An NYC resident, Japan’s beloved pianist/composer/singer-songwriter Akiko Yano will be back in town with Will Lee (The Fab Faux, The Brecker Brothers, The 24th Street Band, Paul Shaffer and The World’s Most Dangerous Band, etc.) and Chris Parker (Stuff, The Brecker Brothers, Quincy Jones, Donald Fagen, etc.) due to popular demand, following the last sold-out show in Oct. 2023.
Since the debut album Japanese Girl (1976) which was recorded with Little Feet in LA, she has been collaborating with numerous renowned musicians, including Yellow Magic Orchestra a.k.a. YMO, Pat Metheny, Thomas Dolby, The Chieftains, Toninho Horta, Marc Ribot and more. She recorded and toured with Anthony Jackson (bass) and Cliff Almond (drs) as a trio for years. The duo with the electronica artist, late Rei Harakami, and the piano-duo with Hiromi showed us Akiko’s artistry and musicianship are always genre-free creative, and pleasantly adventurous. The latest duo unit is with Tsugaru Shamisen’s virtuoso, Hiromitsu Agatsuma.
Akiko has composed the music and contributed as a voiceover actor for several films created by Hayao Miyazaki’s Studio Ghibli. 3 albums are released on Nonesuch Records, AKIKO YANO, LOVE LIFE, and PIANO NIGHTLY. Her 27th original album Akiko (2008) was produced by T Bone Burnett.
Recently, a French record label Wewantsounds has reissued the first album, JAPANESE GIRL (1976), and other early works. The latest album I Want to See You So Badly (2023) has collaborated with Soichi Noguchi, the sixth Japanese astronaut to fly in space.
Source: Press Release