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Chiho Watanabe (Jazz Singer) Biography

Chiho became absorbed in singing and dancing when she was a child, as she was dreaming of playing musical. In her 20’s, she started singing jazz songs just when the songs of Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan , and Carmen McRae made her moved to tears.　She felt the great jazz singers are gods, really. Then she went to Yamaha music school, listened to records till those wore down, and visited clubs with live music almost everyday. Her days in her 20’s had been completely soaked in jazz. She was shouting in herself, “I want to sing in front of people one day!” After a while, finally she got a chance to sing. Since then, she made the most of every chance to sing, paying no attention to other things. Five years after she started singing, she made her own CD in October 2006 by her brother’s strong recommendation, “Why don’t you record your songs as a memory?” Her first CD was created with powerful support by Mr. Manabu Ooishi, tender and funky jazz pianist, Mr. Makoto Saitoo, super veteran and cheerful basist, Mr. Cecil Monroe, a creative drummer who has remarkable sense of rhythm, and the other musicians. Mr. Shinpei Inoue, one of the best flutists in the jazz world, assisted her from producing to recording. This CD, “Like a lover”, has become a heartfelt treasure for her and the musicians who casted her dream into shape.
Currently, she sings not only jazz but also bossa nova and pops across genre.
She studied with Mr. Mutsuo Suzuki in her 20’s, and then studied with Ms. Kimiko Ito, recently. She performs live mainly in Tokyo and Yokohama, such as, “Satin Doll”, “Misty” in Roppongi, and “Yoidore-Hakushaku” in Kannai.

Chiho Watanabe