Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Ayako Shirasaki was born on September 16, 1969 in Tokyo, Japan and started classical piano lessons at age five, and was intrigued by her father’s professional trombone-playing. By age twelve she began her professional career playing gigs at the “J” jazz club in Tokyo.

After attending the Tokyo Metropolitan High School for Arts, Shirasaki majored in classical music at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music and gave concerts as a classical pianist for several years after graduating before returning to play jazz.

Her 1997 move to New York City saw her pursuing a master’s degree at the Manhattan School of Music, studying with pianist Kenny Barron. Landing in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn, Ayako operates the Brooklyn location of the Sakura Music School, which specializes in teaching music to small children with an emphasis on those of Japanese ancestry.

Performing regularly in the New York area, she tours internationally, in addition to recording. Her debut trio album Existence brought drummer Lewis Nash and bassist Marco Panascia together in 2003. She has since recorded four addition albums, has been featured on Marian McPartland’s National Public Radio show Piano Jazz, and was a finalist in the Mary Lou Williams Women In Jazz Piano Competition in 2005 and 2006 and the Great American Jazz Piano Competition in 2004, 2005 and 2006. Pianist and educator Ayako Shirasaki continues to perform, tour, record, and teach.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

John Adriano Acea was born September 11, 1917 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Adriano Acea of Cuba and Leona Acea of Virginia. One of six children, he was stricken with rheumatic fever and wasn’t expected to live during his first decade of life.

During the 1930s, Acea started out as a trumpeter and saxophonist and after his military service in the Army in 1946, he switched to playing the piano. He later became a session musician with jazz veterans Eddie Lockjaw Davis, Cootie Williams, Dizzy Gillespie, Illinois Jacquet, Dinah Washington, James Moody, Zoot Sims, and Roy Haynes. Between 1951 to 1962 he would record with Grant Green, Dodo Greene, Joe Newman, Leo Parker, Don Wilkerson, and Jesse Powell.

Acea is listed as co-composer of Nice ‘N’ Greasy that was the closing track to Lou Donaldson’s 1962 album, The Natural Soul. He is also credited as a composer on recordings by Gillespie, Jacquet, and Moody.

Pianist Adriano Acea, known as Johnny Acea, passed away on July 25, 1963.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Harry Percy South was born on September 7, 1929 in Fulham, London, England. Coming into prominence in the 1950s, he subsequently performed with Joe Harriott, Dizzy Reece, Tony Crombie, and Tubby Hayes. In 1954, he was in the Tony Crombie Orchestra, together with Dizzy Reece, Les Condon, Joe Temperley, Sammy Walker, Lennie Dawes, and Ashley Kozak.

After returning from a nine-month stint in Calcutta, India, with the Ashley Kozak Quartet, he spent four years with the Dick Morrissey Quartet, where he both wrote and arranged material for their subsequent four albums.

Forming his own jazz big band in 1966, featuring UK musicians Hayes, Dick Morrissey, Phil Seamen, Keith Christie, Ronnie Scott, and Ian Carr, and recorded an album for Mercury Records. In the mid-1960s, he began working with British rhythm & blues singer and organist Georgie Fame, with whom he recorded the album Sound Venture. At that time he was also composing and arranging for Humphrey Lyttelton, Buddy Rich, Sarah Vaughan, and Jimmy Witherspoon.

Working for a time as the musical director to Annie Ross, Harry later branched out into session work, writing themes for television and music libraries, and having written the scores for the Pete Walker films, he is also credited with the arrangements for Emerson, Lake & Palmer, again arranged for Annie Ross and Georgie Fame in collaboration on what was to be Hoagy Carmichael’s last recording, In Hoagland.

Pianist, composer, and arranger Harry South, who was honored with the CD Portraits ~ The Music of Harry South released by the National Youth Jazz Orchestra, passed away on March 12, 1990 in Lambeth, London at age 60.

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Requisites

Dancing In The Dark ~ The Fred Hersch Trio | By Eddie Carter

I recently reacquainted myself with one of the most accomplished pianists in jazz.  Fred Hersch has been playing since he was four, composing music since he was eight, and recorded over seventy original tunes. Fred’s worked with many great musicians and vocalists, performed as a classical soloist with orchestras and in chamber settings plus led his own groups. He’s also appeared at the Jazz Standard and Village Vanguard, has an extensive discography, and has been nominated for several Grammy Awards including one for the album I’m discussing this morning.

I first heard this record at the 1994 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. It was one of the most auditioned audiophile LP’s heard on the turntables of various high-end manufacturers. Dancing In The Dark (Chesky Records JR 90) is a stellar album by The Fred Hersch Trio that I’m really happy to have in my library. Joining the pianist are Drew Gress on bass and Tom Rainey on drums. My copy used in this report is the 1993 US Stereo Audiophile pressing.

Side One starts with Dancing In The Dark, written by Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz. The song’s first appearance was in the 1931 musical revue, The Band Wagon. It was later reprised in the 1953 film version. Fred displays a delicate touch on the trio’s graceful melody, then goes right to the heart with a strong statement expressing happiness enhanced by Drew and Tom’s supportive energy into a tender fade. I Fall In Love Too Easily is a 1944 song by Jule Styne and Sammy Cahn first heard in the film Anchors Aweigh a year later. The threesome eases into a tranquil opening chorus. Gress starts with a slow, seductive groove of beguiling warmth, then Hersch gradually builds gentle cascades into a passionately tender performance.

Secret Love by Sammy Fain and Paul Francis Webster was first recorded in 1953 by Doris Day who also sang it in the musical film, Calamity Jane. The group takes this tune for a midtempo spin and each member gives an entertaining interpretation. The first side concludes with If I Should Lose You, composed in 1935 by Ralph Rainger and Leo Robin. This song comes from the 1936 film, Rose of The Rancho. Hersch makes this a solo showcase, beautifully characterizing the melody into an intimate dialogue that casts a spell of sensual beauty ahead of an exquisite ending.

Side Two starts with a spirited rendition of the 1948 Cole Porter composition, So In Love, first heard in the Broadway musical, Kiss Me, Kate. The mood is jubilant from the start of the trio’s theme treatment, and Fred swings into an enthusiastic workout before the slow-tempo out-chorus. For All We Know is a song composed in 1934 by J. Fred Coots and Sam M. Lewis that’s very popular among jazz and pop vocalists. Hersch lovingly performs the first chorus solo, then Gress and Rainey add their sinuous support to the remainder of the melody. Fred’s infectiously grooving interpretation showcases the pianist’s dazzling dexterity.

My Funny Valentine by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart is one of the most beautiful songs ever written.  It premiered in the 1937 Broadway musical, Babes In Arms. The trio paints on a subtle palette for the nostalgically tender theme.  Fred’s lead solo is thoughtfully elegant and Drew crafts a deliciously inviting reading preceding the pianist’s reprise and soft summation. Dancing In The Dark was produced by David Chesky and Fred Hersch.

The album was recorded by Bob Katz, engineered by David Merrill, Jeremy Kipnis, and Peter Cho. It was mastered at Record Technology Incorporated and pressed on premium 180-gram audiophile vinyl. It’s a great demonstration record for your audio system with crystal-clear highs, a sharp midrange, and deep bass for a stunning soundstage.  If you’re a fan of piano jazz and enjoy the standards, I invite you to go Dancing In The Dark with The Fred Hersch Trio. Your ears will be rewarded with an extremely enjoyable album that’s just right for a romantic evening with that special someone!

~ Dancing In The Dark, For All We Know, I Fall In Love Too Easily, If I Should Lose You, My Funny Valentine – Source: JazzStandards.com

~ Fred Hersch, Secret Love (Columbia 40108), So In Love – Source: Wikipedia.org

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The Quarantined Jazz Voyager

The Quarantined Jazz Voyager is continuing to practice social distancing and as my personal quarantine continues, I’m selecting one of my favorite albums, Speak Like A Child by Herbie Hancock.

This is the sixth album by pianist Herbie Hancock, recorded and released by Blue Note Records in 1968. This session features Hancock’s arrangements for an unusual front line of alto flute, bass trombone and flugelhorn.

The pianist wanted to represent here a childlike, but not childish, philosophy. He felt this music didn’t reflect the social turmoil of the late 1960s in America, that is riots and a problematic economy but a picture of a more upbeat, brighter future, He wanted to go back and rediscover certain childhood qualities that are lost to adulthood. There is a purity, a spontaneity that children have and it is then they are at their best. Hence this album aims to translate as think and feel in terms of hope, and the possibilities of making our future less impure.

The cover photograph was taken by David Bythewood, an acquaintance of Hancock. The photo depicts Hancock in silhouette kissing his wife-to-be, Gigi Meixner.

Track Listing | 37:05

All compositions by Herbie Hancock, except First Trip, composed by Ron Carter.

Side A

1. Riot ~ 4:40
2. Speak Like a Child ~ 7:50
3. First Trip ~ 6:01

1. Toys ~ 5:52
2. Goodbye to Childhood ~ 7:06
3. The Sorcerer ~ 5:36

• Herbie Hancock — piano
• Ron Carter — bass
• Mickey Roker — drums
• Jerry Dodgion — alto flute (not on #3)
• Thad Jones — flugelhorn (not on #3)
• Peter Phillips — bass trombone (not on #3)

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