Rate My Professor Kei Akagi

Pianist and composer Kei Akagi has been a mainstay of the international jazz world for over four decades, with extended collaborations including Stanley Turrentine (1991-2000), James Newton (1985-2000), Miles Davis (1989-1991), Al Di Meola (1986-1988), Joe Farrell (1984-1985), and Airto Moreira and Flora Purim (1979-1985). He has recorded 12 CDs as a solo artist and leader, including "Playroom" (Moo/Mesa Bluemoon, 1992), "Mirror Puzzle" (Audioquest, 1994), which received widespread critical acclaim, "New Smiles and Traveled Miles" (Media Ring, 1998), "Viewpoint" (Video Arts, 2000), "Palette" (Video Arts, 2001), "A Hint of You" (Video Arts, 2003), and "Modern Ivory" (Video Arts, 2004). Notable co-leader recordings include "AAJT - Sound Circle with Rufus Reid and Akira Tana" (Evidence, 1993), and as sideman he appears on over 40 CDs, including Miles Davis's final works such as "Miles in Paris" (WEA Music Video) and "Live Around the World" (Warner Bros.). Akagi has over 30 published original compositions, some performed internationally by classical pianists, and completed a text on jazz theory and composition used in UCI's jazz studies program. Conducting two major international concert tours annually, he retired from UCI in spring 2023.