KEIKO MATSUI: Legendary Jazz Pianist and Composer

Overview

Jazz N Soul Music and SoundVizion LLC proudly present internationally-acclaimed pianist Keiko Matsui performing live in concert, Friday, March 29th at the Booth Playhouse in beautiful Uptown Charlotte.

Celebrated pianist, composer & humanitarian, Keiko Matsui, shares her dream for unity, serenity, and happiness on new recording, Euphoria! “This album is about the hope that we all carry inside of us,” shares Keiko Matsui.

Music creates a oneness, says the striking, petite powerhouse who has worked alongside everyone from Miles Davis and Stevie Wonder to Hugh Masekela and Bob James. With numerous acclaimed recordings, contemporary jazz pianist and composer Keiko Matsui maintains an international following with her original lush, sweeping melodies. Blending numerous styles such as jazz, rock, classical and new age, Matsui’s tunes top Billboard charts and earned her a PBS special.

“There is a strong spiritual quality Keiko Matsui brings to all of her creative projects.”- The Los Angeles Times

Keiko Matsui took her first piano lesson at five and she made her US recording debut in 1987 with the recording "A Drop of Water." Under Northern Lights followed in 1989 and her subsequent albums of note include No Borders (1990), Night Waltz (1991), Cherry Blossom (1992), Doll (1994), Sapphire (1995), and Dream Walk (1996), which remained on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz Chart for over 15 months and further cemented her reputation as a force to be reckoned with.

In 1997, she launched a tour dedicated to raising awareness of breast cancer and released a four-song CD entitled A Gift of Hope that benefited the Y-Me Breast Cancer Organization. In 1999, the pianist performed at A Golden Moment, a skating concert featuring Olympic figure skaters Kristi Yamaguchi, Tara Lipinski, Ekaterina Gordeeva, and Katarina Witt, which benefited the Susan G. Komen Foundation. 1998 saw the release of her album Full Moon And The Shrine, which was accompanied by the acclaimed PBS-TV special Keiko Matsui: Light Above The Trees.

In 2000, the special earned Keiko a National Smooth Jazz Award for “Best Long-Form Video Achievement” and she was honored with an award for “Best Female Artist.” She claimed the award again in 2001. Keiko Matsui’s CD Deep Blue (2001) topped Billboard’s Contemporary Jazz charts for three consecutive weeks. She is the first Japanese artist to achieve this honor. In 2003, she enjoyed success with her recording The Piano, which featured reinventions of some of her most loved original works. 

In 2009, Keiko released her critically heralded Billboard Top 5 recording The Road…, which featured Cameroonian bassist Richard Bona and saxophonists Kirk Whalum and Jackiem Joyner among others. In 2013, Keiko Matsui celebrated the release of her critically lauded album Soul Quest, which is the musical inspiration behind Live in Toyko. 2016 saw the release of Journey To The Heart, which was Keiko’s first acoustic project and debuted at #1 on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz Charts. The same year she was also an invited guest in Istanbul for International Jazz Day alongside such luminaries as Herbie Hancock, Branford Marsalis, and Terence Blanchard. Journey To The Heart (2016) and Echo (2019), further solidified Keiko’s place as one of the most significant and thrilling pianists in contemporary jazz.

“During the past few years, I have witnessed the loss of life and seen people’s sadness and it has been really painful, but it has helped to remind me of the precious gift of time and the importance of gratitude for what I have now,” Keiko confides. “Euphoria is my gift to my fans around the world.”

“Through prayer and my music, I hope to be able to increase harmony on this planet.”- Keiko Matsui