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Composer, violinist and erhu player Meg Okura is one of the leading voices on today's chamber jazz scene, directing the Pan Asian Chamber Jazz Ensemble, while performing extensively with some of the biggest names in music. Her versatility has led her to perform with Michael Brecker, David Bowie, Gil Goldstein, Lee Konitz, Lenny Kravitz, Diane Reeves, Steve Swallow, Kanye West, Quincy Jones, Mary J. Blige, Philip Glass and others. She has been heard as a soloist all over the world at festivals and concert halls including Carnegie Hall, Barbican Hall, Hollywood Bowl, MGM Grand Garden Arena, and Kennedy Centre, and has received grants and awards both as a composer and violinist. Her credit appears on over three-dozen albums and films as a violinist, erhu player, composer, and vocalist.
Meg earned B.M. and M.M. from the Juilliard School as a classical violinist, only to make the difficult shift to jazz violin upon graduation. Her talent and flexibility landed her gigs in L.A., including a concertmaster chair backing up for Herbie Hancock, Shirley Horn, Diana Krall, and Terence Blanchard. She has also toured with the Cirque du Soleil's production "Varekai" as the featured violinist as well as New York's own "Wintuk" at the Madison Square Garden.
A native of Tokyo, Okura incorporates her Asian heritage into her work, drawing upon her memories from Asia, touring as the concertmaster/soloist of the Asian Youth Orchestra in her teens. Together with her classical training with jazz harmony, blended with world music, Okura defines a new genre of "World Chamber Jazz."