Ryo Fukui (福居良, Fukui Ryō, June 1, 1948 – March 15, 2016) was a Japanese jazz pianist based in Sapporo. He played regularly at the "Slowboat" jazz club in Sapporo, which he and his wife Yasuko owned. Fukui taught and performed internationally until his death in 2016. His work has seen a spike in popularity after his death, with several reissues of his albums.
Fukui began his life in music by learning the accordion at age 18. At the age of 22, he began to teach himself piano and soon moved to Tokyo. Fukui met occasionally with saxophonist Hidehiko Matsumoto who offered valuable encouragement and guidance to the aspiring pianist. Nonetheless, Fukui was often disheartened, feeling as though he was not making significant improvement in his playing.[1]
Six years after moving to Tokyo, in 1976, Fukui released his first album, Scenery,[2][3] and his second album, Mellow Dream, the year after. He continued improving his skills over the following years in live performance, often appearing in a trio including Satoshi Denpo, Yoshinori Fukui (Ryo's brother), and himself. The trio would often play at the Shinjuku Pit Inn, Kichijōji "Sometime" jazz club and the "Jazz Inn Lovely" in Nagoya. Fukui also began to perform overseas in France and America as well as beginning to teach jazz piano to students internationally.
1990s–2015
Fukui and Harris
In 1992 during his visit to America, Fukui met Barry Harris, an American jazz pianist from Detroit.[4] The two went on to become close friends with Harris becoming a mentor figure to Fukui and helped him develop his technique in bebop. In 1994, a third album, My Favourite Tune, was recorded and released featuring Fukui on solo piano playing several original works as well as renditions of songs such as "My Conception" by Sonny Clark and "After Hours" by Avery Parrish. This album was followed by In New York four years later, in trio with the drummer Leroy Williams and the bassist Lisle Arthur Atkinson. In 1995 Fukui went on to open the Slowboat jazz club which attracted many local jazz players as well as international.[5] He would also go on to offer lessons and workshops to pass on his knowledge of music to others. Fukui's final album, A Letter From Slowboat was released in 2015—recorded live during his time at the Slowboat jazz club.
Death and legacy
Fukui died on March 15, 2016, of lymphoma. After his death, his widow Yasuko Fukui took over the Slowboat jazz club, running its day-to-day operations. Fukui's longtime friend Barry Harris has since been seen playing his song Fukai Aijo (深い愛情) and dedicating his performance to Fukui.
Online presence
Japanese jazz experienced a resurgence in popularity in the late 2010s, with Fukui and especially his album Scenery being at the forefront of renewed interest. Fukui's music has made its way into popular internet culture, as much of his work has been uploaded onto popular streaming platforms such as YouTube and Apple Music. This resurgence in Fukui's work has cultivated a large audience of collectors seeking the vinyl releases of his work.[6]
Accolades
Fukui received the Sapporo Culture Encouragement Prize in 2012.[7]
^"Ryo Fukui - jazz live SLOWBOAT" (in Japanese). September 25, 2013. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
^Year By Year: Five Essential Albums of 1976 - JAZZIZ Magazine
^Lost In Time: A retrospective on Ryo Fukui 'Scenery'|The Michigan Daily
^"English guide | jazz live SLOWBOAT". Retrieved 2019-10-07.
^"English guide | jazz live SLOWBOAT". Retrieved 2019-10-07.
^Rosean, Sam (2017-01-01). "Artists From Japan #3: An Introduction to Ryo Fukui". Overblown. Retrieved 2019-10-07.
^"Heisei 24-nendo jushō-sha no shōkai" 平成24年度受賞者の紹介 [Recipients of the Heisei 24 Awards] (in Japanese). City of Sapporo. February 15, 2013. Retrieved September 14, 2018.
External links
Jazz Slowboat
Official YouTube channel
AllMusic
January 25, 2023
fukui, 福居良, fukui, ryō, june, 1948, march, 2016, japanese, jazz, pianist, based, sapporo, played, regularly, slowboat, jazz, club, sapporo, which, wife, yasuko, owned, fukui, taught, performed, internationally, until, death, 2016, work, seen, spike, popularity. Ryo Fukui 福居良 Fukui Ryō June 1 1948 March 15 2016 was a Japanese jazz pianist based in Sapporo He played regularly at the Slowboat jazz club in Sapporo which he and his wife Yasuko owned Fukui taught and performed internationally until his death in 2016 His work has seen a spike in popularity after his death with several reissues of his albums Ryo FukuiFukui at the piano performing at The Glee Background informationBirth nameRyo Fukui 福居良 Born 1948 06 01 June 1 1948Biratori Hokkaido JapanDiedMarch 15 2016 2016 03 15 aged 67 Sapporo Hokkaido JapanGenresJazzOccupation s Composer pianistInstrument s PianoYears active1976 2016 Contents 1 Early life and career 1 1 1966 1980s 1 2 1990s 2015 2 Death and legacy 2 1 Online presence 2 2 Accolades 3 Discography 3 1 Studio albums 3 2 Live albums 4 References 5 External linksEarly life and career Edit1966 1980s Edit Fukui began his life in music by learning the accordion at age 18 At the age of 22 he began to teach himself piano and soon moved to Tokyo Fukui met occasionally with saxophonist Hidehiko Matsumoto who offered valuable encouragement and guidance to the aspiring pianist Nonetheless Fukui was often disheartened feeling as though he was not making significant improvement in his playing 1 Six years after moving to Tokyo in 1976 Fukui released his first album Scenery 2 3 and his second album Mellow Dream the year after He continued improving his skills over the following years in live performance often appearing in a trio including Satoshi Denpo Yoshinori Fukui Ryo s brother and himself The trio would often play at the Shinjuku Pit Inn Kichijōji Sometime jazz club and the Jazz Inn Lovely in Nagoya Fukui also began to perform overseas in France and America as well as beginning to teach jazz piano to students internationally 1990s 2015 Edit Fukui and Harris In 1992 during his visit to America Fukui met Barry Harris an American jazz pianist from Detroit 4 The two went on to become close friends with Harris becoming a mentor figure to Fukui and helped him develop his technique in bebop In 1994 a third album My Favourite Tune was recorded and released featuring Fukui on solo piano playing several original works as well as renditions of songs such as My Conception by Sonny Clark and After Hours by Avery Parrish This album was followed by In New York four years later in trio with the drummer Leroy Williams and the bassist Lisle Arthur Atkinson In 1995 Fukui went on to open the Slowboat jazz club which attracted many local jazz players as well as international 5 He would also go on to offer lessons and workshops to pass on his knowledge of music to others Fukui s final album A Letter From Slowboat was released in 2015 recorded live during his time at the Slowboat jazz club Death and legacy EditFukui died on March 15 2016 of lymphoma After his death his widow Yasuko Fukui took over the Slowboat jazz club running its day to day operations Fukui s longtime friend Barry Harris has since been seen playing his song Fukai Aijo 深い愛情 and dedicating his performance to Fukui Online presence Edit Japanese jazz experienced a resurgence in popularity in the late 2010s with Fukui and especially his album Scenery being at the forefront of renewed interest Fukui s music has made its way into popular internet culture as much of his work has been uploaded onto popular streaming platforms such as YouTube and Apple Music This resurgence in Fukui s work has cultivated a large audience of collectors seeking the vinyl releases of his work 6 Accolades Edit Fukui received the Sapporo Culture Encouragement Prize in 2012 7 Discography EditStudio albums Edit 1976 Scenery 1977 Mellow Dream 1994 My Favorite Tune 2015 A Letter From SlowboatLive albums Edit 1977 Live at Vidro 77 released in 2021 1999 Ryo Fukui in New YorkReferences Edit Ryo Fukui jazz live SLOWBOAT in Japanese September 25 2013 Retrieved February 28 2019 Year By Year Five Essential Albums of 1976 JAZZIZ Magazine Lost In Time A retrospective on Ryo Fukui Scenery The Michigan Daily English guide jazz live SLOWBOAT Retrieved 2019 10 07 English guide jazz live SLOWBOAT Retrieved 2019 10 07 Rosean Sam 2017 01 01 Artists From Japan 3 An Introduction to Ryo Fukui Overblown Retrieved 2019 10 07 Heisei 24 nendo jushō sha no shōkai 平成24年度受賞者の紹介 Recipients of the Heisei 24 Awards in Japanese City of Sapporo February 15 2013 Retrieved September 14 2018 External links EditJazz Slowboat Official YouTube channel AllMusic Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Ryo Fukui amp oldid 1087658181, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
