Yasushi Nakamura is a distinguished bassist known for his exceptional contributions to the jazz genre. He has collaborated with renowned artists, including the celebrated vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant, showcasing his talent in various prestigious performances. One of his notable appearances is at the upcoming Cécile McLorin Salvant Special Event at Princeton University, scheduled for October 9, 2024. This event promises to be a remarkable evening, blending Baroque music, vaudeville, and folkloric traditions from Europe and the Americas, with Nakamura playing a pivotal role in the ensemble. His involvement in the creative work "Book of Ayres" by Salvant further highlights his artistic versatility and commitment to innovative musical expressions. With a rich background in both classical and contemporary music, Nakamura continues to captivate audiences with his profound musicality and collaborative spirit. As he prepares for this exciting performance, fans and music enthusiasts alike can look forward to an unforgettable experience that celebrates the fusion of diverse musical traditions.

Bassist

### Cécile McLorin Salvant Special Event at Princeton University

**Event:** Cécile McLorin Salvant Special Event  
**Date:** Wednesday, October 9, 2024  
**Time:** 7:30 PM - 9:30 PM EDT  
**Venue:** Richardson Auditorium, Alexander Hall, Princeton University

#### Event Description:
Join us for an extraordinary evening with the legendary jazz vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant, accompanied by an ensemble of renowned musicians. This special event will feature a unique fusion of Baroque music, vaudeville, Sappho, and folkloric material from Europe and the Americas, creating a new type of folk song inspired by timeless and universal stories. Salvant, celebrated as one of the greatest jazz singers of her generation, will bring her exceptional storytelling and vocal prowess to the stage, blending old and new musical traditions.

#### Performers:
- **Cécile McLorin Salvant:** Vocals
- **Sullivan Fortner:** Piano/Harpsichord/Keyboards
- **Emi Ferguson:** Flute
- **Dušan Balarin:** Theorbo/Lute
- **Yasushi Nakamura:** Bass
- **Keita Ogawa:** Percussion

#### Ticket Information:
- **Curated Subscription:** Available as part of a curated subscription package.
- **Make-Your-Own Series:** Customize your own series and include this event.
- **Princeton University Student Early Bird Program:** Special early bird tickets for Princeton students.
- **Single Tickets:** Go on sale on Monday, August 5 at noon Eastern time.

#### Additional Information:
- **Parking and Accessibility:** Get directions, see parking and accessibility info, and download seating charts.
- **Contact:** For more information, call 609-258-2800.

Don't miss this opportunity to experience a night of innovative and captivating music with Cécile McLorin Salvant and her ensemble. Add this event to your calendar and be part of an unforgettable musical journey.

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Cécile McLorin Salvant, Vocals

Alexander Hall

Join tenor master, clarinetist, and longtime JLCO member and music director Victor Goines as he leads his 4-piece ensemble at Dizzy’s Club. An artist of compelling versatility, Goines has collaborated with a diverse roster of leaders, including Ahmad Jamal, Ruth Brown, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Ray Charles, Bob Dylan, Dizzy Gillespie, Lenny Kravitz, Branford Marsalis, Diana Ross, and Stevie Wonder.

Victor Goines Quartet

Jazz at Lincoln Center

Dubbed a rising star by DownBeat’s Critics Poll, pianist and composer Lawrence Fields has been a key member of multiple forward-thinking, critically acclaimed ensembles, including those led by Joe Lovano, Dave Douglas, and Chief Adjuah (formerly Christian Scott). Fields’ new trio delivers a fluid, spontaneous approach to musical interplay, bonding past with present. This one-night event at Dizzy’s Club features Yasushi Nakamura on bass and Mark Whitfield, Jr. on drums, and celebrates Fields’ recent debut release To the Surface. 

Lawrence Fields Trio

Comprising four Americans from different cultural backgrounds, the American Patchwork Quartet are activists as well as artists, striving to counter pervasive prejudices around the issues of race and immigration, performing a repertoire of centuries-old American folk songs made new with creative arrangements, drawing connections between the nation’s contemporary culture and its immigrant roots. Led by Grammy-winning vocalist Falu Shah, Grammy-winning guitarist/vocalist Clay Ross, 3x Grammy-winning drummer Clarence Penn, and highly acclaimed and sought-after bassist Yasushi Nakamura, APQ breathes new life into the folk canon, accepting accountability for the future of a country both hospitable and hostile towards those that believe most fervently in its dreams of equality.

American Patchwork Quartet

McCarter Theatre Center

Acclaimed pianist/composer and 2021 Guggenheim Fellow Helen Sung presents Quartet+, her latest release on Sunnyside Records. Having lived much of her life at the intersection of different worlds — classical and jazz, and as the American-born daughter of Chinese immigrants — her desire to harmonize these worlds with joy and humanity is at the heart of Quartet+, which celebrates women’s artistry and their music. Vividly blending the jazz and classical worlds, Quartet+ takes the listener on a ride through musical time and space with new original compositions by Helen as well as her arrangements of works by landmark women including Geri Allen, Mary Lou Williams, Toshiko Akiyoshi, Carla Bley, and Marian McPartland.

Helen Sung, RJAM piano

Bowes Center

A native of Baku, Azerbaijan, Amina Figarova has risen from her upbringing behind the Iron Curtain to become of the most celebrated pianists and composers on the international jazz scene.

A prodigy who began piano studies at the age of 2, she earned degree in classical piano performance before relocating to Rotterdam and devoting her passions to jazz, eventually landing at Boston’s Berklee College as part of a student exchange program. Combining her classical technique with a love for the music of Oscar Peterson and Duke Ellington, Figarova has released over a dozen exquisite sessions, beginning with her 1994 debut album, Attraction.

Amina Figarova Sextet

SFJAZZ Center

“The quartet's goal is purposeful: to unleash music's magic to help counteract pervasive prejudices around immigration and race” (Montana Public Radio).

On a mission to reclaim the immigrant soul of American folk and roots music, Hindustani vocalist Falu Shah, Ranky Tanky guitarist and co-founder Clay Ross, acclaimed Issei bassist Yasushi Nakamura, and master jazz drummer Clarence Penn showcase the dynamic diversity of contemporary culture by reimagining timeless songs from America's past that highlight the country’s immigrant roots.

Experience the magic of jazz at its finest with the Monterey Jazz Festival On Tour, featuring an ensemble of jazz luminaries including Dee Dee Bridgewater, Kurt Elling, Lakecia Benjamin, Christian Sands, Yasushi Nakamura, and Clarence Penn. This special event is set to take place on Thursday, April 20, 2023, at 8:00 PM at The Music Center at Strathmore.

Celebrating its 65th anniversary, the Monterey Jazz Festival is one of the jazz world's most enduring and essential institutions. The tour brings together an unparalleled lineup of talent, with NEA Jazz Master, Grammy and Tony Award-winner Dee Dee Bridgewater and Grammy winner Kurt Elling leading the charge. Under the musical direction of five-time Grammy nominee Christian Sands, this ensemble promises an unforgettable evening of jazz excellence.

The performance will showcase the artistry of 2020’s DownBeat Critics Poll Rising Star Alto Saxophonist Lakecia Benjamin, alongside the dynamic rhythm section of bassist Yasushi Nakamura and drummer Clarence Penn. This event is not just a concert but a celebration of jazz's rich history and its vibrant future.

Co-presented with Strathmore, the Monterey Jazz Festival On Tour is a highlight of Washington Performing Arts’s The World in Our City initiative, promoting cross-cultural understanding and cultural diplomacy. Don't miss this opportunity to savor the world-renowned sound of the Monterey Jazz Festival right here in the DMV.

Monterey Jazz Festival On Tour

The Music Center at Strathmore

The singular Cécile McLorin Salvant is a composer, singer, and visual artist. Salvant has developed a passion for storytelling and finding the connections between vaudeville, blues, folk traditions from around the world, theater, jazz, and baroque music. Salvant is an eclectic curator, unearthing rarely recorded, forgotten songs with strong narratives, interesting power dynamics, unexpected twists, and humor. Salvant won the Thelonious Monk competition in 2010. She has received Grammy Awards for Best Jazz Vocal Album for her 3 latest albums, The Window, Dreams and Daggers, and For One To Love. In 2020, Salvant received the MacArthur fellowship and the Doris Duke Artist Award. In 2020, Salvant created Yolk, a virtual cross-disciplinary performance space. It features her own hand-drawn animation, compositions, and music, in collaboration with dancers, visual artists, musicians, and actors from around the world.

Cécile McLorin Salvant

Bass Concert Hall

Last we saw Cécile McLorin Salvant, one of the great jazz singers, she held a Jackson Hall audience captive with her majestic song cycle Ogresse. It would be the last performance before the Mondavi Center shut down for a 19-month, pandemic-related pause. Now the singer returns with Ghost Song, a remarkable album born during the pandemic, on which Salvant interprets songs from Kate Bush, Gregory Porter alongside her stunning original compositions. It’s another reminder that Salvant is an artist whose voice and artistry continue to grow with every new step she takes. “People think that I sing love songs, but more and more I’m realizing that I sing about yearning and the imagination that comes from wanting something and not having it,” says Salvant.  “That’s really when we’re at our most creative.”

Cécile McLorin Salvant Quintet

Robert and Margrit Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts

One of the jazz world’s longest-running and most-iconic events, the Monterey Jazz Festival celebrates its 65th year with a must-hear once-in-a-lifetime ensemble. Featuring Tony- and Grammy Award-winning NEA Jazz Master vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater alongside Grammy Award-winning vocalist Kurt Elling and critically acclaimed rising-star saxophonist Lakecia Benjamin, this stellar band will be directed by visionary pianist Christian Sands and anchored by his longtime rhythm section, bassist Yasushi Nakamura and drummer Clarence Penn.

Walt Disney Concert Hall

For 65 years, the Monterey Jazz Festival has played host to the greatest names in jazz. Now hear a collection of outstanding jazz stars in one performance as the Monterey Jazz Festival goes on tour.

McCallum Theatre

The illustrious Monterey Jazz Festival once again sends six of its finest jazz ambassadors to Berkeley as part of its popular touring program. Multiple-Grammy-winning vocalists Dee Dee Bridgewater, among the “best-rounded and unique jazz vocalists singing today” (All About Jazz), and Kurt Elling, “the standout male jazz vocalist of our time” (The New York Times), scat, swoon, and soar as they bring swing standards, moody ballads, bop favorites, and Latin hits to life. The hard-swinging band is led by pianist Christian Sands, with rising-star saxophonist Lakecia Benjamin (Missy Elliott, Alicia Keys), and the well-oiled rhythm section of bassist Yasushi Nakamura (Wynton Marsalis, Hank Jones) and drummer Clarence Penn (Betty Carter, Maria Schneider).

Monterey Jazz Festival on Tour

University of California, Berkeley

This special event transforms The Conrad for the spellbinding, once-in-a-generation vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant, a multi-GRAMMY-winner and MacArthur Fellow. Salvant has a captivating passion for storytelling and weaves together jazz, blues, Baroque, and folk traditions from the world over. This evening’s concert will feature works from her new album, Ghost Song, her “most revealing and rewarding album yet” (The New York Times). You’ll leave the concert entranced, but don’t float away too soon. Stick around after the show for the best of San Diego’s culinary scene, craft cocktails, and more live music.

Synergy Under the Influence: Cécile McLorin Salvant

Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center

Join us for an unforgettable evening of music and storytelling with "This Land is Our Land," featuring the Martha Redbone Roots Project and the American Patchwork Quartet. This special performance is scheduled for February 28, 2025, at 8:00 pm, taking place in the iconic Zellerbach Hall. Tickets start at $36, with season subscriptions available now and single tickets going on sale at noon on August 6.

"This Land is Our Land" brings together the soulful voice of Martha Redbone, a renowned roots music singer and songwriter, with the genre-defying American Patchwork Quartet. Together, they explore the United States' rich cultural tapestry through music. Redbone, with her southeastern Cherokee/Choctaw and African American heritage, crafts uplifting songs that celebrate the human spirit. Her music, infused with the folk and blues sounds of her childhood in the Appalachian Mountains of Kentucky, aims to share powerful, profound messages that resonate with audiences.

The performance will feature Martha Redbone on guitar and vocals, Clay Ross on guitar and vocals, Falguni Shah on vocals, Yasushi Nakamura on bass, and Ocie Davis on drums. This event is a part of Cal Performances’ Illuminations: Fractured History programming for the 2024-25 season, promising an evening that not only entertains but enlightens.

For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit the Cal Performances website. Don't miss this opportunity to experience a unique musical journey that celebrates the diversity and history of America through the power of song.

Yasushi Nakamura

Bassist

Events

Upcoming events

Feb 28, 2025

This Land is Our Land · Cal Performances

Past events

Oct 9, 2024

Cécile McLorin Salvant, Vocals · Princeton University Concerts

17 - 19 May, 2024

Victor Goines Quartet · Jazz at Lincoln Center

Future and recently performed repertoire

Bass in Book of Ayres by Salvant

Princeton University Concerts

About

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