Akiko Tsuruga, born in Osaka on September 1, 1967, was a Japanese organist an pianist based in New York. Her parents bought her a small organ when she was three and she started learning to play standards. While in high school, she listened to Hammond B-3 players, including Jimmy Smith, Jack McDuff and Jimmy McGriff. Graduated of the Osaka College of Music in 1988, she moved to New York City in 2001 and had lessons from Dr. Lonnie Smith, then worked her way into the local jazz scene, performing with well-known musicians and establishing herself. She recorded her first studio album Harlem Dreams (2004), issued under M&I imprint, and joined Lou Donaldson's band. With a playing rooted in soul jazz and hard bop traditions, she recorded studio albums St. Louis Blues (2007), Sweet and Funky (2007), NY Serenade (2008), Oriental Express (2009), Sakura (2012), Commencement (2014), and Equa Time (2019), the latter with drummer Jeff Hamilton and guitarist Graham Dechter, as the live So Cute, So Bad (2017). Her last album, Beyond Nostalgia, was released in 2024. Akiko Tsuruga passed away on September 13, 2025 in Brooklyn, New York, aged 58, after a short terminal illness.
