Ryo Kawasaki

Guitarist and engineer, Ryo Kawasaki has combined his two specialties to create instruments and multiply experiments over the course of a career rooted in jazz fusion. Born in Tokyo on February 25, 1947, he learned the violin as a child, then turned to the guitar in his teens. He formed his own band and devoted himself to music after working as a sound engineer for the Victor label. A session musician and sound illustration composer, he settled in New York in 1973, where he worked with Bobbi Humphrey, Gil Evans, Chico Hamilton and Elvin Jones. His first American jazz fusion albums Juice, Prism and Eight Mile Road (1976-1978) were followed by eclectic recordings with a range of instruments from acoustic guitar to synthesizers. He leads several groups, including the Ryo Kawasaki Trio, Ryo Kawasaki & Satellites and the Ryo Kawasaki & Group, and collaborates with the Tarika Blue trio. Settling in Tallinn (Estonia) in 2000, he composed the jazz ballet Still Point, performed at the Estonian Opera, and continues to record with local musicians. He formed the group Level8 and continued touring until his death on April 13, 2020, at the age of 73.

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