Hiromi Uehara

Hiromi Uehara (上原 ひろみ, Uehara Hiromi, born 26 March 1979), known professionally as Hiromi, is a Japanese jazz composer and pianist. She is known for her virtuosic technique, energetic live performances and blending of musical genres such as stride, post-bop, progressive rock, classical and fusion in her compositions.[1]

Hiromi
Hiromi Uehara during Jazz na Starowce festival in Warsaw, 2013-07-20
Hiromi Uehara during Jazz na Starowce festival in Warsaw, 2013-07-20
Background information
Birth nameHiromi Uehara
Born (1979-03-26) March 26, 1979
OriginHamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan
GenresJazz
Occupation(s)Musician, composer
Instrument(s)Piano, keyboard, synthesizers
Years active1996-present
LabelsTelarc International
Websitehiromimusic.com

Biography

Uehara was born in Hamamatsu, Japan.[2] She started learning piano at the age of six and was introduced to jazz by her piano teacher Noriko Hikida when she was eight.[1][3] At age 14, she played with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra. When she was 17 years old, she met Chick Corea by chance in Tokyo and was invited to play with him at his concert the next day. After being a jingle writer for a few years for Japanese companies such as Nissan, she enrolled to study at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts.[4] There, she was mentored by Ahmad Jamal and had already signed with jazz label Telarc before her graduation.

She debuted in 2003 with her album, Another Mind, and has toured and appeared in jazz festivals regularly since then. She formed an initial trio with bassist Mitch Cohn and drummer Dave DiCenso, and in 2004, she recorded her second album Brain with fellow Berklee alumni bassist Tony Grey and drummer Martin Valihora, as well as bassist Anthony Jackson, who was a guest on three tracks. She continued to record and tour with Grey and Valihora until 2009. On October 19, 2006, the trio added guitarist David Fiuczynski in a performance at the Jazz Factory in Louisville, Kentucky, to form Hiromi's Sonicbloom. Fiuczynski is also featured in the albums Time Control (2007) and Beyond Standard (2008). Due to Fiuczynski's teaching commitments at Berklee, guitarist John Shannon performed with the group when Fiuczynski was unavailable.

Drummer Mauricio Zottarelli joined Hiromi's Sonicbloom for the 2009 tour. Uehara also performed at the Newport Jazz Festival on August 8, 2009, and at the Paris Olympia in Paris on April 13, 2010, and toured in the summer of 2010 with the Stanley Clarke Band.

Anthony Jackson, who was previously a guest on the Brain album, joined Uehara along with drummer Simon Phillips as part of the Trio Project for the 2011 album Voice. The Trio Project went on to make the albums Move (2012), Alive (2014), and Spark (2016).[5] Spark reached the number one position on the US Billboard Jazz Albums chart for the week of April 23, 2016.[6]

In 2021 she performed at the opening ceremony of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Instruments

In a 2010 interview, Uehara said she plays the Yamaha CFIII-S concert grand piano, Nord Lead 2, Clavia Nord Electro 2 73, Clavia Nord Stage Piano, and Korg microKORG.[7]

Personal life

Uehara married Japanese fashion designer Mihara Yasuhiro in 2007. They met after she performed at one of his fashion shows in Milan the year before.[8]

Discography

Studio albums
  • Another Mind (Telarc Jazz, 2003) – rec. 2002
  • Brain (Telarc Jazz, 2004) – rec. 2003
  • Spiral (Telarc Jazz, 2006) – rec. 2005
  • Hiromi's Sonicbloom, Time Control (Telarc Jazz, 2007) – rec. 2006
  • Hiromi's Sonicbloom, Beyond Standard (Telarc Jazz, 2008)
  • Place to Be (Telarc Jazz, 2009)
  • The Trio Project, Voice (Telarc Jazz, 2011)
  • The Trio Project, Move (Telarc Jazz, 2012)
  • The Trio Project. Alive (Telarc Jazz, 2014)
  • The Trio Project, Spark (Telarc Jazz, 2016)
  • Spectrum (Telarc Jazz, 2019)
  • Hiromi The Piano Quintet, Silver Lining Suite (Telarc Jazz, 2021)
  • Hiromi's Sonicwonder, Sonicwonderland (2023)

Live albums
  • Hiromi's Sonicbloom Live in Concert (2007)[DVD-Video]
  • Duet with Chick Corea (Stretch, 2008)[2CD] - live rec. 2007 at Blue Note Tokyo
  • Hiromi Live in Concert (2009)[DVD-Video] – rec. 2005
  • Duet with Chick Corea (2009)[DVD-Video] - rec. 2007. released in Japan only.
  • Solo Live at Blue Note New York (2011) - rec. 2010 at Blue Note Jazz Club
  • The Trio Project, Hiromi: Live in Marciac (2012)[DVD-Video]
  • Move: Live in Tokyo (2014)[DVD-Video]

Other appearances

Filmography

References
  1. Jackson, Grant (April 23, 2010). "Hiromi On Piano Jazz". NPR Music. Retrieved 21 April 2013.
  2. "Hiromi Uehara". Berklee College of Music. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
  3. Thurman, Chad (8 November 2016). "No Strings Attached". VIE Magazine.
  4. Greenlee, Steve (January 29, 2010). "Her place in the sun". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  5. "Hiromi". Concord.com. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  6. "Jazz Music: Top Jazz Albums & Songs Chart". Billboard.com. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  7. "Hiromi :The Solo Piano Sorcery of Place To Be". Keyboard Magazine. Retrieved 11 June 2011.
  8. Rao, Priya (1 February 2010). "Hiromi Uehara Pushes the Limit". WWD.
  9. "Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra "Goldfingers" - Tokyo's Coolest Sound". Coolestsound.jp. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  10. "Oscar, With Love [Standard 3-CD]". Mackavenue.com. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  11. "DISCOGRAPHY ALBUM｜HIROMI the Official Web Site". Archived from the original on 2017-10-08. Retrieved 2017-10-08.
  12. "BLUE GIANT". eiga.com. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
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