If you were not aware, Trombonist Nanami Haruta made the move from her native Sapporo to Tokyo as a teenager, and quickly established herself as a dynamic & inspired player.

Master trombonist Michael Dease heard her at a festival when she was 17, and later convinced her to make another move, to pursue her degree with him and Rodney Whitaker at Michigan State University.

With professional affiliations now including Whitaker’s Sextet & drummer Ulysses Owens Jr’s Big Band, The Vibe documents the respect she’s garnered from her mentors and showcases her significant musical voice.

With her quartet - including Whitaker, Owens, and Xavier Davis on piano - along with guest appearances by producer Dease and guitarist Chris Minami, Haruta unveils an assertive posture and a compelling, robust tone on this set of five originals, two pieces by co-producer/executive producer Gregg Hill, and four covers, including Curtis Fuller’s Algonquin.

1. Girlie’s World (5:14)
2. The Vibe (7:25)
3. Algonquin (4:53)
4. Toshi (6:01)
5. Sister Rosa (6:49)
6. Easy Money (4:12)
7. Heartstrings (5:33)
8. How It Goes (6:42)
9. Jamerson’s Lullaby (7:12)
10. Woodpecker (5:25)
11. Unchained Melody (4:36)

On what is a beautifully sculpted work of musical art, this brand new recording opens on the luxuriantly warm Girlie’s World and the vibrantly exciting title track The Vibe and then we get the free wheeling Algonquin, the decadent Toshi with the low slung swing of Sister Rosa along next.

Along next is impassioned Easy Money which is in turn backed seamlessly by the sultry Heartstrings, a gentle stillness of rhythm within both the sumptuous How It Goes and the yearning ache that drives Jamerson’s Lullaby, the set rounding out on the delightful finger snapper Woodpecker, closing on an all-encompasing duet with Chris Minami on the renowned Unchained Melody.

Performers:
Nanami Haruta - trombone
Michael Dease - trombone, baritone saxophone (1,3)
Xavier Davis - piano
Rodney Whitaker - bass
Ulysses Owens Jr - drums
Chris Minami - guitar (11)

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