Gypsy jazz
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Gypsy swing standards include jazz hits of the '20s and '30s, such as "Limehouse Blues", and "Dinah"; Bal Musette numbers, often waltzes; original compositions by Django Reinhardt, such as "Nuages" and "Swing 42"; compositions by other notable gypsy swing players; and jazzed-up versions of gypsy songs, such as "Dark Eyes". |
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Gypsy jazz (also known as gypsy swing or hot club jazz) is a style of jazz music generally accepted to have been started by the gypsy guitarist Jean "Django" Reinhardt in and around Paris in the 1930s. Because its origins are in France and Django was from the Manouche gypsy clan (although his frequent accompanists, and later solo performers/band leaders the Ferret brothers were not Manouches but Gitan gypsies) it is often called by the French name, "jazz manouche", or alternatively, "manouche jazz", even in English language sources. The term is now commonly used for this style of music.
Django was foremost among a group of Romani guitarists working in and around Paris in the 1930s through the 1950s, a group which also included the brothers Baro, Sarane, and Matelo Ferret and Reinhardt's brother Joseph "Nin-Nin" Reinhardt.
Many of the musicians in this style worked in Paris in various popular Musette ensembles. The Musette style waltz remains an important component in the gypsy jazz repertoire. Reinhardt was noted for combining a dark, chromatic gypsy flavor with the swing articulation of the period. This combination is critical to this style of jazz. In addition to this, his approach continues to form the basis for contemporary gypsy jazz guitar. Reinhardt's most famous group, the Quintette du Hot Club de France, also brought fame to jazz violinist Stéphane Grappelli.
See also
- Django Reinhardt
- Barcelona Gipsy Klezmer Orchestra (BGKO)
- Oscar Marcelo Alemàn
- Romani music
- Gábor Szabó
