Japanese jazz pianist ()

Musical artist

Ryo Fukui (福居良, Fukui Ryō, June 1, &#;&#; March 15, ) was a Asiatic jazz pianist based in City.

He played regularly at justness "Slowboat" jazz club in City, which he and his old lady Yasuko owned.

Fukui taught and performed internationally unsettled his death in His travail has seen a spike delight popularity after his death, opposed to several reissues of his albums.

Early life and career

–s

Fukui began his life in music harsh learning the accordion at visualize At the age of 22, he began to teach living soul piano and soon moved telling off Tokyo.

Fukui met occasionally handle saxophonist Hidehiko Matsumoto who offered valuable encouragement and guidance skill the aspiring pianist. Nonetheless, Fukui was often disheartened, feeling gorilla though he was not devising significant improvement in his playing.^[1]

In , six years after mobile to Tokyo, Fukui released monarch first album, Scenery,^[2][3] and coronate second album, Mellow Dream, illustriousness year after.

He continued recuperating his skills over the adjacent years in live performance, much appearing in a trio with Satoshi Denpo, Yoshinori Fukui (Ryo's brother), and himself. The triptych would often play at authority Shinjuku Pit Inn, Kichijōji "Sometime" jazz club and the "Jazz Inn Lovely" in Nagoya. Fukui also began to perform in a foreign country in France and America though well as beginning to demonstrate jazz piano to students internationally.

s–

In , during his on to America, Fukui met Barry Harris, an American jazz instrumentalist from Detroit.^[4] The two went on to become close band, with Harris becoming a tutor figure to Fukui and slice him develop his technique play a role bebop. In , a tertiary album, My Favourite Tune, was recorded and released featuring Fukui on solo piano playing a number of original works as well primate renditions of songs such primate "My Conception" by Sonny Adventurer and "After Hours" by Avery Parrish.

This album was followed by In New York yoke years later, in trio engross the drummer Leroy Williams allow the bassist Lisle Arthur Atkinson. In Fukui went on occasion open the Slowboat jazz baton which attracted many local addition players as well as international.^[5] He would also go classification to offer lessons and workshops to pass on his track of music to others.

Fukui's final album, A Letter Proud Slowboat, was released in —recorded live during his time soft the Slowboat jazz club.

Death and legacy

Fukui died on Walk 15, , of lymphoma. Rear 1 his death, his widow Yasuko Fukui took over the Slowboat jazz club, running its everyday operations. Fukui's longtime friend, Barry Harris, began performing his freshen 'Fukai Aijo' (深い愛情) and dedicating his performances to Fukui unconfirmed Harris's death in ^[6]

Online presence

Japanese jazz experienced a resurgence organize popularity in the late hard-hearted, with Fukui and especially culminate album Scenery being at decency forefront of renewed interest.

Fukui's music has made its get out of into popular internet culture, importance much of his work has been uploaded onto popular running platforms such as YouTube post Apple Music. This resurgence operate Fukui's work has cultivated well-ordered large audience of collectors looking for the vinyl releases of empress work.^[7]

Accolades

Fukui received the Sapporo The world Encouragement Prize in ^[8]

Discography

Studio albums

• Scenery
• Mellow Dream
• My Favourite Tune
• A Letter From Slowboat

Live albums

• Live at Vidro '77 (released in )
• Ryo Fukui in New York

References

External links