feature photo: Shigeko Sekiguch
Satoko Fujii returns to lead a trio that’s been as exciting to hear than anything she’s led in recent years. Message (Libra Records) is the third long player from one of Fujii’s most recent of her innumerable projects, This Is It!. Like so many of her ensembles, it includes the incomparable trumpeter, husband Natsuki Tamura and supplemented here by drummer/percussionist Takashi Itani.
Itani is a lot what I would imagine Tamura would be like on drums: zigging when you would expect him to zag, exploiting all the timbres at his disposal and understanding the importance of wit in making the music more engaging. He’s very much an equal partner in this union. All three come from different places to converge on Fujii’s advanced compositions, tailored to fit with the
exceptional personalities on hand.
“Message” demonstrates Fujii’s flair for, like the late Carla, charting dramatic flourishes with sophisticated interwoven harmonies all while making it inviting to listen to. However, also typical of Fujii, many parts are left open for improvisation because for all for bands, she wants the true character of all the other band members to shine through. After a false ending of what was already a fully develop presentation, Itani leads the trio back with a resourceful, polyrhythmic dance.
Fujii leads off “Cryptography” alone with a gorgeous recital that descends into a spot where Tamura enters to provide a bolstering sentimental vibe. They stay in a rubato flow even after Itani joins in, who instead accentuates Fujii’s piano, putting the stirring strain above all else.
“Falafel Feast” similarly flows freely for the first three and a half minutes, with extended notes before kicking into a festive, Middle-Eastern flavored, irregular rhythm. In an unexpected twist, Tamura engages with Itani on hand percussion. Fujii solos percussively to interact with Itani, sticking mainly to the low, left side of the piano.
“Ernesto” is a somber piece that puts Fujii’s piano up front and the other two putting in poignant accents at selective points.
Sometimes, Fujii wants even more freedom than usual, as is the case for “Never Mind,” but it’s notable that all three improvise clearly within the framework sketched out by Fujii’s chart. None of them repeat the approaches they make elsewhere because they improvise with Fujii’s broad conception for the song in mind.
Fujii never lets her albums go out with a whimper and she sure didn’t here. On “Orange Flicker” we find Itani on vibraphone, seemingly searching until his lands on Fujii’s lovely theme as he’s accompanied by the composer and the trumpet player. Soon, all three bloom together and just as the song hits a peak, the focus reverts back to the solitary, crystalline vibes.
It’s easy to forget that there’s a bass missing throughout Message because there’s nothing missing musically. Everyone present does so much to make Satoko Fujii’s thoughtful compositions come alive, so any more instruments might upset the perfect balance struck among her, Natsuki Tamura and Takashi Itani. That’s why this…this combination…is “it.”
Message is available now and you can get it from Bandcamp.
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