Trombonist Nana Sakamoto Making Serious Inroads on the Jazz Scene

Every year South Orange Performing Arts Center holds h a wonderful event. It called Giants of Jazz which is in its 2#nd Year . Our man Bandleader etc John Lee along with our recently departed Jazz Advocate Lee Boz May ( see njjs) call together some of the best professional seasoned musicians in the country. All the seasoned pros get together and magic happens. Every now and then a newbie shows up and gives us a special treat, This year a trombonist appeared play wonderfully and disappeared before I could secure her name. So I was very happy to come across this article from New Jersey Jazz Society Publicity Director , Sanford Josephson who talks about this 24 Year old trombonist, Nana Sakamotoa, who is a rising star in the Jazz industry - enjoy.

Alto saxophonist Vincent Herring first heard Nana Sakamoto play the trombone in 2017 at a Monday night jam session at Smoke, the jazz club on New York’s Upper West Side. “I heard her play one song,” Herring said, “and I knew she was special.” So special that he invited her to play with his ensemble.

The 24-year-old Sakamoto started playing trombone at the age of 10 in the big band at her elementary school in Niikappu Cho, near Hokkaido, Japan. “My older sister joined the band first,” she said, “and I got inspired by it, so I decided to join, too. I started on the trumpet, but because there were so many trumpeters and few trombonists, my teacher switched me to trombone.”

Her visit to New York in 2017 was a “sightseeing trip. As we all know,” she said, “New York is the center of jazz in the world. I wanted to come here to see the greatest musicians and hear the music from its source.” She returned to Japan but was back in New York a year later and resumed going to jam sessions at Smoke as well as the now defunct Cleopatra’s Needle. “I also knew some Japanese musicians who were living and playing here,” she said, “so they helped me a lot, too.”

Herring, who describes Sakamoto as “an excellent reader, a great improviser, and a nice young lady,” paired her with a young “saxophone prodigy from Japan named Erena Terakubo. The two of them together are amazing,” he said. “Nana and Erena are on the way to being players of note. Both are celebrated in Japan. Now they are in America, the cradle of jazz. They are here to make a mark, and both are doing so.” Terakubo and Sakamoto have a quintet together and have performed at Smoke and Birdland. New Jersey jazz fans received a surprise taste of Sakamoto’s playing last November at the South Orange Performing Arts Center during the Giants of Jazz concert honoring the late pianist Harold Mabern. Veteran trombonist Steve Davis introduced her, and they played a duet together. Davis first heard about Sakamoto from Herring and said bassist John Lee, producer of the Giants of Jazz concert, suggested the duet. “Nana and I had already gotten together for a lesson and a few other times to jam together with my son, guitarist Tony Davis,” he said. “I also invited her to several gigs to listen and sometimes sit in,” he added. “Nana’s a very talented and musical player -- a natural musician and fine trombonist. She is already making a name for herself here on the NYC jazz scene and will certainly do the same in her native Japan.”

Vibraphonist/pianist/drummer Mark Sherman met Sakamoto at a jam session at Herring’s house and “was so taken by her playing and maturity for her age that I decided to give her an opportunity to play on a recording with [bassist] Ray Drummond, [drummer] Carl Allen, Vincent, and myself. I love helping out the younger generation of up-and-coming players.” The album, My Other Voice, was released in January 2019 on the Miles High Records label. It was Sherman’s 18th CD as a leader, this time playing only piano. In his review in the UK Jazz Journal, Derek Ansell pointed out that the opening track, “Primitive Reality”, “is mid-tempo and gives Herring, trombonist Sakamoto and the leader a chance to exercise their chops to good effect.”

Sherman, who teaches at Juilliard, pointed out that Sakamoto, “never attended college. She grew up playing and learning the music the same way I did, by transcribing from recordings and studying the language. She had nothing more than a private teacher, and she joined a big band at some point in Japan. Today, most kids go to jazz schools and study for many years with professionals like myself, but Nana learned it herself . . . old school. I simply love that. I am working on some opportunities to try and record her as a solo artist for my label, Miles High Records. I hope to accomplish this.”

Sakamoto’s main influence on trombone, she said, was “J.J. Johnson. I like his sound and rhythm a lot. When I listened to his playing for the first time, I was shocked. I didn’t know anyone who could play so clearly, fluently, and rhythmically. The first transcription I made of him was ‘Billie’s Bounce’ from his album, At The Opera House (a live album recorded in 1957 with Stan Getz on the Verve label). After that, I transcribed many more of his solos. I also like his original tunes and arrangements. My teacher in Japan, Hirotsugu Sakemoto, is also a big influence on my playing. He was actually the person who made the decision of switching me to trombone back then. Other important influences on my playing are trumpet players such as Clifford Brown, Freddie Hubbard, and Tom Harrell. I have transcribed and studied their music.”

In New York, Sakamoto said, “Everyone I met has been very kind and helpful, despite my English not being very good when I arrived.” In addition to Herring, Davis, and Sherman, “Bassist John Lee helped me a lot. He offered me such unique opportunities to play, and the experience I have gained from playing with him will certainly stay with me throughout my music career.”

Like every jazz musician, Sakamoto’s live jazz appearances came to an abrupt end in March due to the coronavirus. As she waits for the live music scene to recover, she has started offering online trombone lessons. “Everyone can take lessons from all over the world,” she said, “and I can teach in English or Japanese. The topics are basic training, jazz theory, improvisations, and how to play with a big band.” Potential students can contact her via email at nanasakamoto.tb@gmail.com or at https://jazzrjb7.wixsite.com/n....

By New Jersey Jazz Society Publicity Vice President Sanford J0sephson