Hailed as a premier marimbist, Mika Stoltzman returns to Carnegie Hall for the 11th time for a one-night only solo marimba concert on Tuesday, May 2, 2023 at 8:00 PM.
Attracted by her artistry, today’s most revered composers have written and/or arranged solo marimba works especially for her. Program highlights include four commissioned works by Geoffrey Keezer, Joel Ross, John Zorn and Chick Corea, as well as pieces by Bach, Keith Jarrett, and more.
A specialist in acoustic fusion, Mika has been hailed a virtuoso in both classical and jazz music fields. Her multifarious playing builds a bridge between drums and piano, serving as a living testimonial to the endless facets of her instrument. The program begins with Mika’s arrangement of Bach’s Cello Suite and Chaconne and capstones are two new commissioned works by renowned jazz artists: Past Life Lullabies by Grammy Award-winning pianist/composer/arranger Geoffrey Keezer and Pulse Wave by vibraphonist, Joel Ross. Past Life Lullabies explores the sounds and rhythms of Okinawa, whose culture and music have captivated Keezer since the 1990s, when he first heard traditional Okinawan music on the radio while on a tour of Japan. Pulse Wave sonically embodies its name embodying the movements and sounds of a wave.
Mika Stoltzman is from Amakusa, a small island in the Kumamoto prefecture in southern Japan. Her grandparents played traditional Japanese instruments, while her aunt taught piano and her father was a Kendo master. She began studying piano at age three, and in junior high became fascinated by the drums. At eighteen, she found the marimba, a perfect combination of piano and percussion. She studied marimba at Toronto University with members of NEXUS, and later moved to New York in 2008 where she learned from the master jazz vibraphonist Mike Mainieri.
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