Toru Dodo's Schedule and etc.

January's Schedule

2012-01-04T21:17:00.002+09:00

Jan.6th (Fri) Jonathan Tuzo@Anyway Cafe, NYC, 9pm
Jan.14th(Sat)Sleep No More , NYC,
Jan.17th(Tues)Mamiko Taira@TBA, NYC,9pm
Jan.18th(Wed)Ari Silverstein@Don't Tell Mama's, NYC 8pm
Jan.23rd(Mon)Sleep No More, NYC
Jan.24th(Tues) Seung-Hee Han, Cornelia St. Cafe , NYC 9pm
Jan.25th(Wed)Sleep No More, NYC
Jan. 26th(Thurs)Sleep No More, NYC

December 2011's schedule

2011-12-04T13:41:00.004+09:00

Dec.1 (Thurs) SOMI@Jamaica Performance Arts Center , Queens, NY
Dec.2(Fri) Linzey Jones and friends@Billie's Black, NYC
Dec.5 (Mon) Sleep No More, NYC
Dec.7(Wed) Joris Tepee @ Sofia's , NYC
Dec.8 (Thurs) Nippon Song Holiday Concert with Mamiko Taira@Victor Borge Hall, NYC
Dec.13 (Tues) Miki Hirose@TBA, NYC
Dec.14(Wed)Mamiko Taira@Tomi Jazz, NYC
Dec.15(Thurs)Michelle Walker@Anyway Cafe , Brooklyn
Dec.16(Fri)Jeniffer Ledesna@Anyway Cafe, NYC
Dec.22(Thurs)Pete Zimmer@Smalls, NYC
Dec.23(Fri)Jonathan Tuzo@Anyway Cafe, Manhattan, NYC
Dec.24(Sat)Steve Wipple@TBA
Dec.26(Mon)Sleep No More, NYC
Dec.28(Wed)Sleep No More, NYC

Summer 2010

2010-10-08T04:25:00.005+09:00

For me, being in the USA itself is a challenging and learning experience.
But going outside the USA carries my learning curve extra edgy.
This Summer 2010, thanks to SOMI, I went to
Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Bahrain and Holland.

Music is about your personal experience.
Experience is about who you meet, what you see, what you feel.
The trip I had this summer definitely made my life richer.
Hopefully my music I'll create will be deeper too.

(Photos)
1. SOMI at Amsterdam
2.with Dianne Reeves at Monterey Jazz Festival, CA
3.Amsterdam
4. Chillin' at Fasion Hotel in Amsterdam
5. at 2 Seas studio with prince H.H. Shelkh Abdulla bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. Bahrain

Eastern Africa tour--JAfro Live

2010-08-26T12:58:00.002+09:00

Wow, I haven't written anything since May.
Well, I'm doing fine.
I just came back from 2- week- SOMI's Eastern Africa tour.

This is my 3rd time Africa experience.
(SOMI took me Niger , Rwanda and Uganda before.)
This time, she took me Rwanda , Uganda and Kenya!.
Cool weather, dry air, Safari, bed netting, curry, fish, Tusker beer....

More or less , this Africa experience will help me conceptualizing my new project JAfro.
We've been rehearsing secretly but on September we got some opportunity
to perform in front of people.

Sep. 1 st @ Shrine 7pm
Sep. 22th @ Miles' Cafe 7:30pm

JAfro is
Toru Dodo-piano, Yasushi Nakamura-bass &
Keita Ogawa-perc.

Hope to see you there.

SOMI & HUGH MASEKELA Podcast

2010-05-25T07:58:00.002+09:00

You can check out the live of
Somi & Hugh Masekela.

Click here!

SOMI-Voc.
David Gilmore-guitar
Bradley Jones-bass
Toru Dodo-piano
Steve Belvilus-drums
&
Hugh Masekela-Trumpet

May 11th , 2010
the Kumble Theater for the Performing Arts in Brooklyn

photo by
Tony Turner

Save the date ! JAfro @ Miles' Cafe 、May 13th

2010-05-05T09:39:00.001+09:00

JAfro is my new -born project,
This is our 2nd performance.
Please come and get to know what JAfro is.

Miles' Cafe is the newest club in NYC.
This place has maybe one of the best piano in town.
But they have no license for booze yet, so BYOD and BYOF please.

May 13th (Thurs)
JAfro @ Miles' Cafe
8pm-11pm (2 Sets)
Ticket $21

JAfro is
Toru Dodo-piano
Yasushi Nakamura-bass
Keita Ogawa---percussion

Miles' Cafe is at
212 E.52th 3 fl (between 2nd & 3rd street)
212-371-7657
http://www.milescafe.com/ny/index.html

Sunday Jam @ Cleopatra's Needle OVER!

2010-04-26T18:09:00.003+09:00

My Sunday Jam Session at the Cleopatra's Needle that started since December 2001
finally ended on April 25th, 2010.

I'm proud of that I could continue this gig for such a long time.
And I'm very thankful about that so many musicians came down to play with me.

There's no such a thing that never ends.
This could be a start of something for me.
The down side is my monthly income will be
$50 (the gig payment)x 4(Sundays) short
from next month.

SOMI TV shooting session

2010-04-10T00:50:00.006+09:00

SOMI's TV shooting session at Southpaw, Brooklyn.
(for Food network? not sure yet.)

This was my 3rd TV appearance this year.
The next step for me would be a movie appearance, right?

Check out also TVJapan, NY Music Love
April 17th (Sat) 11:17pm-12:17am.

JAfro debut!

2010-04-04T12:16:00.004+09:00

I might have tried to play TORU DODO's music.

But I got to feel like I can't limit music.
Music is supposed to be for every human being.

Then I came up the word "JAfro".
I felt like this word would
give me more direction.

So I decided to start playing JAfro music.
People may want to ask "what is JAfro?"
I'd answer "what is Jazz?"

JAfro Live at Shrine , April 2 , 2010

Toro Doro -keys
Yasushi Nakamura-bass
Keita Ogawa -perc.

Aoril 2nd (Fri) JAFRO @ Shrine, 6pm-7pm, Free!

2010-03-28T13:31:00.002+09:00

I don't know what JAFRO really is but
I will play some JAFRO music this Friday.
It's free admission.

April 2 (Fri)

Toru Dodo -JAFRO
@ Shrine

6pm-7pm

Toru Dodo -keys
Yasushi Nakamura-bass
Keita Ogawa-perc

Tadahiro Uesugi got the Annie Award!

2010-02-10T09:29:00.002+09:00

I'm very happy to inform you that
Tadahiro Uesugi received this year's Annie Award
for his work of production design for the movie" Coraline".
Tadahiro has done my 2 CD's cover design.
Congratulations!!!

Happy New Year! (too late?)

2010-02-03T23:37:00.003+09:00

It may be too late to say Happy New Year after a month and a couple days passed already.
But hey, Happy New Year!

On January 29th , I had a chance to be on TV.
( BRONXNET TV , Bronx Local TV station. "OPEN")
I played on keys and took a interview by Rhina Valentin.

Speaking in front of camera is something and
also speaking in my second language is something.
I don't remember what I spoke out of my nervousness.
It could be a disaster.
Luckily , it seems like the BRONXNET website would not post the archive where I was on.
So my appearance is kept in secret for people not living in the Bronx.

Souvenir from Rome

2009-12-09T09:41:00.003+09:00

Nov.24 , 2009 @AlexanderPlatz, Rome
"Air " written by Toru Dodo
Toru Dodo-piano
Joseph Lepore-bass
Nicola Angelucci-drums

Toru Dodo goes to Rome

2009-11-13T14:02:00.003+09:00

It's going to be my first time to go to Rome.

Nov. 23th, 24th & 25th
at Alexander Platz

Toru Dodo-piano
Joseph Lepore-bass
Nicola Angelucci-drums

Come and Cheer us!

Toru Dodo Trio Japan Tour 2009

2009-09-27T04:26:00.003+09:00

I'm performing 17 places in Japan from Oct.1st till Oct.24th.
Come and cheer my trio!

Toru Dodo Trio Japan Tour 's Schedule

When Japanese are next to me,,,,,

2009-06-25T06:37:00.004+09:00

I have something I can not overcome in a restaurant which is not Japanese restaurant
in NY when I dine with Japanese people.

When some Japanese I don't know sit next to my table,
I become unable to talk.

This doesn't happen if I'm in a Japanese restaurant where
so many Japanese are dining.
This might not happen if I'm with more than 3 people.
And I am sure this doesn't happen if I'm in any restaurant
in some remote area where you don't expect not too many Japanese
like Africa.
(I remember I became very talkative when I met some Japanese on the street
during my trip in Niger a few years ago.)

This only happens in NYC.

The other day, My wife and I went to some Korean restaurant in Fort Lee, NJ.
(OK, so this happens in NJ , too.)
We were talking about our Japanese friend who used to live in NYC for 7 years and
went back for 2 years and half, and now is wondering if he'd come back to NYC.
He's a jazz saxophone player, by the way.
Whether he should stay in Japan or he should come back to NYC....
It's not an easy question.
What if I am in his position, what should I do?
Our conversation went on .......till we heard some Japanese language from
next table.

"It's been a while to be in this restaurant.....(in Japanese)...."

Oh..

They were 20-something Japanese young couple.
I was not trying to overhear their conversation but
my primary language just kept coming through my ears.

"I have to be myself in the USA........"

"I can't be myself if I'm in Japan. Japanese society doesn't allow me to be myself....."

Oh, Yeah?

My wife and I became silent , finished our meal, and paid and left quickly.
I don't know what made us stop our conversation.
Even I have live in the USA for long time, I just can't overcome this situation.
It's strange.

Life is getting easier.

2009-06-21T02:52:00.004+09:00

Life is getting easier and easier.
Troublesome things in life are being got rid of.

Once upon a time,
I hated checking messages on my home phone out of
payphone to see if I might get a last minute gig offer
as I worried about running out of quarters in my wallet.

Cell phone !

I hated transposing keys for sax players.
I hated coping parts.

Finale !

I hated looking at maps and giving directions to a driver.

GPS!

What an invention!

I drove to Rochester to play for vibraphonist Joe Baione group
the other day and thanks to the GPS I recently bought
I could get there without getting lost.
This machine also shows the restaurant or gas station on the map
where you're driving so the chance is getting slim that my car stops to run
due to no gas in the tank or I starved to death on the way.

I think there's a business chance here.
Think about things that is troublesome in your life.
Then figure out to solve it. Make some device for it.

I am thinking if I could add more functions to the GPS
like it actually drives my car for 6 hours for me
or it begs my band leader to get the airplane ticket instead of 6 hours driving
to Rochester. (No offence , Joe......)

Photo: Joe Baione group at Rochester Jazz Festival, June 18th ,2009
Joe- vib, Marco-bass, Brian-drums , myself -piano

Test

2009-06-20T22:14:00.003+09:00

I moved the blog site from here.
More English friendly here ?