind (2003), the world-renowned pianists sound has evolved with every release, erasing the lines between jazz and classical, composition and improvisation. Now she changes tack again with her heaviest, funkiest album yet: Sonicwonderland.Hiromi describes the hard-hitting nine-song set as a new journey of adventure, one that began in her imagination. As motifs, phrases, and timbres blossomed in her mind, she began thinking about players who could help her realize this specific sound. Making a record is like making a movie, and Im the director looking for the perfect actor for each role...
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Since Hiromis debut album Another Mind (2003), the world-renowned pianists sound has evolved with every release, erasing the lines between jazz and classical, composition and improvisation. Now she changes tack again with her heaviest, funkiest album yet: Sonicwonderland.Hiromi describes the hard-hitting nine-song set as a new journey of adventure, one that began in her imagination. As motifs, phrases, and timbres blossomed in her mind, she began thinking about players who could help her realize this specific sound. Making a record is like making a movie, and Im the director looking for the perfect actor for each role. For her new quartet, Hiromis Sonicwonder, she cast bassist Hadrien Feraud, drummer Gene Coye, and trumpet player Adam OFerrill.The genesis of Sonicwonder begins in 2016, when Feraud subbed for bassist Anthony Jackson at some gigs with Hiromis then-current trio. When I was playing with Hadrien in that setting, I started to feel like I wanted to write some music just for him, she recalls. That was the first thing that made me want to go in this direction, and what made me want it to form this band.Born in Hamamatsu, Japan, Hiromi began studying piano when she was six years old. When she was 17, Chick Corea invited her to play with him at a Tokyo concert. She attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, where she was mentored by jazz legend Ahmad Jamal. A prolific artist, Sonicwonderland is Hiromis twelfth studio full-length and second album of 2023; earlier this year she recorded the soundtrack to Blue Giant, an animated feature film based on the popular manga.Hiromi is a perennial favorite on DownBeats Annual Critics and Readers Poll, and has performed at the worlds finest jazz festivals, including Montreux, Umbria, North Sea, Newport, and Monterey. Her work has been celebrated by media including the New York Times, NPR and NPR Music, and the Washington Post, and she was a featured performer at the Tokyo Olympics opening ceremony in 2021.
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