Listening to this trio is like standing at the confluence of three large, surging rivers. The three musical currents flow together into a powerful new music that rises over the banks and floods the senses. The trio’s show at Koen-Dori Classics was a testament to how musicians with such different backgrounds and approaches can create truly masterful improvised music.

What makes this big band special is not just the stellar musicianship and intriguing arrangements, but the original approach to tunes based on, adapted from and influenced by Japanese music. That multi-cultural approach to creating music is, after all, at the heart of jazz.

The trio layers on delicate musical tissues, waiting to be teased apart into fuller imaginings.