1. Move
2. Endeavor
3. Brand New Day
4. Rainmaker
5. Margarita !
6. Suite Escapism: Reality
7. Suite Escapism: Fantasy
8. Suite Escapism: In Between
9. 11:49PM
Hiromi - Piano, keyboards
Anthony Jackson - Contrabass guitar
Simon Phillips - Drums
In jazz, nothing quite beats live performance. Nevertheless, it's good that there are DVDs around which give us not only the sound but the sight of a group
like The Trio Project (made up of Hiromi, Anthony Jackson and Simon Phillips). A DVD can't totally reproduce the experience of being there yet, without
doubt, it offers many of the pleasures of the real thing. Hiromi Uehara is a Japanese pianist and composer, now 35 years of age. Apparently, when only 17,
she met Chick Corea by chance in Tokyo and, impressed by her obvious talent, nurtured from an early age, the jazz piano giant invited her to play on stage
with him at his concert the following day. Since then, she's hardly looked back. Her debut album Another Mind came out in 2003 and was soon
followed by others. She has had recording credits also with Corea, Stanley Clarke, Bireli Lagrene and Michel Petrucciani, among others. She confesses to
being influenced by Ahmad Jamal, interestingly someone who reportedly shines in a live situation and who was admired by Miles Davis. Anthony Jackson, from
New York, developed his own instrument in 1974, a six-string electric bass guitar, dubbed the contrabass. Influenced by soul and rock music, he has played
with numerous jazz artistes as well as being a sought-after session musician over the years. Londoner Simon Phillips, now LA-based, is a drummer associated
with the rock world (The Who, and for over 20 years, Toto), who featured with Hiromi on her 2011 album Voice.
Introductions out of the way, what is there to say about the gig? Well, the title-track speaks for itself - this group does nothing if not move! Hiromi
herself has a prodigious technique and infectious enthusiasm. She plays with a smile on her face and the remarkable empathy and rapport between Hiromi and
the other two is obvious. She is also someone who seems totally engaged physically with what is going on and her body language reflects this. At one stage
in the opening track, she almost dances with the piano! On Endeavor, she plays piano with her left hand and keyboard with her right at times, to
mesmerising (and funky) effect.. The same combination features in a later stand-out track Margarita!, a really tuneful piece. Brand New Day is a catchy, lilting theme where Hiromi is rhapsodic and in vibrant command of the piano. Suite Escapism has three
movements. Reality is frenetic for the most part, suggesting something of the pace of modern life for many. Fantasy is a measured reverie
of sustained beauty, played with a sensitive (and blues-influenced) improvisational touch. In Between is a vigorous tour de force on a fast-moving
number, exciting to watch and hear. The disc concludes with a relatively lengthy encore (11.49PM).Two things emerge overall. Hiromi has genuine
ability as a composer and what she writes sits well with her genre-busting manner of playing, touching outright jazz licks, classical flourishes, blues
inflections and corresponding changes in tempo and style, all in a matter of minutes.
Her fellow - musicians, however, also deserve much credit. Anthony Jackson is truly versatile, whether laying down a solid bass line, sensitively relating
to the mood of Hiromi's improvising or just giving the music that rich, down-home sound he produces, for instance, on Rainmaker. As for Simon
Phillips, this is a drummer for all seasons who provides the necessary rhythmic pulse throughout, never indulges himself when a solo spot appears, and
consistently shows that he can do delicate as well as dynamic.
On her recent visit to the UK with The Trio Project, earlier this year, Hiromi made only one appearance and that was in London. For those of us further
afield, this enjoyable DVD will give a satisfying taste of what it was like to see this splendid group in full flow. Incidentally, there is an audio
version of all the tracks at the end of the DVD.
James Poore
CD Reviews
Telarc TEL 35561-09
