bio

New York based Japanese jazz singer, Mamiko Taira has been always a
cloud pleaser. Author of “the Color of Water,” James McBride describes
her “She is the kind musicians love to play with and audiences love to
appreciate… she is a standout…” Her mentor, Mark Murphy quotes “She is
a talent in the art of vocal jazz.”

Mamiko began studying music at the age of eight with a local piano
teacher. At the age of sixteen, she went to a private music school to
major piano studied with Fumio Itabashi.  Itabashi noticed her vocal
quality immediately and suggested her to be a singer. In 1988, she
moved to Philadelphia to study Jazz Voice at Temple University.
Eventually she emerged into the Philly music scene. After graduating
in 1992 she performed in Philly until her return to Tokyo in the fall
of 1993. Back at home she has performed extensively in the Tokyo
metropolitan area between 1993 through 1998. In 1994 she won the grand
prize at the Asakusa Jazz Festival Competition. She was invited to
sing at the Manly Jazz Festival (Manly, Australia) in 1994 and 1996.
In 1999, Mamiko moved to New York. She was a finalist at the Third
Annual Jazzconnect Jazz Vocal Competition in 2002. Out of 197 singers
from around the world, Mamiko took 3rd place. She said, “I was very
surprised by the fact I made it that far… the final result didn’t
matter much to me because I was too happy that 2 great singers,
Deborah Brown and Rebecca Paris, heard me and picked me as #1 at the
semi-finals. That was such a meaningful thing to a young singer like
myself…” She also toured with James McBride group in 2003 visited 30
cities and 54 venues nationally.  She continues to perform in New York
vicinity, and keeps her regular engagement on Mondays at NB Lounge
since 2009. NB Lounge is located at 111 E 56th Street between Park and
Lexington Avenues at the Lombardy Hotel.