Kaoru Watanabe

Kaoru Watanabe
Born (1975-07-03) July 3, 1975
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
GenresJazz
OccupationMusician
Instruments
  • Drums
  • flute
Years active1999–present

Kaoru Watanabe (born July 3, 1975) is a Japanese-American composer, flautist, percussionist, improviser, curator, and artistic director.

Early life and education

Kaoru was born to Japanese parents Haruka and Ayako Watanabe in St. Louis, Missouri, on July 3, 1975. His parents were a violinist and a harpist in the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra.[1] He is a graduate of the Manhattan School of Music, where he studied jazz flute and saxophone.[2]

Career in Japan

Post-graduation, Watanabe moved to Japan in 1997, where he studied nohkan under Hiroyuki Matsuda of the Morita School, shinobue under Kyosuke Suzuki of the Wakayama Shachu and drumming under Tosha Kiyonari at Nihon Taiko Dojo. In 1999, he joined the Sado Island-based taiko group Kodo. Watanabe became the first American performer and artistic director of Kodo.[3][4]

Career in the USA

Watanabe is a well known collaborator working with artists like Wes Anderson, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Laurie Anderson, Jason Moran, Yo-Yo Ma, Eva Yerbabuena, Yo-Yo Ma's Silkroad Ensemble[5], and Rhiannon Giddens, among others.[6][7][8][9] He is also working on film music, contributed to the music in movies like Silence,[10] "Ultraman: Rising",[11] "Shrek Forever After", and "Isle of Dogs".[12] Since 2017 he has collaborated with Adam Rudolph in his albums and live performances.[13][14]

Watanabe established the Kaoru Watanabe Taiko Center and performs with the Kaoru Watanabe Taiko Center Ensemble.[15]

In 2024, Watanabe launched and became the artistic director of the Bloodlines Interwoven Festival, featuring artists like Layale Chaker, Mino Cinélu, Amir ElSaffar, Matt Garrison, Maeve Gilchrist, Alicia Hall Moran, Susie Ibarra, Martha Redbone, Jen Shyu, Nasheet Waits, Du Yun, Jeffrey Zeigler and others.[16][17][18][19][20] Among many performances around the country, he has performed at the Lincoln Center in New York.[21]

In 2023 he was teaching as Artist-In-Residence at the Loyola University.[22] He is also teaching using the platform kaDON, which aims at supporting the taiko community with access to instructors and musical instruments.[23] Watanabe has also taught courses at Princeton University, Wesleyan University, Colby College, and Dickinson College.[24] He is also part of the artistic family at The Canales Project.[25]

In 2016 he published an album, Néo, "a synthesis of dignified taiko drumming with the jazz sensibility of improvisation".[26]

References

  1. ↑ Kerman, Byron (28 February 2001). "Drum and Drummer". River Front Times. Retrieved 28 February 2025.
  2. ↑ Hunter-Ishikawa, Eien (12 December 2021). "Interview: Kaoru Watanabe talks Japanese etiquette, studying, teaching, and performing". Eien Hunter-Ishikawa web site. Retrieved 28 February 2025.
  3. ↑ "Kaoru Watanabe". All About Jazz. 13 April 2016. Retrieved 28 February 2025.
  4. ↑ "Japanese music ensemble comes to Carlisle by Jess Hayden". The Sentinel. 2013-11-21. p. 19. Retrieved 2026-02-04.
  5. ↑ "SILKROAD". Silkroad. 31 December 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2026.
  6. ↑ "Kaoru Watanabe". Barishnikov Arts. 1 March 2025. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  7. ↑ Diamond, Jason (2024-12-16). "Is Mikhail Baryshnikov the Last of the Highbrow Superstars?". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-02-04.
  8. ↑ Pellegrinelli, Lara (2018-01-05). "'Breaking Ice' Makes Music From a Classic Skating Rivalry". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-02-04.
  9. ↑ Times, The New York (2007-03-16). "Pop and Rock Listings". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-02-04.
  10. ↑ Sulcas, Roslyn (2018-10-02). "In Seville, a Flamenco Festival With Folk Roots and Some Forward Thinking". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-02-04.
  11. ↑ "Ultraman: Rising Was "One Of The Hardest Things" Composer Scot Stafford Ever Worked On". Screen Rant. 6 November 2024. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  12. ↑ "Kaoru Watanabe's taiko composition in "Isle of Dogs" movie takes center stage". iExaminer. 30 March 2018. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  13. ↑ "Amazon Music". Amazon. 12 August 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2025.
  14. ↑ "Adam Rudolph Sunrise Quartet". Firehouse 12. 24 May 2024. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  15. ↑ "Galactic Pulses: The Best Moments of Make Music New York". The New York Times. 2017-06-23. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-02-04.
  16. ↑ "Bloodlines Interwoven Festival". Baryshnikov Arts. 10 June 2024. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  17. ↑ "Bloodlines Interwoven Festival". Bloodlines Interwove. 31 December 2025. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
  18. ↑ Big Ears Festival Knoxville - website of the Big Ears Festival for 2026
  19. ↑ Kaoru Watanabe and Bloodlines Interwoven – Mexican Government Website
  20. ↑ "Watch: Live Music Meditation At The Greene Space | WQXR Features". WQXR. 2020-01-24. Retrieved 2026-02-04.
  21. ↑ "Lincoln Center". Lincoln Center David Rubenstein Atrium. 1 May 2022. Retrieved 22 February 2026.
  22. ↑ "Loyola University Chicago". Loyola University. 22 March 2023. Retrieved 22 February 2026.
  23. ↑ "kaDON". About Kaoru. 22 February 2026. Retrieved 22 February 2026.
  24. ↑ "Dickinson College". Abundant Talent, Generous Spirit. 23 November 2013. Retrieved 22 February 2026.
  25. ↑ "The Canales Project". Kaoru Watanabe. 22 February 2026. Retrieved 22 February 2026.
  26. ↑ "All About Jazz". All About Jazz. 13 April 2016. Retrieved 22 February 2026.
This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.