Post 560: HARUKA KIKUCHI'S GREAT ANTHOLOGY CD

Haruka Kikuchi, energetically driving a band along or playing gently and lyrically, is currently one of the world’s best traditional jazz trombonists. She grew up in Japan and graduated in Music Science at Tokyo University of Fine Arts in 2010. Inspired by Kid Ory, she fell in love with traditional jazz.

In 2014, Haruka made the bold move of emigrating to New Orleans. She was soon in demand and playing with such bands as Kermit Ruffins and the BBQ Swingers and The Swamp Donkeys. Today, through her playing with The Shotgun Jazz Band and The Shake ‘Em Up Jazz Band, she has become an international favourite. Her diary – up to the moment of the Coronavirus lock-down, was full.

Haruka married fellow Japanese musician the superb pianist Yoshitaka Tsuji; and they have a cute little son, Shouta, who has appeared with Haruka in videos – even on last year’s European tour.

Haruka wanted to link Japan with New Orleans in a project to inspire the next generation. So, whenever Japanese players visited New Orleans, she invited them into a recording studio to play music with her new friends. Over four years, she arranged 10 such sessions. Thirty-eight different musicians took part. They included Naho Ishimura, Shingo Kano, Makiko Tamura and Tomomitsu Maruyama from Japan and locals such as Molly Reeves, Gerald French, Twerk Thomson and David Boeddinghaus.

This year, Haruka has put together a CD anthology drawn from those sessions. It is called ‘Japan: New Orleans Collection Series’. 

There are eleven tunes on the CD. I don’t know which studio Haruka uses but I can tell you the recording and sound quality are first-class. You can enjoy the full tone of every instrument with great clarity.

Here are some of the highlights. On ‘Struttin’ With Some Barbecue’ we have witty, fluent double-chorus solos from Naho Ishimura, and Haruka herself, with Gerald French providing a vocal. ‘By and By’, which features fine playing from Haruka’s husband, Yoshitaka, is played by a quintet including both piano and organ. It begins with a slow church-style organ solo before a stomping treatment of the song. Haruka is at her lyrical best in ‘When It’s Sleepy Time Down South’, which she performs with only a piano and string bass in support.

You may agree with me that the loveliest track is ‘Give It Up’, which shows you need only get four great players together and magic results. Makiko Tamura is on clarinet, Molly Reeves on guitar and Joshua Gouzy on bass. Need I say more?

The sextet playing ‘Buddy Bolden’s Blues’ includes three trombones and there is no vocal. In both these respects the atmospheric interpretation, with liberal use of trombone mutes, is refreshing.

You would hardly expect ‘The Mooche’ to work well when played by a mere quartet of guitar, bass, trombone and piano. But, with a dramatic arrangement and the trombone carrying most of the melody, Hideki Kon, Nobu Ozaki and Haruka, joined by Larry Scala, pull it off. You would think the tune had been written for them.

Kevin Louis is on trumpet in an all-star quintet playing the ‘Gettysburg March’, which – delightfully and traditionally – the group runs through first in 6/8 time before breaking into a swinging 4/4. Junji Kimura shows his skills on percussion.

‘Mama Inez’ is the only number to feature a saxophone. Its player is Yasuki Sogabe; and very fine he is too, with piano, bass and drums providing the excellent rhythmic support this song requires.

It was brave for a quartet to undertake ‘High Society’. But with Kensuke Shintani on clarinet, Haruka knew it would sparkle. David Boeddinghaus on piano and Tom Saunders on tuba give just the right support.

‘Lonesome Road’ features the banjo-player Tomomitsu Maruyama, whose work we have admired in YouTube videos from Tokyo. They take it at a gentle tempo in the key of F, with Tomomitsu also offering the vocal.

The final number - ‘Indian Red’ - features a seven-piece group, successfully plunging four Japanese musicians into a stereotypical piece of Louisiana culture. Quite an achievement! My guess is that Haruka is specially proud of that.

I strongly recommend this unique anthology. It is available from The Louisiana Music Factory.

Post 609: THE YOUNG KEEP TRADITIONAL JAZZ GOING

Thank goodness the young are keeping our music going.

There is a band called Ragstretch, formed by young people in 2012.

It is impossible for me to work out where this band is based, because its members are Australians and Scandinavians and some of them seem to be living in New York. The musicians also play in other bands and most of them are already well-known on the traditional jazz scene. But when the band Ragstretch comes together, they give brilliant, sparkling, tasteful performances. There are plenty of videos of them for you to explore on YouTube. You could try this version of Panama (played in Copenhagen) for starters: 

CLICK HERE.

In St. Louis, Missouri, The Sidney Street Shakers play exactly the kind of jazz I like best - unpretentious, straightforward, exciting, with good teamwork and just right for dancers.

And note elsewhere The California Feet Warmers - a fairly young band playing slick, well-prepared traditional jazz.

And even in Britain there is hope for the future. Have a look at the videos of The Brownfield/Byrne Hot Six to discover some technically-brilliant swinging jazz being played by chaps who seem to be still in their twenties.

Also from Britain, seek out the videos of Adrian Cox, or Ben Cummings, or The Graham Hughes Sunshine Kings, or Giacomo Smith, or The Basin Street Brawlers. You will have a pleasant surprise.

And in May 2017 a band called The Ten Bells Rag Band was formed in London. The musicians are relatively young and are inspired by such bands as Tuba Skinny in New Orleans. They play some very pleasant traditional jazz.

Also from London check out the wonderful videos of The Vitality Five.

In Edinburgh, Scotland, we find The Tenement Jazz Band.

I have not had the pleasure of seeing these musicians in person but their videos and recordings suggest to me that they also have been much inspired by the repertoires of Tuba Skinny, The Shotgun Jazz Band and The Shake 'Em Up Jazz Band.

Elsewhere, you may find such good young bands as Magic Shook Heads and The Hippocampus Jass Gang in the south of France: their videos are worth watching. And in Buenos Aires, you have the Jazz Friends - a terrific, fluent band, whose range of instruments sometimes includes the 'pinkullo' - a South American flute.

In the North-Eastern corner of Italy we find the young Adovabadan Jazz Band of Treviso playing some very tasteful traditional jazz. For example, click here to see them performing Cake Walking Babies From Home.

In Horten (population 27,000), Norway, a group of beginners aged 35 to 55 got together in 2016, modestly called themselves The Sloppy Jazz Newbies, and by the following year were making good progress and starting to attract gigs. You can hear them tackling Big Chief Battleaxe BY CLICKING HERE.

In the Rhine-Neckar area of Germany, a newly-formed band of energetic and enthusiastic young musicians has shown what can be achieved even with a limited range of instruments. They call themselves Die Selbsthilfe-Gruppe (The Self-Help Group) and you can find examples of their work on YouTube.

In Japan, of course, there is a terrific jazz scene around Tokyo. Most of the musicians are still quite young. For an immediate example, have a look at a video of Over The Waves to see what I mean:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBuXLwcnvvg

Another band formed in recent years is The Stone Arch Jazz Band of Minneapolis, founded by the talented and tasteful clarinet-player Richard Lund. Have a look at their website: Click here to view. And note that the band has already made some stylish videos, such as this one: Click here to view.

The band called The Fat Babies, based in Chicago, are highly respected and I am told they play regularly at The Green Mill Bar in that City. You can find plenty of their videos on YouTube.

And The Dirty River Dixie Band, founded in Texas and playing a very energetic kind of dixieland music, was able to announce towards the end of 2017 that the average age of its members was under 26. And the Tuba Skinny-inspired King Copper Jazz Band, based in Prescott, Arizona, is very impressive.

The Dizzy Birds Jazz Band in Berlin is terrific.

And have a listen to The Old Fashion Jazz Band of Santiago, Chile, by clicking here.

And correspondent Michael Meissner has introduced me to Queen Porter Stomp in Sydney, Australia. Here they are, and you can easily find examples of this fine young band's work on YouTube:

Regular correspondent Robert Duis recommends looking at videos of Malo's Hot Five and Attila's Rollini Project; and my friend Anders Winnberg in Sweden has assured me there are plenty of good bands operating in his country, where the Gothenburg Jazz Festival is a major event. Anders reports that the Festival is always held at the beginning of September and that last year there were lots of young people, both in the audience and in the bands. And Ray Andrew in Perth, Australia, has told me the traditional jazz scene is very strong in his city and that the young are being attracted to it. Even Finland - a country remote from New Orleans and with a population of well under six million - has the very pleasant Birger's Ragtime Band. Also in Finland there is a band called Doctor Jazz: it seems to me to be bright and recently formed; and several of the players are relatively young.

Regular reader Phil in the USA has recommended the Moscow-based young bands The Kickipickles and The Moscow Ragtime Band. You may find their work on YouTube.

Above all, of course, there is great old-time jazz being played by YOUNG people on the streets of New Orleans. They offer hope for the future, because the Internet and visits from overseas musician-tourists are spreading their influence very rapidly.

In the days before Hurricane Katrina, you would have thought of Bourbon Street as the main hub for jazz in New Orleans. But now it is Frenchmen Street, in the Faubourg Marigny - a road full of jazz bars and clubs. There are over twenty traditional jazz bands playing professionally in New Orleans - more than at any previous time in jazz history.

To see what I mean, even if you can't get to New Orleans, try spending some time visiting the City on YouTube. You will be amazed at the quality of the traditional jazz being produced by instrumentalists mostly under forty years of age; and there are plenty of singers of outstanding ability too.

You may try any of these groups on YouTube. Just type their names in and indulge yourself with some fine music:

Tuba Skinny

Rhythm Wizards Jazz Band (CLICK HERE to sample their tasteful playing)
Loose Marbles
Little Big Horns
The Cottonmouth Kings
The Dapper Dandies
Smoking Time Jazz Band
Jessy Carolina and the Hot Mess
Jenavieve Cook and the Royal Street Winding Boys
Yes Ma'am String Band
The Shotgun JazzBand (led by the dynamic Canadian trumpeter and singer Marla Dixon: CLICK HERE for an exciting example of their work)
Stalebread Scottie and His Gang
The Gentilly Stompers
Eight Dice Cloth
The Shake 'Em Up Jazz Band
Emily Estrella and the Faux Barrio Billionaires (Emily is originally from Cincinatti)
Hokum High Rollers
The Messy Cookers
The Sluetown Strutters
The Palmetto Bug Stompers
John Zarsky and the Trad Stars
The Jazz Vipers
The New Orleans Swamp Donkeys
Orleans 6 (led by the excellent Ben Polcer)
Sour Mash Hug Band
Baby Soda

Post 561: JAPAN COMES TO NEW ORLEANS

Haruka Kikuchi, the great young Japanese trombonist who settled in New Orleans in 2014, has been busy both as a record producer and as a player in the last couple of years. She has produced a series (at present five 'volumes') of recordings under the general title 'JAPAN: NEW ORLEANS COLLECTION'.

What has happened is this: several of her Japanese jazzing colleagues have visited her in New Orleans over the past months and she has taken advantage of the opportunity to get them into a New Orleans recording studio, together with some of the local musicians, in order to record a few tunes.

By November 2017, she will have released the fifth Volume in this series.

I think this fifth volume could be the loveliest, to judge from the one sample track that I have so far been able to hear. Haruka uses just a quartet (see the photo above); and what a terrific team they are! Molly Reeves (guitar and vocals) and Joshua Gouzy (bass) are a super pair to provide the chords and rhythmic backing, as well as an occasional solo chorus. And Haruka herself, with the wonderful Makiko Tamura (currently considered by many of us one of the most talented and tasteful clarinet players in the world) produce delightful interplay in the 'front line'. The tune I have been able to hear is I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now, which is played through twice as a waltz before breaking into 4/4 time. Makiko takes the lead on the melody in the first chorus. This is such a beautiful and appealing performance, that I feel sure the other three tunes on the recording will be well worth hearing too. They are Give It Up, Burgundy Street Blues - wow, I bet Makiko will be brilliant on that - and Make Me a Pallet on Your Floor - which I know Molly has often sung beautifully.

I found the necessary information on all the above at:

https://harombone.bandcamp.com/album/japan-new-orleans-collection-series-vol-5

Also already available is Volume 4, in which Haruka uses a 6-piece combination which is most unusual in having no banjo or guitar or clarinet or trumpet or saxophone. What it offers is a feast for trombone enthusiasts, as the entire 'front line' comprises three trombonists! They are Shoichi Yamada and David L. Harris as well as Haruka herself. However, they do not get in each other's way, as you might expect. The music is well arranged and disciplined. It is quite something to hear Royal Garden Blues and When My Dreamboat Comes Home played by 'massed' trombones!

Post 545: SHOCK AT THE JAZZ CLUB!

Recently, I attended a traditional jazz concert at one of the best and longest-established jazz clubs in England. It was in the outskirts of London, far from my home, and I had never been there before.

The club meets once a week in a very fine arts centre for evenings of entertainment by visiting bands. It has a large car park. The auditorium has plentiful and comfortable seating. There is a bar selling food, and drinks hot and cold. The stage is ready-equipped with a tuned piano and a splendid PA system, so the bands are well provided for.

I was most impressed by the enthusiasm, hard work and friendliness of the six committee-member volunteers who run the club.

As with so many of these clubs in England, the volunteers were elderly and had become very knowledgeable about traditional jazz because it had been one of their main interests for several decades. The audience too consisted entirely of elderly people.

Having arrived early, I was able to chat with most of the volunteers. Like others running such clubs all over the country, they were concerned that membership numbers were steadily falling. At present they had just enough regular attenders to keep the club running. But a few had died in the recent past. The gentleman who booked the bands doubted whether the club would still be in existence five years from now.

As usual, we all regretted that the younger generation in England seemed to be taking little interest in this kind of music; and that there were very few young musicians to be found in English traditional jazz bands.

A couple of them told me they spend a lot of time watching traditional jazz videos on YouTube; and they mentioned the bands (all British) that they liked to watch. I was amazed they didn’t mention the videos coming out of New Orleans or Tokyo.

It turned out that these jazz club committee members – such knowledgeable fans – were completely unaware of the resurgence of traditional jazz being played right now to the highest levels by young people in the streets, bars and clubs of New Orleans.

Of course, I told them about the New Orleans scene, and recommended that they should start watching those videos.

But this experience left me thinking. If these people, who have loved traditional jazz since the 1960s, are unaware of what is happening in New Orleans, possibly there may even be some readers of this blog who also need to make the discovery.

So, just in case you need a prompt, try these two videos. Click on to view:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RicINWvmAcg&t=799s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBFTQkZmBMI

Post 502: 'PANAMA' IN JAPAN

Today I would like to recommend to you a video of a band playing that old favourite Panama.

You can watch it here (click on):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1oxk0_mxBg

Why do I like this particular video?

1. Because is was filmed by that fine recorder of the Japanese jazz scene codenamed ragtimecave. He succeeds in getting super close-ups of musicians and he also achieves videos of high sound quality.

2. Because it demonstrates yet again what a terrific traditional jazz scene there is in Japan; and how well the Japanese succeed in bringing on young players.

3. Because this is in many ways an exemplary performance of Panama. Note the teamwork and also the well-judged but not-too-loud driving power of the rhythm players.

It could be argued that this performance goes on for too long. Was it really necessary for every member of the seven-piece band to take solo choruses on the final theme? Perhaps not. But I will grant them that little self-indulgence in a performance of such creativity and energy.

By the way, Panama Rag (originally entitled Panama, A Characteristic Novelty) is a standard in the repertoire of traditional jazz bands. It dates back almost 110 years, having been written by William H. Tyers in 1911. Tyers, born in Virginia, the son of former slaves, lived from 1870 to 1924. The piece of music possibly has nothing to do with the country Panama or the Panama Canal which was under construction at the time: it is said by at least one source to have been named in honour of Aida Overton Walker and Her Panama Girls - a music hall act. Whatever the truth, it is a great number and can sound good no matter at what tempo you take it. It can be strenuous to play, especially for the trumpeter, as there are five themes - all of which are usually repeated.

Post 499: THE YOUNG KEEP THE MUSIC GOING!

There are plenty of wonderful young musicians around the globe who have discovered the musical styles and repertoire of a century ago and are playing traditional jazz with great skill and passion.

Recently two more groups have come to my attention. In Brazil, guitarist Cleber Guimarães has been developing his fine, swinging little band called Fizz Jazz, and you can watch a good example of their work - 'Sunday Swing' - a piece composed by Cleber himself - BY CLICKING HERE. The band seems to have a nucleus of four versatile musicians. Occasionally they are joined by two friends on keyboard and trumpet. Also the band has now issued its first recordings - available on Bandcamp at:
https://fizzjazz.bandcamp.com/album/live-at-the-studio

The other group is The Milk Crate Bandits, based in Vancouver, BC, Canada, and led by banjo-playing singer Jack Ray. You can easily find examples of their work on YouTube. Late in 2016 they travelled to New Orleans and, for a great acoustic, recorded several tunes in the building that was the former Luthjen's Dance Hall - and is today the Marigny Recording Studios. I understand that two EPs should be available from May 2017 onwards.

For an immediate example of what is going on in Japan, where there are many well-trained traditional jazz musicians, have a look at a video of Over The Waves played by young musicians in Tokyo:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBuXLwcnvvg

I constantly hear of new young bands setting up, (though sadly not as many as I would wish in my own country). There is The Stone Arch Jazz Band in Minneapolis, founded by the talented and tasteful clarinet-player Richard Lund. Have a look at their website: Click here to view. And note that the band has already made some stylish videos, such as this one: Click here to view.

The band called The Fat Babies, based in Chicago, are highly respected and I am told they play regularly at The Green Mill Bar in that City. You can find plenty of their videos on YouTube.

And The Dirty River Dixie Band, founded in Texas and playing a very energetic kind of dixieland music, was able to announce towards the end of 2016 that the average age of its members was under 25.

The situation in such countries as Australia, Germany, Canada, Spain, Italy and Denmark, as far as I can tell, gives some encouragement.

The Dizzy Birds Jazz Band in Berlin is terrific.

And correspondent Michael Meissner introduced me to Queen Porter Stomp in Sydney, Australia. Here they are, and you can easily find examples of this fine young band's work on YouTube:

Regular correspondent from Holland Robert Duis recommends looking at videos of Malo's Hot Five and Attila's Rollini Project; and my friend Anders Winnberg in Sweden has assured me there are plenty of good bands operating in his country, where the Gothenburg Jazz Festival is a major event. And Ray Andrew in Perth, Australia, has told me the traditional jazz scene is very strong in his city and that the young are being attracted to it. Even Finland - a country remote from New Orleans and with a population of well under six million - has the very pleasant Birger's Ragtime Band. Also in Finland there is a band called Doctor Jazz: it seems to me to be bright and recently formed; and several of the players are relatively young.

Regular reader Phil in the USA has recommended the Moscow-based young bands The Kickipickles and The Moscow Ragtime Band. You may find their work on YouTube.

And in Japan, especially, as I indicated above, traditional jazz seems to be going through a boom period. Some of the best in the world is being played in Tokyo. Seek out the performances on YouTube made by the video-maker codenamed ragtimecave.

So, we do not have to accept that traditional jazz is on the way out!

In St. Louis, Missouri, The Sidney Street Shakers play exactly the kind of jazz I like best - unpretentious, straightforward, exciting, with good teamwork and just right for dancers. And note elsewhere The California Feet Warmers - a fairly young band playing slick, well-prepared traditional jazz.

Elsewhere, you may find such good young bands as Magic Shook Heads and The Hippocampus Jass Gang in the south of France: their videos are worth watching. And in Buenos Aires, you have the Jazz Friends - a terrific, fluent band, whose range of instruments sometimes includes the 'pinkullo' - a South American flute.

In the North-Eastern corner of Italy we find the young Adovabadan Jazz Band of Treviso playing some very tasteful traditional jazz. For example, click here to see them performing Cake Walking Babies From Home.

In the Rhine-Neckar area of Germany, a newly-formed band of energetic and enthusiastic young musicians has shown what can be achieved even with a limited range of instruments. They call themselves Die Selbsthilfe-Gruppe (The Self-Help Group) and you can find examples of their work on YouTube.

All terrific stuff. So heart-warming; and giving great hope for the future.

Above all, I can tell you there is great old-time jazz being played by YOUNG people on the streets of New Orleans; and I believe the Internet is spreading their influence so rapidly that there will be yet another big revival of this kind of music.

There are over twenty traditional jazz bands playing professionally in New Orleans - more than at any previous time in jazz history.

To see what I mean, even if you can't get to New Orleans, try spending some time on YouTube. You will be amazed at the quality of the traditional jazz being produced by instrumentalists in their twenties and thirties; and there are plenty of singers of outstanding ability too.

I have written before about Tuba Skinny and The Shotgun Jazz Band - currently the best of all the groups. They are not only technically brilliant; they also take great care over arrangements and presentation of tunes, and they have been reviving great old melodies that were in danger of being forgotten. Have a good look and listen to their work. But here are some examples of other New Orleans bands you may care to investigate on YouTube:

Rhythm Wizards Jazz Band (CLICK HERE to sample their tasteful playing)

Loose Marbles
Little Big Horns
The Cottonmouth Kings
Smoking Time Jazz Band
Jessy Carolina and the Hot Mess
Jenavieve Cook and the Royal Street Winding Boys
Yes Ma'am String Band
The Gentilly Stompers
Hokum High Rollers
The Big Dixie Swingers
The Messy Cookers
The Sluetown Strutters
The Palmetto Bug Stompers
John Zarsky and the Trad Stars
The Jazz Vipers
The New Orleans Swamp Donkeys
Orleans 6 (led by the excellent Ben Polcer)

And even in Britain there is some hope.

The great Ewan Bleach, who spent several months in New Orleans playing regularly with Tuba Skinny and other bands, is involved in several enterprises. In particular, he leads The Cable Street Rag Band in the Limehouse area of London. Robin Rapuzzi recommends this band. He told me: 'I've had the honor of playing with them the last couple summers. Those guys are great. They can play everything from straight and narrow ragtime compositions to gorgeous waltzes and hot, hot dance numbers'. Try them for yourself: there are several videos on YouTube. 'Hot' they certainly are. (You should spot Robin himself guesting on washboard in one of the videos.)

And have a look at the videos of The Brownfield/Byrne Hot Six to discover some technically-brilliant swinging jazz being played by chaps who seem to be still in their twenties.

Also from Britain, seek out the videos of Adrian Cox, or Ben Cummings, or The Graham Hughes Sunshine Kings, or Giacomo Smith, or The Basin Street Brawlers. You will have a pleasant surprise.

I am sure there must be many other such bands around the world. I would be pleased to receive more information.

Post 470: THE YOUNG JAPANESE KEEP OUR MUSIC ALIVE

I have written before about the great achievements of young musicians in Japan who are mastering traditional jazz, keeping the music alive and perpetuating it for future generations. About 200 videos of those young Japanese bands uploaded on YouTube by ragtimecave have given great pleasure, as many of you have written to tell me.

In December 2016, young Japanese players in various combinations played our music at a concert - the 55th Recital of the Waseda University New Orleans Jazz Club, through whose ranks a number of great musicians have passed over the decades.

There was some storming playing. Have a look, for example, at this performance of Wolverine Blues:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5bK7lFNYVA
What is very clear is that learning to play traditional jazz has been a serious part of the curriculum in some Japanese high schools. Here's a typical scene from about the year 2004:

One of the greatest of the young musicians (much loved, I know, by many of you) is the clarinet player Makiko Tamura. You can hear her in two videos performing Over the Waves:
(1) with the wonderful Natsuko Furukawa on keyboard here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8epDHtq1uRY
(2) with The New Orleans Jazz Hounds here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBuXLwcnvvg
And there is some fine playing in this recent video, including an exciting Viper Mad in Ab. You may note the impressive and ubiquitous Kensuke Shintani on clarinet and Naho Ishimura on trumpet:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2HI4IQUXHk

Have a look at these two videos for some delightful surprises:
1. A well-drilled high school band plays 'Who Stole My Heart Away?' at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QvYkU8cf68
The young ladies who sing in harmony are Makiko Tamura and Airi Shishido.
2. A 'Big Band' plays 'Stardust' at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUsxzkDKLNE

If you find these interesting, you will also be able to locate more videos from similar sources. For example, what about this extraordinary performance of  'Weatherbird Rag'?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5ousAaG9gI

And don't forget the wonderful Japanese banjo player, Ken Aoki, who was to be seen playing with the youngsters in the Who Stole My Heart Away? video (above). You may also admire his talents by watching this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j714N05_SeQ
There are several more for you to explore on YouTube.

Post 419: HARUKA KIKUCHI

That great young Japanese trombone player Haruka Kikuchi was very proud as we approached the latter stages of 2016. Why? Because, although she had played on many recordings and with the best bands, she then - for the first time - became the Producer of a fine new recording; and she intended it to be the first of a series. She called it JAPAN: NEW ORLEANS COLLECTION SERIES Volume One.

The music was very well recorded, with fine acoustics and balance. Haruka's band comprised five musicians and had a distinctive brassy sound, with trumpet, sousaphone and trombone and no reeds. On trumpet was Naho Ishimura, yet another brilliant young Japanese musician, whose playing is nimble and lyrical. Steven Glenn made a solid and melodic contribution on sousaphone; and who better to provide the chords and percussion than Albanie Falletta (guitar) and the highly-experienced Gerald French on drums (and vocals)? So for the link to some fresh performances of old favourites, CLICK HERE.

You will even hear (and be able to learn) the vocals to Struttin' With Some Barbecue and Muskrat Ramble. That's something that doesn't often happen!

Then in March 2017 Haruka produced JAPAN: NEW ORLEANS COLLECTION SERIES Volume Two, featuring Gospel Jazz. Haruka made this recording with fellow musicians who play gospel music with her in church every Sunday morning:
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION.
I specially enjoyed the lusty performance of Jesus on the Main Line - a spiritual I have always liked, ever since the late great Milton Batiste introduced me to it in the 1990s.

In September 2017, Haruka added a third volume, with Shingo Kano from Osaka on piano and Grayson Brockamp  on bass. The trio swings very pleasantly through When It's Sleepy Time Down South, Back Home Again in Indiana and the rarely-heard Small Fry, which Hoagy Carmichael composed for a cartoon film in 1938. To sample these tracks,  CLICK HERE.

Haruka Kikuchi -
about to play with The Audacity Brass Band
at The French Quarter Festival, 2016

.

When I visited New Orleans in April 2016, a great pleasure was meeting and hearing Haruka Kikuchi again. This young lady, though slight of build, is one of the best and most powerful trombone players in the world. She is also one of the most versatile. Haruka was very kind and helpful during my visit, giving me a warm welcome and also supplying me with tips about bands and gigs that I might enjoy.

In April of the previous year, I met her for the first time - when I came across her playing with The Shotgun Jazz Band. In 2015, she was also playing regularly with Kermit Ruffins and the BBQ Swingers and with The Swamp Donkeys.Haruka toured with The Swamp Donkeys in England, Scotland, France, Holland and Spain during July and August 2015.

Since the  start of 2016, she has become much more independent and freelance. She now plays from time to time with even more bands but she has also started running a band of her own. Her diary is so full: it seemed to me that she was averaging seven gigs a week - sometimes with seven different bands.

In May 2016, Haruka toured in Japan, where she was the guest star in a series of jazz concerts with Japanese bands.

Haruka grew up in Chiba - a few miles east of Tokyo - and settled happily in New Orleans at the end of 2013.

During my 2015 visit, I heard her playing a couple of times with the dynamic and energetic Shotgun Jazz Band. Haruka seemed to have become rapidly integrated into Marla Dixon's very happy Shotgun family.

The Shotgun Jazz Band

What a team they were - driving each other to ever greater heights. Haruka's powerful, creative playing - remarkable from a young woman of her stature - was a mainstay of the band's success.

Haruka started learning to play the piano, violin and cornet from an early age. But when she was 15 she was bowled over by discovering the early recordings of New Orleans jazz. Haruka was greatly encouraged and supported by Ken Aoki - the internationally-renowned banjo player. She decided the 'tailgate trombone' was for her, her hero being Kid Ory. She studied at Tokyo University of Fine Arts, graduating in 2010 with a degree in Music Science. But, while studying, she also joined and played at the Jazz Club (that has existed for many decades) at the nearby Waseda University.

Earlier, Haruka had formed a dixieland jazz band with school friends. And she set about serious study of New Orleans jazz from the earliest times up to the Revival. On YouTube there is some good evidence of the music she was playing with her teenage friends in those days: CLICK HERE.

During a visit to a New Orleans Mardi Gras, she was stunned by the atmosphere and enthusiasm for the music in the City. This led to her organising a Mardi Gras event in Matsue City, Japan, complete with Big Parade, Second Line, and all the usual beads and brollies. Quite an achievement for a young woman.

Today Haruka is one of the best and most exciting trombonists in the world of traditional jazz. If you want to understand how traditional jazz works or if you are learning to play in a traditional jazz band, you could hardly do better than study Haruka's playing. Just notice the line she takes - how well it supports the melody. Notice how she phrases the music and where she takes a breath. Notice how she drives the band along, both in her ensemble work and in her exciting solos. Start with this video, which shows her in close-up: CLICK HERE TO VIEW.

In 2017, Haruka joined and made a great contribution in the wonderful all-ladies Shake 'Em Up Jazz Band, which has evolved into one of the best bands in the world today. THIS VERSION (Click on) of 'Savoy Blues' may be the best you will ever hear.

At the 2016 French Quarter Festival, she even appeared with the veterans in an old-style New Orleans Brass Band. I did my best (despite difficult filming conditions) to make a video of them playing Bugle Boy March and hope you may care to watch it. You can do so BY CLICKING HERE.

How lucky I have been to meet Haruka! On top of all her other achievements, she has also mastered English, so I have had most enjoyable conversations with her.

My most recent meeting with Haruka
- on 18 February 2017

When I was in New Orleans on 20 October 2016, I was very pleased to hear her band play. I took this picture of her and also informed her that I am adopting her as my grand-daughter. She now calls me 'Grandpa'!

Have a look at this well-made video to appreciate Haruka's versatile and venturesome approach to music making: CLICK HERE.

In 2018, Haruka married Yoshitaka Tsuji, a virtuoso jazz pianist, who had moved from Osaka to New Orleans in 2010 to seek his fortune. In recent years, he had played with several bands, but most notably Kermit Ruffins and the Barbecue Swingers. He and Haruka met in 2012. They now live in Treme, New Orleans, with their son Shouta. Here are Haruka and Shouta in 2020, watching a Parade.