Shikou Ito on Jazz of Japan | Brian McCrory

Maiko: Reminiscence

Sun, 10 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Jazz violinist maiko’s new album Reminiscence is a milestone release for the Tokyo-based musician. It’s both a look back at her start 25 years ago when she moved to Tokyo and began to play jazz, as well as a gratitude-filled mark of appreciation to the many musicians she’s played with and the experiences she’s had through her years of development as live musician in Japan’s music scene.

This is her twelfth album spanning those many years, but her prior album Solo was released in 2018 so it’s been several years between that and this 2024 work. In her online notes for this album, she explains how the unsteady times for musicians during the coronavirus period sparked a period of reflection on her Tokyo-based musical life and introspection about her next musical statement. For this project, she choose nine new songs she had written during that period, and settled on the musical partners she would bring this new record to life with. The process involved thinking back over those formative years spent with these and other co-musicians, and especially her hometown of Kobe where it all began.

Shikou Ito Trio Syncretia: Kakusareta Guwa

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Kakusareta Guwa is a 2025 release from pianist Shikou Ito’s Trio Syncretia. A translation of the Japanese title, 隠された寓話, is also printed on the cover, and reads allegorical stories-shaded.

Ito’s trio is a piano-bass-percussion combo, and their music is robust and detailed, soulfully rugged. The sounds from Gen Ogimi’s percussion kit are a change from the regular drum kit that is de rigueur for jazz piano trios, and the sounds of hand drums alongside the snare, toms, and cymbals add a lot of character and color to the music. Intuitively linked to the pulse and beat is bassist Benisuke Sakai, who enhances the rhythms through his firmly connected upright bass with both grounded and adventurous playing.

Nobie: Primary

Fri, 06 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Nobie is a multi-talented artist whose musical and professional paths started at a young age. These included learning the violin and piano which led to voice, percussion, and pharmacy studies, and through many genres like jazz, soul, pop, and Brazilian music.

Her storied journey includes forays in the bands of renowned Brazilian bass player Luizão Maia (partnered with Jobim, Milton Nascimento, Elis Regina, and others—coincidentally, Nobie’s even been described as “the Japanese Elis Regina”), Soil & Pimp Sessions pianist Josei’s Alma+ band, famous Brazilian guitarist Toninho Horta, influential Beninese guitarist Lionel Loueke, and the popular Japanese jazz/samba/fusion of Shinichi Kato’s B-Hot Creations.

Maiko Trio: Live! Three

Thu, 23 Jan 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Jazz violinist Maiko trio live! Three captures a night in Tokyo in 2016, recorded live at The Glee concert hall and released as a CD and high-resolution download later that year. Jazz violinist Maiko leads the trio which includes well-known fusion guitarist Hiroki Miyano and popular in-demand pianist Shikou Ito.

With violin, acoustic guitar, and piano strings resonating together to create dramatic music, comparisons could be made to fusion albums from Al Di Meola and Chick Corea. Yet Maiko’s trio is unique, combining years of experience with jazz, pop, classical, and Latin music, together with Japanese nuances for an energetic and engrossing event.