‘It’s a paradise for jazz musicians’
Benjamin Herman in Japan
The Tokyo Sessions is the title of Benjamin Herman’s trio’s upcoming album, recorded in and inspired by the Japanese capital. In 2025, the saxophonist finally gained a foothold there, including a performance at EXPO 2025 in Osaka.
Saxophonist Benjamin Herman first came to Japan in 1989 as a 20-year-old music student, as a substitute in a Glenn Miller orchestra. Since then, he has been fascinated by the country and Japanese culture. Over the years, he has returned several times to perform and to research the music scene in Tokyo. For about fifteen years, he had been mulling over a plan to collaborate with Japanese musicians. He brought musicians to the Netherlands (death jazz formation Soil & Pimp Sessions, pianist Mayuko Katakura and saxophonist Erena Terakubo) and worked with local musicians throughout Japan.
About Benjamin Herman’s album
- The album The Tokyo Sessions will be released on 27 March 2026.
- The single Kazegafuku by Benjamin Herman, Thomas Pol and Jimmi Jo Hueting is out now.
- Pre-order the album on Bandcamp.
The album
After much preparation, Benjamin travelled to Tokyo in April 2025 with bassist Thomas Pol and drummer/producer Jimmi Jo Hueting to record an album with five Japanese musicians from different musical backgrounds. The recording of The Tokyo Sessions, which will be released at the end of March, marks a new phase in his relationship with the local music scene. Benjamin: ‘Every musician wants to go to Japan to play, but Japanese musicians also really want to come to the Netherlands to play. Apart from the fact that I’m very happy with what we’ve created for the album, I also hope that there will be more attention in the Netherlands for what’s going on musically in Japan. There’s so much great music there and the musicians are super good. What’s more, everyone there loves jazz; it’s a paradise for jazz musicians. Like everywhere else, it just takes a lot of time and effort to create visibility. It doesn’t happen by itself.’
‘I also hope that there will be more attention in the Netherlands for what’s going on musically in Japan. There’s so much great music there and the musicians are super good.’
The documentary
Following the recording of The Tokyo Sessions, Benjamin contacted the Nieuwe Instituut, which curated the Dutch cultural programme for the Expo 2025 world exhibition in Osaka. The first version of a documentary about the making of the new album premiered at this Expo. The documentary was directed, filmed and edited by Benjamin’s twin brother Jonathan Herman and financed with support from the Nieuwe Instituut.
For the premiere of the documentary, Benjamin, Thomas and Jimmi were invited to perform at Expo 2025 in Osaka in September. Thanks in part to support from Buma Cultuur, they were able to accept this invitation and organise their trip to Japan. The young Japanese tenor saxophonist Tomoaki Baba, who also plays on the album and is a rising star in his home country, was likewise invited. A promotional tour of small jazz clubs concluded with an outdoor performance for the public at the Expo together with Tomoaki Baba. Benjamin: ‘The Japanese love collaborations with international musicians, and our performance was received with great enthusiasm.’ Especially for this Dutch timeslot at the festival site, singer and keyboardist Bnnyhunna – who happened to be in Japan for a writing camp – came to play a short set beforehand.
The tour
Thanks to this trip and the successful performance at Expo 2025 in Osaka, the Benjamin Herman Trio will tour the Netherlands, Germany and the UK with Japanese keyboardist and producer BIGYUKI after the album release in April 2026. More performances are booked for the summer, followed by a European tour with Tomoaki Baba in November. A new tour in Japan is also planned. Benjamin: ‘I am grateful that my trio has been able to gain the trust and arouse the curiosity of the musicians there. These are all steps towards a new intensive cultural collaboration!’
This article was published on 3 February 2026.
Photos by Louis Smit and Jonathan Herman
Editor: Mark van Schaick