AKIKO GRACE
Genres: Post-Fusion Contemporary, Post Bop • Japan

Born in Kanagawa, Japan, Akiko began to play piano at the age of 3, surrounded by the pupils of her mother who taught classical piano at home. In her early teenage she started to take a deep interest in improvisational music, fascinated by the music of jazz greats such as John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Lennie Tristano and Paul Bley, to name a few.   While attended Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music, she decided to take a sabbatical study to attend Berklee College of Music, resulting in choosing her second home in Boston and eventually New York City for the sake of music.     In 2002, Akiko Grace released her debut album “From New York”, on the Savoy label for Columbia Music Entertainment Japan as  Savoy's first Japanese artist.   Akiko Grace displayed a deft touch with a driving force in remarkably crystalline piano melodies. “From New York” read more...