Japanese pianist and composer Toshiko Akiyoshi, a trailblazer in jazz music. Learn about her groundbreaking contributions to the genre.
Toshiko Akiyoshi, a trailblazing Japanese-American jazz pianist, was born on December 12, 1929, in Manchuria, China, to a Japanese family. Her love for jazz began at the tender age of 16 when she was introduced to the genre by a local record collector. This encounter ignited a passion that would shape her life and career.
Akiyoshi's family returned to Japan in 1945 and settled in Beppu. It was here that she started playing piano at the age of seven and took classical lessons twice a week. However, her fascination with jazz led her to spend many of her teenage years transcribing jazz records to learn about the art form.
At 17, she started playing in a big band in Fukuoka. Her life changed forever when she was 22 and Oscar Peterson, a prominent jazz pianist, asked her to record her first album with his trusted musicians. This marked the beginning of her professional career in jazz.
In January 1956, Akiyoshi became the first Japanese student at the Berklee College of Music in the United States. After a year of back-and-forth with the State Department and Japanese officials, she was offered a full scholarship.
Akiyoshi's debut album, Toshiko's Piano, was released in 1954. This album, which was released in both Japan and the United States, impressed Lawrence Berk, the founder of the Berklee school.
Throughout her career, Akiyoshi has released 75 albums and has been nominated for 14 Grammy Awards, ranking eighth historically for nominations without a win. She won the Jazz Album of the Year award from Stereo Review for her second album, Long Yellow Road, in 1976.
Akiyoshi's music integrates Japanese themes, harmonies, and instruments into American jazz forms, contributing to the global recognition of Japanese jazz (sometimes referred to as "Japazz"). She has been awarded prestigious Japanese awards such as the Order of the Rising Sun in 2004 and the Asahi Prize in 2005 for her contributions to the development of jazz as a pianist and bandleader in the U.S.
In addition to her performance career, Akiyoshi has composed and arranged primarily for big bands. She dissolved her orchestra in 2003 but has continued performing as a solo artist. She has also served as a lecturer, highlighting her role in musical education and cultural exchange between Japan and America.
Akiyoshi's former husband is saxophonist Charlie Mariano. She later married saxophonist Lew Tabackin. Her daughter, Monday Michiru, is a singer-songwriter who blends various styles and genres.
Toshiko Akiyoshi's music continues to resonate, with her most recent album, The Eternal Duo!, released in 2019. Her contributions to jazz, particularly as a pioneering female figure in the male-dominated jazz world of the 1950s and beyond, have left an indelible mark on the genre.
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