Hiromi shares her Sonic Wonderworld
Over more than 20 years as a recording artist, the jazz piano phenomenon Hiromi has shifted seamlessly from one spellbinding project to the next. In the process, she’s earned a reputation as one of the most explosive live performers in jazz history and a global ambassador for the art form. Her many triumphs include an NPR Tiny Desk Concert that has racked up 2 million views; the opportunity to represent her native Japan with a performance at the 2021 Summer Olympics in Tokyo; 2024 winner for Best Music Score for the animated feature film Blue Giant (Award of the Japanese Academy); and a GRAMMY Award for a collaboration with fusion hero Stanley Clarke. Her artistry is — to borrow a descriptor the New Yorker favored — “dazzling.”
Over the past two years, Sonicwonder has continued to tour and work together consistently, advancing their deep chemistry and fearless sense of interplay. The results can be heard on Hiromi’s new Concord release and 13th studio full-length album, OUT THERE, in which the group’s powerful rapport meets the pianist’s astonishing abilities as a composer on equal footing.
As Hiromi explains, “On Sonicwonderland, I had the concept and the songs first, and I was looking for the people who could play the music in the ideal way that I had in my mind.
“Being with this group for well over a year,” she continues, “playing a lot of shows together and understanding each other, I started to see more of their strength and what shines in them the most. So I started to write music with them in mind.”
The finale of Hiromi’s new album is also OUT THERE’s most delightful track: “Balloon Pop,” which is as much of an earworm as anything currently on the Hot 100. (And with O’Farrill on trumpet, its hummable theme summons up Miles Davis’ hook-filled ’80s recordings.)
And therein lies the secret to Hiromi’s monumental success — her rare ability to deliver not only show-stopping virtuosity but also sheer joy. “I love playing ‘Balloon Pop,” she says. “Every audience goes home singing this lick — well after the show has finished. The chord changes are challenging, but still it doesn’t sound complicated. I just wanted to write some songs that are singable, danceable and fun.”
