Emi Makabe Quartet feat. Vitor Gonçalves, Thomas Morgan & Kenny Wollesen

Making their West Coast debut, the Emi Makabe Quartet presents what New York Music Daily calls "rapturous, adventurous Japanese folk-influenced jazz" — a visionary blend of Japanese folk traditions, contemporary jazz, and global rhythms that creates something entirely unique in today's music landscape.

Vocalist, composer, and shamisen player Emi Makabe brings her intricate compositions and polyrhythmic sensibilities to bear on a traditional Japanese three-stringed lute, adapting the shamisen to an international jazz context in ways that feel both ancient and cutting-edge. She sings in English, Japanese, and wordlessly, weaving together jazz harmony with Japanese musical traditions in compositions that showcase her classical training and deep understanding of counterpoint.

Pianist and accordionist Vitor Gonçalves — a 2020 Grammy nominee whose 2017 debut earned 4.5 stars from DownBeat — brings his Brazilian sensibilities and lyrical piano style to the mix, his accordion adding percussive textures that blend seamlessly with Makabe's shamisen. The rhythm section features bassist Thomas Morgan, whose precise touch and melodic phrasing have made him one of New York's most sought-after sidemen, and drummer Kenny Wollesen, the versatile percussionist known for his work with everyone from Tom Waits to John Zorn, whose sophisticated feel for vocal music and ability to navigate any genre gives Makabe complete compositional freedom.

This West Coast debut follows the critical success of their 2025 album Echo, which featured guest appearances by Bill Frisell and Jason Moran. The quartet has been performing Makabe's compositions together for over five years at prominent New York venues like the 55 Bar and Rockwood Music Hall, building a devoted following with their standing-room-only shows. What they create together transcends typical vocal jazz — it's ensemble music where each member's improvisation becomes an integral part of a singular cross-cultural sound that's both emotionally resonant and rhythmically adventurous.