Erika Dohi

Bio

Described as “virtuosic” (NY Times) and “barrier-defying” (Mix Magazine), Osaka-born and New York-based pianist Erika Dohi is a multi-faceted artist with an eclectic musical background. From highly polished traditional classical to bold improvisation, she is a dynamic performer whose timeless style and unidiomatic technique set her apart in contemporary NYC avant-garde circles. Dohi’s forthcoming sophomore solo LP Myth of Tomorrow (produced by the Grammy-award winning William Brittelle) was made with support from Forgotten Futures, Wally De Backer’s (aka Gotye) early electronic musical instrument collection.

Dohi’s debut solo album, I, Castorpollux, was released on the label 37d03d, to acclaim such as “The Best Ambient Albums in May 2021” (Bandcamp), and “Best of the Week” (Brooklyn Vegan and JAZZIZ Magazine). She has since toured the project prolifically, with appearances at Liquid Music Series with pianist David Friend and composer Jerome Begin at The Parkway Theater, Bop Stop Jazz, Constellation, Earshot Jazz Festival, Emerald City Music Series, Rhizome, and Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra’s MusicNOW Festival. Dohi was most recently featured at the Ecstatic Music Festival along with Circuit des Yeux, Brooklyn Youth Chorus, and Bergamot Quartet.

Dohi is the co-founder of BLUEPRINTS Piano Series and accompanying festival, In Visible Roads, in collaboration with Metropolis Ensemble, as well as the flute and piano duo RighteousGIRLS, whose album gathering blue has been hailed by Downbeat as “one of the most adventurous new music debut albums in recent years.” She has performed in composer William Brittelle’s Spiritual America with Metropolis Ensemble at The Hollywood Bowl, Central Park Summer Stage with Ensemble LPR, and international festivals including Sounds from a Safe Harbour, Eaux Claires, the D.C. Jazz Festival, Montreal Jazz Festival, Banff International Workshop in Jazz and Creative Music, and Tokyo Experimental Festival. Dohi is a pianist for Wadada Leo Smith’s Kikuyu Ensemble, and has performed with them at various festivals including Big Ears, Vision Festival, Harlem Stage, and SFJazz.

As a composer, Dohi has participated in Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival at Mass MoCA, and at Atlantic Center for the Arts with composer Judd Greenstein. She has been commissioned by Metropolis Ensemble, Switch~ Ensemble, Grand Band, and American independent entertainment company ‘A24’ for the Song Reader box set project for the movie “Everything Everywhere All at Once”. Dohi has received New Music USA’s 2022 Creator Development grant, and 2023 Figure 8 and Forgotten Futures Artist in Residency Program.