Formed in 2022, this band was originally a quintet (JK5) comprised of musicians who formerly belonged to a jazz study group at Kansai University. The origins of “JK” are two-fold: the initials of “jazz study” (jazz kenkyu) in Japanese and JK Café, the name of the jazz club in Takatsuki, Japan where the band mainly performs.
With the addition of trombone, in November 2023, the band expanded into a sextet with three horns to further explore the sophisticated harmonies and intricate phrasing of the hard bop-based, contemporary compositions written by each member specifically for the group. Leaders of their own bands, each member contributes his/her personal perspective to forge a highly unique, collective sound.

Personnel:
Minoru Satomura (ts), Shojiro Yokoo (tp), Yusuke Imanishi (tb), Makiko Sasai (p), Satoru Yamamoto (b), Kiyoshi Tsurumaki (ds)