I have been a big fan of Ayako Shirasaki since I ran across her CD, "Existence" which was recorded in 2003. Subsequently I have purchased all of her jazz CD's (mainly trios) as well as some beautiful piano solo CD's. What I particularly enjoy is the combination of jazz standards and her own compositions on her CD's. In her latest effort, "Some Other Time," she again performs several standards: Oleo, April in Paris, Some Other Time, My Man's Gone, and a beautiful solo on Sophisticated Lady. On Leonard Bernstein's Some Other Time I was reminded of Bill Evans--on steroids; Oleo is done in a very up tempo and the intro is remarkable; April in Paris has some fine bass work by Noriko Ueda.
Her own compositions are also excellent and I particularly enjoyed Yosaku which has several time changes and a distinctly oriental sound. If you have never heard Ayako Shirasaki, you are in for a treat. Try the CD "Live in New York" (jazz trio), and for a complete change of pace, "Loved Ones," solo piano presentations composed by Takehito Kobayashi. Ayako Shirasaki is a very talented young lady who is always surprising.
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