The music is uncluttered and mature, appealing to ears and mind.
With haunting, memorable melodies, the combination of writer Haruki Murakami's influence and bassist Fumi Tomita's compositions is a bold statement of Asian-American identity. The Elephant Vanishes interprets seven short stories by the Japanese author that draw on themes of despair, loneliness, disconnection, and self-discovery. Equally prominent are the Western pop culture references and magical elements that decorate each story. Along with saxophonist Jason Rigby, guitarist Mike Baggetta, pianist Art Hirahara and drummer Mark Micklethwaite, Tomita reimagines Murakami's literary themes, transforming them into rich musical landscapes. Active in New York City for fifteen years, Tomita is currently on the faculty at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
Track Listing:
1. Wind-Up Bird and Tuesday's Women 5:37
2. Second Bakery Attack 4:35
3. Barn Burning 5:44
4. Part 1: The Fall of the Roman Empire 0:43
5. Part 2: 1881 Indian Uprising 6:27
6. Part 3: Hilter's Invasion of Poland 4:13
7. Part 4: The Realm of Raging Winds 3:45
8. Dancing Dwarf 8:53
9. T.V. People 6:37
10. The Elephant Vanishes 5:32
All songs by Fumi Tomita (ASCAP)
Performers:
Jason Rigby - saxophones
Mike Baggetta - guitar
Art Hirahara - piano
Mark Micklethwaite - drums
Fumi Tomita - bass
Production Info:
Produced by Fumi Tomita
Engineered and mixed by David Stoller at Samurai Hotel, Astoria, NY
Recorded June 7-8, 2018
Mastered by David Darlington at Bass Hit Recording, NY
Photographs by Sara Pettinella
Cover design & layout by John Bishop
Reviews of The Elephant Vanishes: Jazz Interpretations of the Short Stories of Haruki Murakami
Midwest Record (Chris Spector)
Even English majors might not be up on what's going on here as the bass ace does his impressionistic versions of Japanese short stories that probably fall somewhere in the range of Aesop's Fables. Often having some form of despair as their theme, some of these tracks blow forward with too much of a force to be taken that way. In any case, he knows ...
Jazz Weekly (George W. Harris)
Bassist Fumi Tomita gives "Jazz Interpretations of the Short Stories of Haruku Murakami" in a jazz vein teamed up with Jason Rigby/ts-ss, Mike Baggetta/g, Art Hirahara/p and Mark Micklehwaite/dr. Tomita takes the band on a bop trip during "Wind-Up Bird and Tuesday's Women" with warm tenor work, while Baggeta's guitar gets a bit elliptical on "Danci ...