Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival 2010
John Russell on Django
John Russell talks about Gypsy Jazz, visiting Django's grave, and the inspiration for his band, Swing 2010: Fapy Lafertin.
Django Reinhardt, the great Gypsy Jazz Guitarist, may have died in 1953 but his music lives on.
Around the world his music is perennially popular and in many parts of Europe and America it is celebrate by way of annual “Django Music Festivals”. The most famous of these festivals is the one in Samois-sur-Seine near Fontainebleau. This is where Django lived from 1951 till his death in 1953. This festival, held in June, has been running for 32 years, and was extra special this year marking the centenary of his birth in 1910.
Imagine the setting. A beautiful village on the banks of River Seine, barges moving their cargoes up and down the river and a campsite just over the river where many of the visiting gypsy musicians stay every year. It is a feast for Django fans such as myself, to wander round the campsite among groups of guitarists jamming on Django classics. The festival site is an island on the river, ‘Ile Du Berceau”. It’s a beautiful spot and it’s easy to imagine Django spending happy days here at his beloved fishing.
In addition to five days of Django’s music, the festival is a wonderful international gathering of devotees (Djangoratti) who buy and sell Django memorabilia and of course, guitars – I never new there was so many Django-style guitars in the world. At a special ceremony the Town Mayor unveiled a new sculpture of Django and a particularly poignant tribute was a Gospel – Mass. At this mass priests, speakers and choir paid their tributes but the highlight has to be a rendering, by gypsy guitarists, of Django’s Manoir De Mes Reves – it sounded so right in church. We then went in procession, behind a jazz band, to Django’s grave for another gathering at which there was more of his music – see the above picture. The guitarist, Lollo Meier also paid special tribute by travelling from Django’s birthplace, Liberchies in Belgium to Samois by horse-drawn Gypsy caravan - - a two week journey isn’t so bad when you consider modern-day traffic but probably slower than in Django’s days.
Django’s centenerary, of course, featured the cream of gypsy musicians. Among the most famous were, Bireli Lagrene, Stochelo Rosenberg, Paco De Lucia, Fapy Lafertin, Lollo Meier, Angelo Debarre and David Reinhardt
Amongst these, Fapy Lafertin (pictured with me) is considered by many to be truest to the original style of Django so it is with great fortune that we will have him at this years Edinburgh International Jazz Festival. Fapy with his band, Waso first appeared at the Edinburgh Jazz festival in 1980. I had spent my life listening to recordings of Django's Music so to hear them playing it live and so authentically was a life-changing moment. Thunderstruck, to put it mildly, I was inspired to form my own jazz group over the next few years we had the privilege of sharing the stage with Fapy. Starting as Swing 80 we now, as Swing 2010, celebrate 30 years and, according to the Scotsman, have become "Something of an Institution in Scottish Jazz ".Fapy will be the special guest at our Scotsman Talk at 2.30pm on 1st Aug at The Hub – “what makes Django Special?” and will also feature with swing 2010 in concert at 4pm in the same venue. He will also open the Martin Taylor concert at 8.p.m on 2nd Aug at the Queens Hall.
Django Reinhardt was a musical genius in the truest sense and 57 years after his death his music is preformed and celebrated with growing enthusiasm – DJANGO LIVES.
Latest News
Exclusive Meal Offer @ The Hub
A special pre concert three course meal for £18 has been made available for Jazz Festival goers this year at the Cafe Hub. To book call 0131 473 2000.
Edinburgh Jazz at Sixty
On Wednesday July 14th The Scotsman will carry a special supplement on the Festival's Edinburgh Jazz at Sixty series written by Kenny Mathieson and Sue Wilson.
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The Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival's irresistible programming collaborations are as challenging and creative, as ever - The Guardian
The Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival is out to prove that, alongside all the other new-fangled genres, pure unadulterated jazz is alive and kicking - The List
As ever The Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival features an excellent mix of singers, future stars, big bands and acts drawn from the thriving Scottish scene - The Telegraph
