Wed Mar 26
Yoko Miwa Trio - "Celebrating The National Cherry Blossom Festival"
9:30PM / $35 | $7 Fees Get Tickets
Yoko Miwa
“Yoko Miwa displays unpretentious melodies, elegant phrasing, and the lyrical sensibility of a jazz poet.” – Jazziz
“Yoko Miwa has been gifted with both extraordinary musical skills and has the pure spirit that is necessary for great art. We love her musical gifts and her beautiful spirit as well.” – Ahmad Jamal
“Miwa is a virtuoso pianist with dazzling technique always in the service of interaction and exchange of ideas.” – Donald Elfman, NYC Jazz Record
“She has the enviable ability to play in any context with authenticity, clarity, and spontaneity…” – Wilbert Sostre, JazzTimes
“I greatly appreciate and respect the clarity and strength in Yoko’s playing, it is very apparent – the honesty, care and depth of foundation she touches the piano with.” – Benny Green
Don’t miss the chance to see internationally acclaimed pianist Yoko Miwa live at the historic Blues Alley on March 26. With dazzling technique and an unpretentious, lyrical style, Yoko Miwa brings her renowned trio with Will Slater on bass and Scott Goulding on drums to the Blues Alley stage for an evening of musical magic. Known for her elegant phrasing and powerful presence, Miwa’s trio has earned global recognition, with her 2021 album Songs of Joy reaching #1 on national jazz charts. Yoko was named a Rising Star Pianist in the 2022-2024 DownBeat Critics Poll. Join us for a night filled with infectious energy, intricate melodies, and virtuosic jazz from one of the genre’s best!
Internationally acclaimed pianist/composer Yoko Miwa is one of the most powerful and compelling performers on the scene today. Her trio, with its remarkable telepathy and infectious energy, has brought audiences to their feet worldwide. Yoko was named a Rising Star Pianist in the 2022, 2023, and 2024 DownBeat Critics Poll. The Yoko Miwa Trio’s 2021 release Songs of Joy received wide acclaim and reached #1 on national jazz radio charts and was voted a best jazz album of 2021 in the DownBeat 86th Annual Readers Poll. Jazziz called it “a radiant new collection.” CD Hotlist said “…yet another triumph from one of America’s finest jazz pianists, composers, and bandleaders.” Their 2019 CD, Keep Talkin’, showcases Miwa’s fine playing and artful compositions and the trio’s uncanny musical camaraderie. DownBeat gave the recording four stars, calling it “a beautifully constructed album” and noting “the drive and lyricism of a pianist and composer at home in bebop, gospel, pop, and classical.” JazzTimes also reviewed the album favorably, praising Miwa’s “jaw-dropping degree of technique.” The album enjoyed seven weeks in the top 10 on Jazz Week’s charts, much like its predecessor, Miwa’s 2017 release Pathways, which also made Jazz Week’s top 10 for several weeks. In a 2017 feature article on Miwa, DownBeat noted her “impressive technique and a tuneful lyricism that combines an Oscar Peterson-ish hard swing with Bill Evans-like introspection.” Cited as one of Ahmad Jamal‘s favorite pianists, Yoko was selected by his daughter to perform in the historical Ahmad Jamal Memorial Concert at Jazz at Lincoln Center in NYC where she performed with bassist Peter Washington, and guitarist Calvin Keys.
For more than a decade Miwa’s trio has played regularly at major jazz clubs in their home city of Boston, as well as venues around the world. A favorite of Jazz at Lincoln Center, Miwa was chosen to play on “Marian McPartland & Friends,” part of the Coca-Cola Generations in Jazz Festival. She was also chosen to perform at Lincoln Center’s annual Jazz and Leadership Workshop for The National Urban League’s Youth Summit. Miwa also appears regularly at New York’s famed Blue Note Jazz Club as well as Birdland and has performed and/or recorded with a wide range of jazz greats including Sheila Jordan, Slide Hampton, Arturo Sandoval, George Garzone, Jazzmeia Horn, Jon Faddis, Jerry Bergonzi, Esperanza Spalding, Terri Lyne Carrington, Peter Washington, Kevin Mahogany, John Lockwood, Dominique Eade, Calvin Keys, and Johnathan Blake among others. In 2018 she performed on the main stage at the Atlanta Jazz Festival and the Litchfield Jazz Festival, where her trio drew the largest audience of any act. She is a Yamaha Pianos Artist, JVC Victor Entertainment and Ubuntu Music recording artist, 10X nominated and 2019 Winner in the Boston Music Awards as Jazz Artist of the Year, and Boston Phoenix Best Music Poll winner.
9:30PM / $35 | $7 Fees Get Tickets
1. Final sale, no refunds, not transferable.
2. $15 food/beverage minimum per person not included in ticket price.
3. Seating first come at the door. Doors open 6 PM & 8:45 PM respectively.
4. Photography or Recording of any kind is prohibited during the performance.
5. Keep conversation to a minimum during the performance.