Erena Terakubo
saxophone
Erena Terakubo is a saxophonist, flutist, clarinetist, composer, arranger, and educator from Sapporo, Japan, who has performed in countries around the world including Burkina Faso, Chile, Argentina, Germany, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, France, Austria, Israel, Australia, and the U.S., at notable events such as International Jazz Day 2022 at the UN General Assembly Hall in New York, the Tokyo Jazz Festival, Playboy Jazz Festival, Monterey Jazz Festival, among others, and venues such as Dizzy’s Jazz Club and Smoke Jazz Club in New York City, Blue Note (Tokyo and New York), the Hollywood Bowl, and the Kennedy Center in Washington DC. In addition to leading the Erena Terakubo Quartet, she has appeared with numerous ensembles including Jon Faddis and his All-Star Big Band, the Kenny Barron Quartet, Mingus Big Band, Sapporo Symphony Orchestra, and Ulysses Owens Jr. and Generation Y. Terakubo’s debut album, North Bird (2010)—released while she was in high school—was a collaboration with Kenny Barron, Christian McBride, Lee Pearson, and Peter Bernstein. It reached #1 on the Japanese jazz charts and was awarded Swing Journal’s Gold Disc. Her sixth and most recent release is Absolutely Live! (2019). Terakubo was the first Japanese recipient of the Presidential Scholarship at Berklee College of Music, where she received her bachelor’s degree in 2018. She will earn her master’s degree from the Manhattan School of Music in May 2023.