Home » Jazz Musicians » Keita Ogawa

Keita Ogawa

Hailing originally from Sasebo city, Nagasaki, Japan, Keita Ogawa is Grammy Award winner (as Snarky puppy member) and one of the most versatile and sought-after percussionist and drummer in New York City.

He started his music career on drum set at the age of 15.

After performing regularly in Tokyo for several years, Keita decided to pursue his musical studies overseas. He was accepted into the prestigious Berklee College of Music in fall of 2005 where he studied with legendary musicians and educators Manuel “Egui” Castrillo, Jamey Haddad, Tito De Gracia, David Rosado, and Mark Walker. Seeking full immersion into the world of Brazilian percussion, Keita relocated to Rio de Janeiro for 3 months and studied with the some of the country’s most respected musicians- Jorginho do Pandeiro, Celsinho Silva, Kiko Freitas, and Marcio Bahia among others.

Since his arrival in America, Keita has worked with some of the biggest names in modern music including Yo-yo-ma, Assad Brothers, Charlie Hunter, Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra, Le Nubians, Romero Lubambo, Clarice Assad, Jaques Morelenbaum, Osvaldo Golijov, Eric Harland, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra and more.

He also played and composed music called “Starting Five” with “J-Squad” (New York based 5 Japanese Jazz Musicians) for one of big National Japanese News TV Program called “Hōdō Station” since April 2016.

Currently he works several projects like, Snarky puppy, J-Squad, Banda Magda, Bokantè, Camila Meza and the Nectar Orchestra, Clarice Assad and more.

Also He is endorsed by Canopus Drum, Meinl Percussion, Sabian Cymbal, Vic Firth, Evans Drum Head, Cooperman Company, Dem Sticks, Parka Percussion and Decora 43.

Keita can virtually play any percussion instrument and musical style with fluency and unparalleled musicality. Despite his youth, he has set an example for the next generation of world-class musicians. Keita’s passion for crossing musical borders and uniting differences in cultures is a rare talent which he exhibits with a smile and an open heart.

Tags

10
Album Review

Brock, Lanzetti, Ogawa: Drawing Songs

Read "Drawing Songs" reviewed by Mike Jacobs


Encountering new additions to the Snarky Puppy musical diaspora is always interesting. Some members' solo efforts are more direct stylistic offshoots of the mother band while others branch out in very different directions, but it is a safe bet that they will showcase the musicianship which got them into the burgeoning collective in the first place. Drawing Songs, by long-time SP bandmates Zach Brock, Bob Lanzetti and Keita Ogawa, is one of these which is a refreshing musical ...

18
Album Review

David Lopato: Short Stories

Read "Short Stories" reviewed by Jack Bowers


Short Stories, pianist and composer David Lopato's seventh album, is for the most part modern in the best sense of the word. Lopato's musical influences are wide, ranging from jazz, blues and rock to avant-garde and free improvisation while embracing themes from Africa, Latin America and Asia--most notably Indonesia where he spent a year on a Fulbright scholarship learning to play the Javanese gamelan. Even when fusing these diverse bonds into a single vision, however, Lopato seldom strays from the ...

5
Album Review

Bokante: History

Read "History" reviewed by Chris May


Snarky Puppy leader Michael League does not like the band being called a jazz ensemble. He describes it as a “a pop band that improvises a lot, without vocals." But anyone listening to jazz through the aural equivalent of a wide-angle lens would likely keep Snarky Puppy in the picture. League's spin-off group Bokante improvises little and has vocals front and centre. The connection with jazz is more tenuous. Bokante could be called a “world music" group ...

Album Review

Jussi Reijonen: Three Seconds | Kolme Toista

Read "Three Seconds | Kolme Toista" reviewed by Neri Pollastri


Disco tanto sorprendente, quanto interessante, questo Three Seconds | Kolme Toista è la narrazione musicale di un vero e proprio viaggio interiore fatto dal suo autore, il chitarrista Jussi Reijonen. Nato a Rovaniemi, nel nord della Finlandia, Reijonen è però cresciuto prima ad Amman (Giordania), poi a Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), Muscat (Oman) e Beirut (Libano), per approdare da adulto negli Stati Uniti, a Boston e infine a New York, dove nel 2011 ha pubblicato il suo primo, ...

21
Album Review

Jussi Reijonen: Three Seconds | Kolme Toista

Read "Three Seconds | Kolme Toista" reviewed by Karl Ackermann


East/West jazz fusion has a long presence on the U.S. jazz scene and that foothold has been growing in the 2000s. Composer/guitarist/oud player Jussi Reijonen is uniquely qualified to bridge musical cultures. Nordic by birth, he has lived in the Middle East, Africa, and the U.S., absorbing native music at each stop. Reijonen's solo debut, Un (Self Produced, 2012), paved the way for Three Seconds | Kolme Toista. The acclaimed debut album incorporated global influences but in a melodic haze. ...

2
Album Review

Snarky Puppy: Empire Central

Read "Empire Central" reviewed by Angelo Leonardi


A diciotto anni dalla nascita, gli Snarky Puppy sono tornati a Dallas —luogo d'origine della formazione— per registrare un nuovo album scegliendo l'approccio preferito: quel “live in the studio" con pubblico in sala che ha caratterizzato le loro opere migliori. Quindi otto notti alla Deep Ellum Art Company per mettere a punto 16 nuovi brani, ora pubblicati in doppio album, in triplo vinile. Il disco privilegia il ritorno ai valori musicali originari: una fusion ...

17
Album Review

Snarky Puppy: Immigrance

Read "Immigrance" reviewed by Josh Deakin


Three years after their last release, Snarky Puppy's thirteenth studio album Immigrance makes a statement as a standard for jazz fusion that all modern artists should take note of. The opening track, “Chonks," sets the tone of the record with a fierce drum fill from Larnell Lewis which is reminiscent of reggae tones, an aesthetic which Snarky Puppy enjoy teasing on occasion. The record keeps pace as it weaves together the collection of songs which gives the illusion ...

Read more articles

Photos

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Short Stories

Self Produced
2024

buy

History

Real World Records
2023

buy

Drawing Songs

GroundUP Music
2023

buy

Ghost Song

Nonesuch Records
2022

buy

ENSO

Sonic Image
2022

buy

Three Seconds | Kolme...

Challenge Records
2022

buy

The Veil

From: Three Seconds | Kolme Toista
By Keita Ogawa

Resilience

From: Resilience
By Keita Ogawa

Videos

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.