Junko Moriya Orchestra

Live at Tokyo TUC
Tuesday April 16

Junko Moriya—piano, leader
Orchestra members (many)

The Junko Moriya Orchestra doesn’t break any new big band ground, but they don’t need to search for new territory, their soil is fertile as is. Sitting squarely within the big band tradition doesn’t mean simply recycling worn phrases and standard orchestration, however. Moriya’s orchestra sounds fresh and energetic. As a leader, she creates dynamic charts and knows how to use her sidemen. Combining originals and nice choices from Count Basie and Thelonius Monk, her scores have a crisp sense of what harmonic balances and rhythmic interactions release the greatest amount of energy. It helps that her players are all top-notch. They obviously knew ahead when their solos were coming, but their preparation added to the eloquence rather than detracted from the spontaneity. Every solo shimmered, but several stood out. On Moriya’s “A Touch of Monk” Kazuhiko Kondo danced back and forth over the line between free jazz and straight with an ironic sense that Monk would have appreciated. Eric Miyashiro took the ballad solo on “Over There,” moving smoothly through the pretty melodies with a cool, controlled tone. Atsushi Tsuzurano’s sax solo also stood out for its sharpness and overall sense. The other soloists used excellence as a common denominator. The solos were made easier of course with the support from the rhythm section. Bassist Koichi Osamu plucks deep and steady, giving Masahiko Osaka plenty of room to maneuver. Osaka’s presence on any record or stage creates an unqualified dynamic, but the big band seems to encourage his wilder, exuberant side. Moriya on piano added the right splashes of color behind both the full band and solos. She leads with an unstated power. I’d hate to be the one to flub a solo for her, but her elegance and presence was  enough to ensure that never happened. Rather just the opposite, the band had a punchy, solid drive at every moment. The musicians were as pleased as the wall-to-wall fans, and Moriya looked pleased herself. Hopefully that means there will be more live shows and another CD coming soon.