A former journalist (Fuji Television Network Japan) with childhood piano training at Juilliard Pre-College, a stint as Paris-based foreign news correspondent (’90-’94) and Gulf War reporter on her résumé (’90-’91 working in Iraq, Kuwait, Jordan and Saudi Arabia), Kyoko Kitamura is an oddball vocalist, composer and bandleader who has worked with many distinguished musicians, most notably with the community of Tri-Centric musicians including Anthony Braxton and Taylor Ho Bynum.

She is a featured artist and co-producer of Anthony Braxton’s recent release GTM (Syntax) 2017 by the Tri-Centric Vocal Ensemble, and is also featured on Anthony Braxton‘s operas Trillium J and Trillium E, 12 Duets (DCWM) 2012 (duo with Anthony Braxton), and the Syntactical GTM Choir (NYC) 2011 (all available on New Braxton House Records). Currently, Kitamura works with Braxton as a vocalist in his Tri-Centric Orchestra and smaller ensembles, the executive director of his Tri-Centric Foundation and the director of the Tri-Centric Vocal Ensemble.

As for her own projects, she currently leads her quartet Tidepool Fauna featuring Ingrid Laubrock on tenor sax, Ken Filiano on bass and Dayeon Seok on drums, and  co-leads Geometry, a chamber quartet with Joe Morris on guitar, Tomeka Reid on cello and Taylor Ho Bynum on cornet.

Recent leader/co-leader releases are Geometry of Distance and Geometry of Caves by the collaborative quartet Geometry featuring Joe Morris, Tomeka Reid, Taylor Ho Bynum and Kyoko Kitamura (both albums from Relative Pitch Records), and Protean Labyrinth, the debut album of Kitamura’s quartet Tidepool Fauna with Ingrid Laubrock, Ken Filiano and Dayeon Seok. Other releases include William Parker’s Voices Fall From The Sky (Aum Fidelity/Centering Records) and Ingrid Laubrock’s Vogelfrei (Intakt Records).

She studies counterpoint and Schoenberg harmony with Paul Caputo.