Vanessa Anne Hudgens, (born December 14, 1988 in Salinas, California) American actress and singer, made her screen debut in 2003 and appeared in the Hollywood films Thirteen and Thunderbirds, before reaching fame in the 2006 hit Disney Channel film, High School Musical. To read more please click here
Hiromi Uehara (上原ひろみ, born 26 March 1979) is a jazz composer and pianist born in Hamamatsu, Japan.
She is known for her virtuosic technique, energetic live performances and blend of musical genres such as jazz, progressive rock, classical and fusion in her compositions.
Hiromi started learning classical piano at age 6. She was introduced to jazz by her piano teacher Noriko Hakita when she was 8. At age 14, she played with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra. When she was 17, she met Chick Corea in Tokyo, and was invited to play with him at his concert the very next day.
After being a jingle writer for a few years for Japanese companies such as Nissan, she enrolled to study at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, United States.
There, she was mentored by Ahmad Jamal and had already signed with jazz label Telarc before her graduation...
Since her debut in 2003, Hiromi has toured the world and appeared in numerous jazz festivals. She appeared on Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz radio program where the host, Mrs. McPartland, seemed to be impressed by Hiromi's "chops" and said "If you and I got into a competition, you would win, hands down".
The program contained a version of Ellington's "Caravan" and Hiromi's original, "The Tom and Jerry Show".
