The True/False festival brings exceptional musical talent to Columbia, and this year, one performance stood out in particular. Takuya Nakamura, a 57-year-old DJ and instrumentalist from Brooklyn, New York, took the stage at the intimate Blue Note concert hall. Nakamura moved to the United States in 1990 to study under the legendary jazz theorist and composer George Russell at the New England Conservatory of Music. He has worked with a multitude of artists including Quincy Jones (remix), The Street (remix), Billy Holiday/Remix&Reimagined (Sony), supported Lee “Scratch” Perry, Gza (of Wu Tang Clan), opened for DJ Shadow, toured with George Russell’s Living Time Orchestra, Cocorosie, Arto Lindsay, Jojo Mayer, Brazilian Girls and Organic Grooves. With this repotoire, it’s incredible that we got to experience his talents in the heart of Missouri.
Although I was familiar with a few clips of Nakamura blending his trumpet with his DJ sets, I entered the event uncertain of how these elements would come together in real time. When he started his set it was house music and funk, allowing the audience to settle in. It was truly remarkable his ability to subtly shift the tempo. As the set progressed, the music grew faster, Nakamura delivered a high-energy performance.
Two hours into the set, Nakamura was playing somewhere between drum and bass. His intermixing of live trumpet and dance music was seamless, sounding like it belonged there, the trumpet added perfect texture to a synthetic soundscape. If he hadn’t pulled out his instrument live, the gold gleaming under the stage lights, I wouldn’t believe someone could mix trumpet into dance music so fluently.
Nakamura’s show was upbeat, lively, and so much fun to dance to. He would switch between mixing and DJing with jazzy beats to playing his trumpet, bringing the attention back from his masterful mixing to his musician background. The crowd couldn’t get enough. Something I personally appreciated was that you could tell how much fun he was having. Nakamura definitely loves what he does, and it translates. The sweetest smile would creep into his face when the beat would drop, and the crowd’s energy exploded.
Every hour was a surprise with Takuya Nakamura on stage taking the audience on a unique journey by capturing just the right stage presents. Nakamura’s mastery of both his instrument and his craft was not only surprising but deeply captivating, leaving the audience in awe of his musical versatility.
This mix of techno, jazz, expressionist genre to be perfect to dance to a few drinks down, but also to study to in the coffee shop. It’s multidimensional, and I found myself closing my eyes at times and feeling like I was in the Elevator Music set. (Which I highly recommend by the way.) This is all fitting to Nakamura’s songwriting process. In an interview with The Vinyl Factory he states that he cannot write songs at home. He states, “The sources of inspiration can be different but then I’ll come home and work on it… The human brain needs to moving or something has to activate it.” Inspired is exactly how I felt when I saw Nakamura live. His combined passion and talent allows his skills to transcend just another jazzy DJ. He pushes the box on techno, and inspires me to challenge what is conventional in my own mediums.