Akiko Tsuruga
1 September 1967 – 13 September 2025 was a Japanese jazz organist, pianist, and composer from Osaka.
Akiko Tsuruga
woodleywonderworks · Paul Carr Quartet w Akiko Tsuruga Uploaded by clusternote · CC BY 2.0
- Name
- Akiko Tsuruga
- Born
- 1 September 1967
- Birthplace
- Osaka, Kansai, Japan
- Died
- 13 September 2025
- Place of death
- Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
- Occupation
- Musician
- Spouse
- Joe Magnarelli
- Nationality
- Japan
- Fields
- jazz
- Languages
- Japanese
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1 September 1967 – 13 September 2025 was a Japanese jazz organist, pianist, and composer from Osaka.
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wikidata · Q418335 · wikipedia · Akiko Tsuruga
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Akiko Tsuruga • Native Name — 敦賀明子 • Born — 1 September 1967 • Birthplace — Osaka, Kansai, Japan • Died — 13 September 2025 • Place of death — Brooklyn, New York, U.S. • Genre — Jazz • Occupation — Musician • Instrument — Organ • Years Active — 2000s–2025 • Spouse — Joe Magnarelli
Biography
Biography
Tsuruga was born in Osaka on 1 September 1967, the oldest of the three children of Hiroko Tsuruga (' Kiyonaga) and Koji Tsuruga. Her parents bought her a small organ when she was three, and she started learning to play standards. In high school, she listened to Hammond B3 players, including Jimmy Smith, Charles Earland, Jack McDuff, Jimmy McGriff, and Dr. Lonnie Smith. • Illustration — Tsuruga with the Paul Carr Quartet at the Bethesda Theatre, Maryland, 2013 A 1988 graduate of the Osaka College of Music, she moved to New York City in 2001, after which she began taking lessons from Dr. Lonnie Smith. • Illustration — Tsuruga with drummer Jeff Hamilton and guitarist Steve Kovalcheck at the Jazz Port Townsend festival, July 2024 In addition to her solo work, she played as a sideman in various groups in New York. She had accompanied alto saxophonist Lou Donaldson since 2007. Tsuruga died on 13 September, 2025, in Brooklyn, New York, at the age of 58. According to her husband, trumpeter Joe Magnarelli, Tsuruga died after a short period of terminal illness. She is survived by her mother, two brothers, and husband.
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 1 entries
2025
Akiko Tsuruga died at Brooklyn.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Osaka.
Birth place
Brooklyn.
Death place
Discography
Sources: • Recording date — Title — Label — Release year — Notes / Personnel • Harlem Dreams — M&I Jazz (MYCJ-30264) — 2006 — Tsuruga (Hammond B3 organ), Frank Wess (alto saxophone, tenor saxophone), Satoshi Inoue (guitar), Grady Tate (drums) • 10 August 2006 — Sweet and Funky — 18th & Vine (18V 1052; US) / M&I (MYCJ30405; Japan) — 2007 — Tsuruga (Hammond B3 organ), Eric Johnson (guitar), Vince Ector (drums), Wilson "Chembo" Corniel (percussion) • 6 May & 11 June 2007 — St. Louis Blues — Mojo (XQCM-1302; Japan) — 2007 — Tsuruga (Hammond B3 organ), Houston Person (tenor saxophone), Eric Johnson (guitar), Bernard Purdie (drums), Vince Ector (drums) • 31 May & 1 June 2008 — NYC Serenade — Mojo (XQCM-1313; Japan) — 2008 — With Jimmy Cobb • 28 & 29 April 2008 — Oriental Express — 18th & Vine (18V 1057; US) — 2009 — Tsuruga (Hammond B3 organ), Jerry Weldon (tenor saxophone), Eric Johnson (guitar), Rudy Petschauer (drums), Wilson "Chembo" Corniel (percussion) • 19 & 20 April 2011 — Sakura — American Showplace Music (ASM-5089; US) — 2011 — Tsuruga (Hammond B3 organ), Joe Magnarelli (trumpet, flugelhorn), Jerry Weldon (tenor saxophone), Bob DeVos (guitar), Rudy Petschauer (drums) • Commencement — AT (ATM 1001; US) / Somethin' Cool (DIW) (SCOL 1004; Japan) — 2014 — Tsuruga (Hammond B3 organ), John Hart (guitar), Jeff Hamilton (drums) • Pelham Parkway — Kevin Golden Productions — 2016 — As Kevin Golden Trio; Kevin Golden (guitar), Tsuruga (Hammond B3 organ), Peter Grant (drums) • 22 January 2017 — So Cute, So Bad — AT (ATM 1002; US) / Somethin' Cool (DIW) (SCOL 1019; Japan) — 2017 — Tsuruga (Hammond B3 organ), Graham Dechter (guitar), Jeff Hamilton (drums) • Equal Time — Capri (CAP 74160; US) — 2019 — Tsuruga (organ), Jeff Hamilton (drums), Graham Dechter (guitar) • Pride & Joy — Posi-Tone (PR8193) — 2019 — With Lioness (all-female group); Alexa Tarantino (alto saxophone), Jenny Hill (tenor saxophone), Lauren Sevian (baritone saxophone), Tsuruga (organ), Amanda Monaco (guitar), Allison Miller (drums) • February 2023 — Beyond Nostalgia — SteepleChase (SCCD 31956) — 2024 — Tsuruga (Hammond B3 organ), Joe Magnarelli (trumpet), Jerry Weldon (tenor saxophone), Ed Cherry (guitar), Byron Landham (drums) • Coast to Coast — R.M.I. (RMICD10202) — 2025 — As the Jeff Hamilton Organ Trio; Steve Kovalcheck (guitar), Tsuruga (organ), Jeff Hamilton (drums) • "—" denotes unknown dates.
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- “Akiko Tsuruga”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q418335: Akiko Tsuruga
General reference · Wikidata
Citations
References
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reference work
Secondary witnessauthority record
General reference
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 18 August 2026.
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