I like fireworks. My favorite is the simple flash of light followed by the chest thumping BANG! I’m impatient for the end of a fireworks show, when they send them up one after another. Each BANG! overpowers the crackles and pops, demanding attention. Just when you think it’s over, one final flash and BLAM! End of show!
Sitting a mere 5 feet away from Hiromi was like sitting amidst a barrage of flash bangs. It is not an overstatement to say that she is one of the best jazz musicians alive today. She is also one of the most exciting to watch. She combines virtuosic technique with an unlimited jazz vocabulary.
Since her last performance in Minnesota 9 years ago, her fame has continued to skyrocket. Today she fills stadiums all over the world. When I got the email that she was going to be at the Dakota, I immediately booked two sets.
According to the announcement, she is working on new material and chose the Dakota in Minneapolis and Yoshi’s in Oakland to debut new material before going into the studio to record.
It isn’t surprising that the Dakota was chosen. I have been bragging about the Dakota since I started going in the mid-nineties. Great jazz and great food. This was confirmed by an article about Lowell Pickett, the owner, that appeared in MspStPl magazine.
Hiromi’s performance is the definition of flow. When she plays she gyrates, stands, crouches, moves her feet, legs, body as if she were dancing. At one point during a solo she had both feet off the ground and knees bouncing rhythmically as they approached her chest.
It was a mind-blowing performance. Much gratitude to have been able to share the same space.
For folks who wonder why I like living in Minnesota, the Dakota is reason enough.
