Nobu

Described by The Observer as the “definition of virtuosity” Nobu, who has been blind from birth, won the joint Gold Medal at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 2009 and has gone on to earn an international reputation for the passion and excitement he brings to his live performances. Having given critically acclaimed debuts at Carnegie Hall, the BBC Proms and the Wiener Musikverein, Nobu regularly performs worldwide with orchestras such as the Mariinsky, Philharmonia, NHK Symphony orchestras, Münchner Philharmoniker and Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin under the baton of conductors such as Valery Gergiev, Vladimir Ashkenazy and Yukata Sado.

Bassist Buster Williams had one of his few opportunities to lead a record session on this diverse set which has been reissued on CD (with an alternate take of "I Dream Too Much" added to the original program). Of the six selections, Williams has a duet apiece with Kenny Barron (who plays electric piano), pianist Jimmy Rowles and vibraphonist Roy Ayers ("My Funny Valentine"). Two other numbers feature the quartet of Williams, Ayers, Barron and drummer Billy Hart while the leader's original "Prism" has the quartet joined by singer Suzanne Klewan and percussionist Nobu Urushiyama. The music ranges from slightly commercial to introspective and hard swinging, and its variety (plus an opportunity to hear bassist Williams in the lead) are two good reasons for postbop jazz collectors to pick up this CD.

On November 10, 2011, Nobuyuki Tsujii, the blind pianist from Japan who was the winner of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition Gold Medal in 2009 appeared on the stage of Carnegie Hall. His dream had come true. Arguably the most important event in the career of any performer, for "Nobu" it was a miracle. With his brilliant technique and beautiful tone, he contrasts familiar warhorses with newer pieces, including one of his own compositions, written in memory of the victims of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami in March 2011.