Marcin and Hayato Sumino: 'I Wish'

Every once in a while, music hits my inbox and jumps straight onto my regular playlist. That was true yesterday when I heard Polish guitarist Marcin for the first time: his collaboration with pianist Hayato Sumino on Stevie Wonder’s ‘I Wish’ brought incredible energy into my ears and my life.

Describing musicians as social media sensations can often mean more emphasis on the influencing than the music, but this is absolutely not true of these two artists. There is a vibrancy and virtuosity from both musicians that comes from extensive musical studies across all genres of music. Their version of ‘I Wish’ takes the Stevie Wonder classic and blows it apart with this extraordinary live recording.

Marcin discusses the arranging and performance process: “Working with Hayato on ‘I Wish’ was one of the most challenging and fun experiences. We arranged the song in about two hours at Hayato’s studio in Tokyo, and two days later we were already recording it live in the studio! It was the first time I was tracking a true, live, jazz-style performance with another artist and Hayato is such a beast! I knew how crazy he was on the piano before, but actually seeing how he worked in the studio was so inspiring for me. Take 12 is the one that we used. It’s a fun and pure piece of music – just two friends from completely different continents jamming in a studio.”

Hayato adds: "I’m beyond excited to collaborate with my friend, the incredibly unique and charismatic guitarist, Marcin. The blend of guitar and piano isn’t something you hear every day, which makes this project even more thrilling. The chemistry between us was absolutely electric!"

There is pure energy and creativity in this version of ‘I Wish’: jazz, funk, soul, blues, hip hop all combine with these exceptional musicians’ enthusiasm and effervescence.  Give it a listen and look out for opportunities to see either (or both) of them live.