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Gypsy jazz (also known as gypsy swing, jazz manouche or hot club-style jazz) is a musical idiom inspired by the Romani jazz guitarist Jean "Django" Reinhardt (1910–1953), in conjunction with the French jazz violinist Stéphane Grappelli (1908–1997), as expressed by their group the Quintette du Hot Club de France. The style has its origins in France and the Manouche clan of Romanis, and has remained popular amongst this clan. Gypsy jazz is often called by the French name "jazz manouche", or alternatively, "manouche jazz" in English-language sources. Reinhardt was foremost among a group of gypsy guitarists working in Paris from the 1930s to the 1950s. The group included the brothers Baro, Sarane, and Matelo Ferret and Reinhardt's brother Joseph "Nin-Nin" Reinhardt. The style was popular in France and, via recordings and appearances by the original Quintette, in other European countries before and immediately after the Second World War. It fell out of favour as the "swing era" came to an end, being replaced in its homeland by bebop, mainstream jazz, and eventually, rock and roll. However, it had a resurgence from the 1970s onwards, among performers and audiences at festivals, etc., in particular the Festival Django Reinhardt which commenced in 1968 at Samois-sur-Seine, France (the location of Reinhardt's last residence) and continues to the present time. Terminology The musical style was first named jazz tsigane in the French language, which translates to "gypsy jazz" in English. Some scholars have noted that the name "manouche jazz" began to be used around the late 1990s as a replacement term. The term "gypsy jazz" may be considered offensive, as the word "gypsy" has historically been used as a slur against Romani people. History The origins of gypsy jazz can be traced to the Manouche gypsy Django Reinhardt. After serving his musical "apprenticeship" playing in musette bands with accordionists and accompanying popular singers of the day, he became acquainted with jazz music and began playing it. After hearing ragtime and Dixieland music, Reinhardt listened to Duke Ellington, Joe Venuti and Eddie Lang, and especially Louis Armstrong via the record collection of painter Émile Savitry in Toulon, France, in 1931. After Reinhardt met violinist Stéphane Grappelli, they played dance music at the Hôtel Claridge in Paris, during the summer of 1934. According to an account in a book by Michael Dregni, Grappelli played a chorus, then Reinhardt began to improvise. Sometimes they were accompanied on double bass by Louis Vola, the band's leader, and by Roger Chaput on rhythm guitar. This was the core of Reinhardt's band. The addition of Reinhardt's brother, Joseph, on rhythm guitar made it the Quintette du Hot Club de France. This lineup, with occasional changes in membership on double bass and rhythm guitar, entered the recording studio later that year. They recorded extensively, until the outbreak of war in 1939 when the Quintette was on tour in England. Reinhardt returned to Paris, while Grappelli remained in London for the duration of the war. After the war, they reunited in London and recorded with an English rhythm section. The days of the "hot club" sound were over, as both men had pursued independent musical paths. Reinhardt had moved to an electric guitar sound influenced by bebop. His sons, Lousson and Babik, played in a style influenced by American jazz. Following Reinhardt's death in 1953 and into the 1960s, Romani players performed mainly upon amplified instruments in a modern, electric style, though with a European "inflection" in which some traces of Reinhardt's influence remained. However, from the 1970s onwards, a new generation of Romani players were interested in the original, hot club style and repertoire; some, such as the older German violinist and bandleader Schnuckenack Reinhardt, had been playing such music earlier, after Reinhardt's model. From the 1970s on, Romani performers such as Fapy Lafertin, Häns'che Weiss, Boulou Ferré, Raphaël Faÿs , Biréli Lagrène, Wawau Adler and Stochelo Rosenberg performed in this style. At the instigation of guitarist Diz Disley, Grappelli returned to the hot club style with the support of acoustic guitars and double bass. Grappelli's popularity and public appearances helped to rekindle an interest in gypsy jazz among younger listeners. In the 2010s and 2020s, the gypsy jazz style is once again passed on from one generation to the next in Manouche/Sinti communities, children learning from their relatives at an early age, able to master the basics almost before they can hold a normal-sized guitar in their hands. What is called "gypsy jazz" today was not always played exclusively by Roma, even in its early days: of the original Quintette, only Django and his brother Joseph were Roma, and Django himself played in a non-Roma jazz context on many occasions. In addition, many later Roma guitarists—including Django's own sons Lousson and Babik—did not generally play gypsy jazz in the hot club style, although they were indeed gypsies who were playing jazz. Likewise, a number of today's gypsy jazz exponents are non-gypsies, in addition to the more well known Roma players. Thus, the term has become attached to the style of the music, rather than the ethnicity of the players. Django himself would not have known the term "Manouche jazz"; the Quintette was simply a popular jazz outfit of the day. Instrumentation and lineup The Quintette du Hot Club de France initially played acoustically, without a drummer. After 1940, the group often recorded with a drummer. Guitar and violin are still the main solo instruments, although clarinet, saxophone, mandolin, and accordion are sometimes used. The rhythm guitar is played using a distinct percussive technique, "la pompe", which essentially replaces the drums. Most gypsy jazz guitarists, lead and rhythm, play a version of the Selmer-Maccaferri guitar design favored by Reinhardt. Ensembles aim for an acoustic sound even when playing amplified concerts, and informal jam sessions in small venues such as the annual Django Reinhardt festival at Samois-sur-Seine are part of the scene. Reinhardt and his band used a range of guitar models available in France, but dominant among them was the Selmer guitar designed and signed by Mario Maccaferri; Maccaferri parted company with Selmer in 1933 and later models were just known as "Selmer". These guitars were originally made in two versions, the earliest with a large, D-shaped sound hole, and later models with a smaller, O-shaped sound hole. The later models are considered most suited to lead guitar playing. In the 2010s, designs based on this model were marketed as "gypsy jazz guitars" and are the guitars of choice for most practitioners of the style on account of their responsiveness and particular tonal characteristics. The double bass is the low-pitched instrument in gypsy jazz. The bass is mostly used for a rhythm section and accompaniment, pl.... Discover the Michael Dregni popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Michael Dregni books.