Fujii and her Tokyo Trio offer yet another provocative chapter in her extraordinary musical journey, one that reminds us why she remains one of the most vital and inventive voices in contemporary improvised music.
Libra Records
Satoko Fujii – Piano; Takashi Sugawa – Bass; Ittetsu Takemura – Drums
Satoko Fujii’s Tokyo Trio doesn’t sound like your standard jazz piano trio, and DREAM A DREAM isn’t your typical jazz album. But that’s exactly what you’d expect from Fujii. She’s spent her career pushing boundaries and avoiding the predictable. Even back in 1996, her album with Paul Bley, SOMETHING ABOUT WATER, challenged conventions with its abstract compositions where traditional elements like steady rhythm, familiar chord progressions, and obvious melodic hooks were often ignored. Now with DREAM A DREAM, her trio continues that boundary-pushing tradition, masterfully weaving between meticulously composed passages and uninhibited collective exploration.
From the moment they start playing, you can feel the special connection between Fujii on piano, Takashi Sugawa on bass, and Ittetsu Takemura on drums. They seem to read each other’s minds as they navigate through Fujii’s unpredictable compositions, anticipating each twist and turn. She describes her approach as blending written and improvised elements “without borders,”where the line between composition and spontaneity fades. Some pieces, like the title track, have a more structured theme that guides the improvisation, while others, like ‘Summer Day,’ feature only a few notated cues to set the direction. That freedom allows the trio’s collective instincts to take flight.
‘Second Step’ opens the album with Fujii’s solo piano—low rumbles that gradually intensify before erupting into dense clusters. Just as the written theme emerges and momentum builds, the trio takes an unexpected turn. Sugawa’s talkative bass solo, supported by gentle drumming and piano comping, shifts the energy entirely. When the full trio returns, they move through phases of quiet conversation, repeated phrases, and finally into one of Fujii’s most lyrical passages on the album. The piece constantly transforms, never settling in one place, a perfect introduction to the trio’s audacious approach.
The title track, ‘Dream a Dream,’ unfolds like a sonic journey. It begins with mysterious sounds, rumbles from inside the piano, scratching textures, and distant percussion, before gradually taking shape. As Takemura’s drumming becomes more defined and Sugawa offers sparse bass notes, Fujii’s piano emerges with tentative phrases that grow increasingly assertive. The piece moves through multiple moods, from abstract soundscapes to more structured melodic sections. Just when it reaches peak intensity, everything suddenly drops to near silence, shimmering cymbals and bowed bass creating an entirely new atmosphere before building to a rhapsodic conclusion.
“Rain Drop” opens with delicate staccato notes that truly fall like raindrops before expanding in unexpected directions. Light piano notes scatter while the bass picks at strings and the drummer adds minimal beats. The piano repeats its phrase throughout, sometimes quietly, sometimes with rumbling left-hand parts. Classical runs blend with the bass’s shift to a bowed, cello-like sound. Those near-silent moments, broken only by gentle cymbal touches and sparse snare, make the shimmering bass and clustered piano notes feel like a rainstorm coming to life.
For nearly three decades, Satoko Fujii has carved her own unique path through improvised music, blurring the lines between jazz, contemporary classical, rock, and Japanese folk traditions. In 2022, she released her 100th album as a leader, HYAKU, ONE HUNDRED DREAMS, an amazing milestone. Throughout her career, Fujii has commanded an impressive range of ensembles, from intimate duos to sprawling jazz orchestras, consistently challenging the conventional boundaries between composed structure and spontaneous creation.
With DREAM A DREAM, Fujii and her Tokyo Trio offer yet another provocative chapter in her extraordinary musical journey, one that reminds us why she remains one of the most vital and inventive voices in contemporary improvised music.
