Quiet Passion

With Quiet Passion, pianist Yuko Fujiyama finally releases anotheralbum as a leader after a long break from publishing. For this eagerlyawaited addition to her sparse discography, Yuko invites the greatinnovators Graham Haynes on cornet and Ikue Mori on electronics.The album is a mix of piano solos, duets and extraordinarily imaginativedensely woven miniatures. Quiet Passion suggests a dual intentionin both the title and the music - a cross-pollination of emotionsthat the three musicians impressively create. Regarding the instrumentation,Yuko says: "Good musicians listening to one another. Ilike totally free, because - I'm free, and anything I hear at thatmoment is allowed." Laurence Donohue-Greene writes in the linernotes: "It may have taken 17 years of woodshedding - in essenceshedding off layers and decades of influences ranging from CecilTaylor and Marilyn Crispell to Beethoven and Japanese composer-Takemitsu - but she has gotten to the core of a very personal style,as if discovering within herself a finely cut diamond." A defining characteristicof Quiet Passion is keeping the listener in suspense, witheach piece developing a magical appeal.