Ignore the Label

If you don't cringe when you hear the term smooth jazz -- with its connotations of elevator Muzak and Kenny G's polenta sax noodling -- then this publication might not be for you. But if the genre needs a savior, it might be the lovely Keiko Matsui, a Japanese child...

By John Thomason

October 4, 2012

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If you don't cringe when you hear the term smooth jazz -- with its connotations of elevator Muzak and Kenny G's polenta sax noodling -- then this publication might not be for you. But if the genre needs a savior, it might be the lovely Keiko Matsui, a Japanese child prodigy who started in classical piano and developed an affinity for jazz in music school. More than 40 albums have followed, beginning with her '80s band Cosmos. She released three albums in 2003 alone, and she's performed with Stevie Wonder and Miles Davis. You can forgive her the "smooth jazz" label, as she's expanded her sonic footprint to flirt with funk, soundscapes, Latin, New Age, and world beat. She's supporting her 2011 release, The Road, at 8 p.m. Thursday at Broward Center for the Performing Arts, located at 201 SW Fifth Ave. in Fort Lauderdale. Tickets cost $40 to $50. Call 954-462-0222, or visit browardcenter.org.
Thu., Oct. 11, 8 p.m., 2012

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