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Pianist/ Composer
Since moving to the United States in 1995, Eri Yamamoto has established
herself as one of jazz's most original and compelling pianists and
composers. Jazz legend Herbie Hancock has said, gMy hatfs off to her...
already shefs found her own voice.h
During the past twenty years, Eri has been sharing her uniquely lyrical
and evocative music with listeners in New York City, throughout the
U.S., Canada, Europe, Japan, Jamaica, and Australia; with appearances
in concerts, clubs, and major festivals.
She has a deeply empathetic rapport with her long-standing trio members
bassist David Ambrosio and drummer Ikuo Takeuchi. Together they have
recorded several albums, most recently gLife,h released in 2016. As the
album title suggests, the music portrays a wide range of her
experiences - from joyful to introspective, reflecting the vibrancy of
New York City and exploring mysteries of nature and memory.
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Downbeat magazine gave four stars to her previous release, gFirefly,h saying:
gHer CD reaffirms Yamamotofs standing as a contemporary pianist of the
highest order. Her virtuosity never gets in the way of playing it
straight from the heart.h
Eri has also been dedicated to the art of solo piano, moving audiences
with her renditions of her own compositions and her spontaneous
improvisations. Her most recent release, gLive in Benicàssim,h captures
her 2017 solo piano concert in that picturesque Spanish town. It
is her first solo piano album, and her eleventhrecording under her own
name.
Eri was born in Osaka, Japan, and began playing classical piano at age
three. She started composing when only eight years old, and studied
voice, viola, and composition through her high school and college
years. In 1995, she visited New York for the first time, and by chance
heard Tommy Flanagan performing. She was so inspired by her first
experience of a jazz piano trio that she decided on the spot to move to
New York and dedicate herself to learning jazz. Later that year, Eri
entered the New School University's prestigious jazz program, where she
studied with Reggie Workman, Junior Mance, and LeeAnn Ledgerwood. In
1997, while still in school, she started playing regularly at the
Avenue B Social Club, a popular spot among jazz musicians in the East
Village. There she developed a musical friendship with fellow pianist
Matthew Shipp.
Since 1998, Eri's trio has been appearing regularly at Arthur's Tavern, a historic jazz club in New York's Greenwich Village.
Eri has also been collaborating with such creative and celebrated
musicians as William Parker, Daniel Carter, Hamid Drake, Federico Ughi,
Yves Leveille and Paul McCandless. Eri has appeared on several William
Parker recordings, and has performed in the U.S., Canada, Europe,
Tunisia, and South Africa with his trio and sextet.
Finally, Eri is a gifted educator. She received her master of music in
education and composition from Shiga University, Japan. She has taught
private lessons and workshops to jazz musicians of all instruments from
the U. S., Japan, Europe, and North Africa.
eriyamamoto.com eri@eriyamamoto.com
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QUOTES
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gMy hatfs off to her. Shefs found her own voice.h
-Herbie Hancock, pianist
"4-Stars. Firefly
reaffirms Yamamoto's standing as a contemporary pianist of the highest
order. While [she] has a deft sense of harmony and note selection, not
to mention sheer chops, her virtuosity never gets in the way of playing
it straight from the heart.
|Daniel A. Brown, DownBeat
"Yamamotofs
insistent rhythmic savvy [is] allied to a deep soulfulness. Bassist
David Ambrosio once again demonstrates his keen melodic sensibility and
propensity for surefooted commentary, while drummer Ikuo Takeuchi
combines invention and drive into one elegant package."
|John Sharpe, The New York City Jazz Record
"[Her]
trio has been together almost a decade and has levels of telepathy that
are enviable. This is a band that consistently generates a sound of joy
without falling back on many jazz clicheLs. Itfs hard to imagine a jazz
trio with more magic at its fingertips."
|Will Layman, PopMatters
"There
are virtues in Yamamotofs music that are rarely heard elsewhere. One is
the depth of rapport with a rhythm section that has gigged with her
regularly for over 13 years, making whole a steady stream of new
compositions from her prolific muse. Another is Yamamotofs ability to
evoke ephemeral feelings and concepts with such precise intonation."
|Britt Robson, JazzTimes
"Eri
Yamamoto, who gracefully bridges the worlds of postbop and free jazz,
surveys her warm, evocative songs without words in the company of
bassist Dave Ambrosio and drummer Ikuo Takeuchi on Firefly, her
typically elegant and understated new full-length."
|Time Out New Yorkhhh
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