Getting into Gypsy Jazz? A guide for the initiate.
To understand that big, authentic sound, it’s helpful to have a sense of the Gypsy-jazz guitar’s history and construction. The instrument was conceived in the early 1930s through a collaboration between the Italian musician and luthier Mario Maccaferri and the French instrument maker Selmer. Maccaferri later pioneered the production of plastic archtops, saxophones, and ukuleles.
The earliest Selmer-Maccaferri guitar was an oddball creature with its large D-shaped soundhole (grande bouche or large mouth); wide, floating bridge; fancy tailpiece; gently arched (not carved) French spruce soundboard; and ladder-braced top and back. The Selmer-Maccaferri was the first guitar with a cutaway and a steel-reinforced neck. Though the instrument is closely associated with guitar legend Django Reinhardt—and Gypsy jazz in general—it was originally intended for classical guitarists and jazz musicians. The first examples were built with Maccaferri’s internal resonating chambers to be very present and loud guitars. One might draw a parallel to the tornavoz found on many iconic classical guitars built in the latter half of the 19th century.
As opposed to fine steel-string or classical guitars, with solid backs and sides, most of the Gypsy-jazz model Selmer-Maccaferris had laminated Indian rosewood backs and sides—for sonic reasons, and not cost-cutting measures. The use of laminate was designed to isolate the top. An arched/bent pliage top (much like Neapolitan mandolins) and laminated back and sides make the sound reflect outward as much as possible, so the attack of the guitar is quite immediate.
Maccaferri only worked with the company for 18 months. After he left, his original design saw various modifications, among them the introduction of a small oval and round sound hole (petite bouche or smallmouth/ bouche ronde) and a long scale length of 670mm (26.38 inches). Still, Maccaferri’s name is forever associated with the instrument whose defining sound is characteristic of Django Reinhardt.
One of the first things to consider when buying a Gypsy-jazz guitar is the type of music that you anticipate playing. If you’re looking to get into playing straight Gypsy jazz, whether as a hobbyist or a professional musician, it’s best to shop for a true Selmer or Maccaferri copy. For an authentic sound, you’ll want to look for some of the things that were found on the original guitars.
You should look for a solid, heat bent spruce top; laminated rosewood or birdseye maple back and sides; and a walnut neck. The most popular variation is the later Selmer style, with a 14th-fret neck-to-body junction and longer scale length. This type generally has the most cutting tone and serves well as an all-purpose instrument. On the other hand, the earlier Maccaferri style has a 12th-fret neck junction and a slightly sweeter and more overtone-rich sound, not to mention a shorter scale-length fretboard, 648mm (25.5 inches).
If you aim to be a great soloist and sound like Django as heard on such early recordings as “My Sweet” or “Sweet Georgia Brown,” keep in mind a common misconception: Reinhardt didn’t start playing the 14-fret model seen in photos until the late 1930s. Django was using a 12-fret grande bouche guitar, proving that it’s not just a rhythm guitar.
Like any other style of guitar, the Gypsy-jazz guitar has seen a range of design variations over the decades. If stylistic rectitude is less of a concern for you, and you want the basic sonic footprint and feel of a Gypsy-jazz guitar, but with other timbral possibilities, don’t limit yourself to a Selmer- or Maccaferri-style guitar. Be open to features that aren’t necessarily historically correct. If you’re going to be performing other than straight Gypsy jazz—and you want a bit more mid- or high-presence, for example—you might try a guitar with a solid back and sides or a cedar top.
It’s one thing to hear a Gypsy-jazz guitar on a recording, but many musicians, upon playing one for the first time, are surprised by how they sound. People describe it as nasal- or crunchy-sounding—or just weird. That’s exactly how a Gypsy-jazz guitar should sound. And it’s also why it’s best to first experience Gypsy-jazz guitars in person with an experienced guide.
Another surprise comes in the form of playability: This type of instrument’s optimal setup differs from that of a regular steel string. The action on a Gypsy-jazz guitar is generally three millimeters above the 12th fret on the low-E string and around 2.1m on the high-E. Noticeably higher than on a standard steel string. If you set the action too low without enough tension, as many novices do, the guitar will have no projection or power.
While you shouldn’t confuse high action with a poor setup, you should know that entry-level Gypsy-jazz guitars often take a bit of work out of the box to ensure the best playability and sound. So if you must order an instrument online, factor in the cost of a good setup—generally as much as $200. Many of these import models require fret dressing, adjustment of the bridge feet to properly contact the top, and notching the bridge to ensure proper string spacing.
Something else to consider when auditioning your first Gypsy-jazz guitar: You cannot use standard tension acoustic guitar strings without risking damage to the structure of the top. To get the proper sound and tension from a Gypsy-jazz guitar, the best choice is silver-plated copper on a steel core, like Savarez Argentine Gypsy-Jazz Acoustic Guitar Strings. The standard gauge for these is .010 on the high-E string. They’ve been used by every famous guitarist in the genre, including Django.
Then there’s that tiny, but all-important, accessory: the plectrum. Chances are the medium flat pick you use on your steel string won’t quite cut it in terms of tone and volume on a Gypsy-jazz guitar, which is best played with a specialized type of pick, up to 6 mm thick. You’ll benefit from a Wegen or DjangoGuitars pick, the handmade picks that most Gypsy-jazz players use. The bottom line is that when buying your first Gypsy-jazz guitar, it’s best to manage your expectations as to how it will sound and feel. In many respects, it’s a different instrument than a steel-string flattop—one that will require new techniques and patience to master. You have to learn to play these guitars. It’s an acquired skill that comes with time and experience.
How to care for your guitar:
-ALWAYS keep the guitar in the case when not in use! Invest in a strong protective case. Most guitars are damaged in accidents involving guitar stands!
-DO NOT allow the instrument to get hot, cold, damp, or dry as this type of guitar is built extremely thin in construction and is prone to suffer from this type of misuse. No maker can guarantee the instrument if the new owner does not care for their OWN instrument. As with all other makes of steel string and classical guitars; humidity is vital. We recommend using a humidifier such as an Oasis. All wood and glue components of the guitar require regular feeding!
-There will be an initial "settling in" of the top that occurs over the first week or so with new guitars. During this time the action may shift to your environment. Keep a measurement tool handy and keep track of your action height in a logbook.
-Carry a soft microfiber or low-lint cloth to keep your instrument free of oils from your hands and sweat. Wipe your guitar down after you play. Your guitar will thank you.
A few key notes on playing Gypsy/Selmer-style guitars:
-I often provide instruments to musicians who have many years of experience playing other types of guitars but, are new to playing the Selmer style guitar. The setup of these guitars feels quite a bit different than your flat-top dreadnought or arch-top guitar. You need to invest the time to learn techniques to play these guitars properly rather than modify the guitar to suit your level of ability.
-Your guitar has likely been set with an action that is traditional on this style of guitar. Do not be tempted to overpick as this will kill the higher register and cause a distasteful tone. If you choose to raise the action; a little more power and tone will be forthcoming but, it will of course make playing that bit harder. Light gauge strings are set with high tension to provide a clear and full sound.
-You should use a rigid pick at least 2mm in thickness.
-Picking should be done close to the bridge. Not above the bottom of the sound hole is also important to keep the right hand clear of the bridge as this allows the top to move freely and increases the power of the instrument. The guitar has a natural reverb that will be inhibited if pressure from the hand is placed on the bridge. Spend a bit of time learning to create quality to the tone you are producing. Find the correct balance in the left and right hand to make a beautiful sound.
-Try as many guitars as possible and learn what to look for in terms of quality of materials and workmanship. Familiarize yourself with the instruments and the makers themselves. It is important to understand the way the vintage guitars sound and how that compares to modern instruments.
How to study?
I highly recommend DC Music School run by Denis Chang. I always suggest a teacher who is familiar with the diverse styles of players and techniques in the genre. The many lessons contained in this online school contain precise analyses of the greatest Gypsy guitarists. www.dcmusicschool.com
Petro Ivanovitch
REST IN PEACE 1947-2023
Born to a Gypsy family from ex-Yugoslavia, now Serbia, Petro Ivanovitch was born in Zemun close to Belgrade. He learned a traditional instrument the tamburitza (4 strings) before adapting to the balalaika which he tunes differently (B,E,A). He arrived to France at the end of the sixties and continued a career as a musician and singer with his group the Tziganes Ivanovitch with whom he played at many Parisian venues such as the Olympia, Bobino... He recorded several LP whose considered as references in the world of Gypsy music. He was known as the “Godfather of Gypsy Music in Paris”.
Performers of Gypsy songs and Russian romances. The peak of popularity of the team came in the seventies. The backbone of the ensemble were brothers - Peter and Slobodan Ivanovich. Older brother Peter Ivanovich - musician, guitarist, singer, virtuoso playing a balalaika, has masterfully playing the bass and the Yugoslav national product - tamburitse. Younger brother, Slobodan (1949-1985) - guitarist and singer. Petro Ivanovich was born in 1950 and grew up in Yugoslavia, his grandfather was a Russian Gypsy, originally from Russia. In the 1968th year, when Peter was eighteen, with his father, he moved to Paris. Six months, father and son played together in a small Russian restaurant "Killer Whale" on the Champs-Elysees, and later also came here and his younger brother - Slobodan. Soon after my father went on tour with the famous ballet. Petro Slobodan taught to play guitar and together they began performing in the restaurant "Taras Bulba" in Bonn Novella. By 1970, the ninth year Pyotr invites guitarist George Partoh and appears trio of musicians - "Les Trois Tziganes Ivanovitch" (Trio Gipsy Ivanovichi "). A little later, "the trio" is converted to a "quartet" under the title "Les Tziganes Ivanovitch" ( "Gypsies Ivanovichi"). In the ensemble, but the brothers Ivanovich, playing Armenian George Partoh and a new party, a young talented guitar player of Russian descent Andrey Shestopalov, which is still occasionally performs with Peter Ivanovich, as well as making records with other famous artists (in 1981 in Paris, participated in the recording A. Khvostenko famous album - "Last raspberries, and in the late 90's, organized in Paris on his own band" The Seagull ").
Two years after his brother's arrival in Paris, in 1970, the record company, "Phillips" recorded their first debut record "Gypsies Ivanovichi. The album was met with great interest and the ensemble becomes popular in France. They played such a large French stage, as concert halls "Olympia" and "Bobino", which usually invite only talented musicians. A few years later, in the wake of the success and popularity, the brothers opened his own restaurant, "Gypsies Ivanovichi," which came to many celebrities and artists. Even the next president of France Jacques Chirac, being at that time still a minister, came to this restaurant. Brothers Ivanovich here were such famous singers as Paradise Udovikova, Dina Verni, Natasha Udovikova-Bielenberg and many other artists. Later in the studio "Phillips" brothers Ivanovichi recorded their second CD. With the release of new album their music love all of Paris. Talent music ensemble "Gypsies Ivanovichi": Peter and Slobodan, guitarists Andrew and George, listened and understood everywhere. They sang the delightful voices and masterfully incendiary playing on guitar and balalaika music, which seems born from the depths of the human soul ...
Next was a tour around the world, friendship with celebrities such as Sophia Loren, Brigitte Bordeaux, Serge Gainsbourg, Jane Birkin, Jean Marais, Marcel Marceau, Yul Brynner and others. The ensemble has toured throughout Europe and the United States, worked for some time with a popular singer Ivan Rebrov from Germany, just as Peter Ivanovich almost 20 years working together with gypsies and Alyosha Valley Dimitrijevic (after the death of his own father, Alyosha, and Valya Dimitrijevic replaced brothers mother and father). In the first half of the 70-ies, the success of "Gypsy Ivanovich" in Europe to some extent was comparable to the success of the Beatles - the brothers went to black limousines and assembled the entire stadiums in various European countries. They had a big yacht, where they staged a party, a gathering of 150-200 well-known artists, and walked, walked till morning ...
In 1985, tragedy struck ... Right in the restaurant died younger brother Peter, Slobodan. This was an irreplaceable loss. The younger brother was a kind of "locomotive" of the collective. It turns life around him in celebration - he loved life, music, cards, casinos, women, and every day there was a bud-a New Year's or Christmas, no one lived as a full-blooded and had fun, like brothers Ivanovichi ... The grave of Slobodan located near the graves of the composer Berlioz in Montmartre. Slobodan I. lived only 36 years ... Slobodan left two sons.
The last official CD of the ensemble, under the title - "Peter Ivanovich, was recorded in Norway twelve years ago. Overall, Petro recorded in Europe, seven-disc giants, most of which was released in the 70th years: "Les Tziganes Ivanovitch" (1970), "Me sem Rom" (1972), "Iagori (Le Feu)" (1973 ), "Bach Le Bonheur" (1976), "Amoro Kher" (1977), "Gori, gori zigansks Ljubov" (1982), Petro Ivanovitch - "Musique Tzigane" (1994). Recently released without the consent of the Petro-disc compilation "Paris - New York - Tel Aviv" (The Very Best Gypsy Song `s), which were issued 25 of his compositions, and now continues with the judicial process.
Pyotr Ivanovich two adult sons from his first marriage - Aleko and could both live in Norway, engaged in music, knows several languages, perfectly educated, virtuzno plays the guitar and begin to try themselves as soloists, as well as take part in organizing the annual International Gypsy Festival Ягори. With second wife, Tatiana, Petro met when she was still working in Russia's gypsy theater "Romen". Once Peter advised a friend to invite a French impresario theater "Romen" in France and performers from Russia arrived in Paris on tour, it was then that Peter and Tatiana met, and even made a joint musical "We - the Gypsies." After three or four years, Tatiana again to Paris looking for work, and Peter took her to sing in his restaurant. Now they have a daughter - Tatiana too.
Currently in France Petro played in theaters, appears on television, but provides more private concerts. Works in a small Parisian restaurant "Jaguaroff". In Paris, he was invited to the speeches, mostly French, and in the south of France, he gives private concerts in the villas of the wealthy "new Russian" immigrants. Of course, he is friends with Russian gypsies and performers from Russia. Recently visited Russia to France, a gypsy band "Stark", they too were in the south of France and met with Petro. In the Moscow Gypsy Theater Romen "is a wonderful actor Moses, is the best friend of Petro, with whom he even" fraternized. Petro loves and knows well-known artistic family of Gypsies Buzylevyh from Russia, from whom he once traveled to visit. Today, Peter Ivanovich many friends in Russia. In the early 80's in Paris Petro met singer emigre from Russia, Mikhail Gulko, who specially flew in from America, that would work with the legendary singer Alesha Dimitrijevic, and lived in the same apartment with his younger brother Peter, Slobodan Ivanovich. Mikhail Gulko still enthusiastically recalls the days of wonderful musicians and the stunning atmosphere.
Now Peter Ivanovich be called "the godfather of" Gypsy music in Paris. Young calls him and asks to play with him - come to learn and enjoy the game wizard. Many famous balalaika players and guitarists of the world, such as Angelo Debarre, Joseph and Dyango Reinhardt, called Petro Ivanovich - Maestro, and proudly told him about the joint statements and to record the disc. Petro has not only a gypsy folklore - he plays anything: Hungarian music, Yugoslav, Jewish, jazz and classical works by Tchaikovsky, Glinka, Rachmaninoff, etc. The present composition of the ensemble: Petro - vocals, balalaika, and his wife Tatiana -- soloist; guitarists - Andrey Shestopalov and Frederic, a young musician Alesha - bass.
Petro masterfully played the balalaika - but not simple, but special. Petro adjusts your instrument differently. But he plays such a special balalaika. It all started with the fact that Peter has played in his youth at chetyrehstrunnom Yugoslav musical instrument - tamburitse. The restaurant "Taras Bulba" in which Peter began his career with his brother, Slobodan, was a small balalaechka which Peter once took to learn a single tune - and both learned to play the trichord instrument. String becoming less and skill - more ... On the published record of the best balalaika world, you can hear the balalaika and special Petro Ivanovich.
Now in Paris only a few artist names Gypsy romance: Motia Yankovskaya - niece of Nicholas Slichenko (director of the Moscow Gypsy Theater Romen "), Tatiana - wife of Peter Ivanovich, and Lily Limanskaya. Similarly, in the restaurant's famous loose "Raspoutine", which still contain the "Le restaurant-cabaret Russe", plays a large instrumental ensemble conducted by Romano, c colistkoy Sonya, Yugoslav singer, performing Gypsy songs.
Courtesy of: https://musecat.ru/music-artist/ijhjfeg/Les-Tziganes-Ivanovitch
Balkan Gypsy Music
“In his Moeurs et Coutumes des Tziganes (1936), the French ethnologist Martin Block notices that when a Hungarian or Romanian feels sad, or when, on the contrary, he wants to celebrate, he needs Gypsy music to exteriorize the state of his soul. (Block 1936, p. 136)¹ Block's conclusion that Gypsy musicians are in the business of articulating other people's 'soul' confronts us with an intriguing conundrum. Given the fact that in Eastern Europe, group boundaries between Gypsies and non-Gypsies are strictly defined and zealously kept up, one wonders how Gypsies would be able to articulate musically an intimate knowledge about their non-Gypsy customers. And why would Hungarians, Romanians - and, as I will argue in this paper, Serbs as well - need Gypsy musicians to 'exteriorize their state of soul"? In the Serbian town of Novi Sad, where I studied the musical and extra musical communication between Gypsy musicians and their Serb customers during bac- chic celebrations called lumpovanje,3 the idea that Gypsy musicians know how to reach and 'touch' the innermost being of their non-Gypsy customers is widely accepted. This is what Janoš, the violinist from a Novi Sad Gypsy band, had to say about it during an interview: The ideal is to give the customer the feeling that he's being understood. Didn't I tell you that we Gypsies are great judges of character, great psychologists! When, for example, a customer enters the restaurant, or, let's say, when a big gathering of fifteen to twenty persons comes in, you start to play ... [continuing in a whisper]... and then you watch their faces. Are they responding to the music? Are they interested at all?... How can you tell...? [I asked him] ...you feel it, you feel it! And you can see the expression on a person's face. Anyway, you then immediately adapt your program... aha!... there!... look!... now I should not play something sentimental. If I do that, I'll lose him. I'll go for something virtuoso, something more entertaining. I mean, it all depends on the mentality of the people, you know. That's what you should try to touch. Because if you don't know how to touch their mentality - I would imagine - people will not even notice you, they will not even see that you're there, that you're playing. You must touch the right string with people. It is just like touching the string of the violin, you see, that's how you must touch the string of people. And that is purely a psychological matter, something we Gypsies have learned since childhood. The Serbs, for their part, may respond to these intimations of being understood by placing themselves completely in the musicians' hands. Their efforts to build up an atmosphere of intimacy with the Gypsies would be inconceivable and unheard of in everyday life. In their desire for more music, more songs and more exhilaration.”
Francis Alfred Moerman
“But of course, by 1950, jazz was changing. The brass of New Orleans was now applied to the new forms of bebop and thus the Gypsy guitar was relegated to Tsigane ensembles. Sarane then found himself playing the beautiful old melodies at the Sheherazade and other popular cabarets, where he continued to embody for all Paris the soul of the Parisian guitar.”
MIKE ZWERIN
“In the winter of 1920, a dirty Gypsy child was begging between a horse-meat butcher and a used-shoe stall on the Kremlin-Bicétre market. He was just like any other begging Gypsy child, except that he played a battered banjo. Little Django Reinhardt played his banjo here every Sunday. His younger brother Joseph passed a hat. Already you could hear something, well, bizarre. Passages from 'Au Claire de la Lune' alternated with out-of-tune aleatoric clusters like round-the-bend Stravinsky. He seemed hypnotised by his strings. It was as though someone else was fingering them. If you had ever been to New Orleans you might have recognized a few phrases that sounded like the blues, which was even more bizarre because Django had never been there. He played Romanian folk songs with his uncle in a small cafe on Saturdays.”
Essential Listening
FRANCE:
Tchavolo Schmitt
Angelo Debarre, Serge Camps, Frank Anastasio- “Gypsy Guitars”
Petro Ivanovitch “Romano Drom”
Samson Schmitt
Dorado Schmitt
GERMANY:
HOLLAND:
Paulus Schafer
Stochelo Rosenberg
Mozes Rosenberg
SERBIA
ROMANIA
Marius Preda
MACEDONIA
FMR YUGOSLAVIA
HUNGARY
Ernest Bango
SLOVAKIA
UKRAINE
RUSSIA
Boulou Ferre
“It’s a jazz that seduced the Americans because it admired north American culture, but at the same time the Americas would tell themselves “this is a music that sounds a little different from ours” and what I mean by that is that the notion of “jazz Manouche” is simply French jazz music. But at the same time, with a Tzigane side to it, “Gypsy.” Because “Gypsy” is not Manouche, it’s more than that, it’s thousands of years. The gypsies come from India, from the Ganges. As I’ve been asked, “You are Manouche?” I say, “No!” or “You are Gypsy?” I say, “My brother and I are, like in Prosper’s libretto “Mérimée” (from Bizet’s Opera Carmen) Bohemian children or children of Gypsies. We are the Arlésienne.” (Boulou starts singing Carmen’s Habanera) We are Bohemian children, because of the roulotte (trailer caravan). I have it here, in my head. It’s the “dreams.” Like Jim Morrisson, like Hendrix, like Charlie Chaplin, like Modigliani! So, like yourselves, we are makers of dreams, because our roots are in the lines of the hand, our origins are the very lines of our hands. So we are truly real gypsies. It’s more than Manouche. To say “Me, Tzigane. Me, Manouche. Me, this. Me, that.” That is dreadful. No! Our music is universal, it’s the music of the world.”
Cabaret Tzigane
https://luannehomzy.bandcamp.com/album/cabaret-tzigane
Here is our album available in pre-release form for your downloading and streaming pleasure. One year ago at Django A GOGO we left directly from NY to Paris to track the record. The physical record will be for sale at Django A GO GO on May 6 2023 in NYC.
This album has been in the works for over a year and we are so pleased to finally present it in its full form. It was the culmination of our many musical experiences while traveling throughout Europe that shaped this recording.
The name of the album is derived from the Parisian tradition of the "Cabaret Russe". Many of our heroes played every night at clubs in Paris like "Karlov", "La Balalaika", "Raspoutine", "La Roue Fleurie" and "Les Tziganes Ivanovitch". Gypsy musicians played rich musical treasures such as the Hungarian csardas, Kolos and Russian romances. We pay homage to the golden age of Gypsy and eastern European music in Paris.
For context as best said by Jon Larsen:
"The Russian cabaret" was a special phenomenon in Paris, now extinct. The background was the Russian revolution, when more than 10000 upper-class refugees fled to Paris, with their gold, art, culinary preferences, and favorite gypsy artists. Soon after the Russian restaurants popped up, with live Gypsy music. This was actually where Django Reinhardt started out - playing waltzes and popular melodies at the tables. The younger Matelo Ferré, as well as Sarane and Baro, played most of his life in these wonderful, existentialistic places, six nights a week.
Years later, Boulou and Elios started out in the same tradition. In the 80-ies, when Jon Larsen started frequenting Paris, there were still 15-20 different, Russian places in Paris - all with the most amazing music! Karlov, Les Yeux Noir, Scheherazade, Etoile de Moscou, A la Balalaïka, and even Serge Camps' "La Roue Fleurie". Every night you could go from place to place and listen to Boulou and Elios, Angelo Debarre, Serge Camps, the Ivanovich brothers, Pascal de Loutchek and Arbat, and so on! The legendary gypsy nights!
When the iron curtain fell, and the perestroika began, the market collapsed, and the last few Russian establishments with live music shut down just a few years ago. An important chapter in the history of gypsy music, and jazz, was over."
Our journey has brought us to have direct transmission from many of the aforementioned musicians and it is worth noting that Frank Anastasio is one of those such musicians. It is the biggest honor for us to collaborate with him on this project.
Recorded completely live with the exception of a few guitar and violin overdubs. I even brought my original Selmer guitar all the way over to Paris for the recording. We pulled out all the stops.
Please enjoy!
Our Team:
Violin: Luanne Homzy
Bass: Frank Anastasio
Guitar: Tommy Davy
Accordion: Dario Ivkovic
Mix Engineer: Jeff Gartenbaum (LA)
Tracking Engineer: Felix Rémy (Paris)
Tracking Engineer : Brendan Dekora (LA)
Recorded at:
Studio Pigalle Paris, France
EastWest Studios Hollywood, CA
GUNTER GRASS
"Perhaps we lack the very people we're afraid of, because they are foreign to us and look foreign. Those whom, out of fear, we meet with hatred, which now daily turns to violence. And perhaps those we most lack are the ones we think of as the lowest of the low, the Romanies and the Sinti, the Gypsies. They have no allies. No politician represents their case, whether in the European Parliament or the Bundestag. No state they can appeal to would support their demands for compensation - pathetic, isn't it? - for Auschwitz, or make them national priority. The Romanies and Sinti are the lowest of the low. 'Expel them!' says Herr Seiters and gets on the line to Romania. 'Smoke them out!' shout the skinheads. But in Romania, and everywhere else, Gypsies are bottom of the heap as well. Why? Because they are different. Because they steal, are restless, roam, have the evil eye and that stunning beauty that makes us ugly to ourselves. Because their mere existence puts our values into question. Because they are all very well in operas and operettas, but in reality - it sounds awful, reminds you of awfulness they are antisocial, odd and don't fit in. "Torch them!' shout the skinheads. When Heinrich Böll was laid to rest eight years ago, there was a Gypsy band leading the pallbearers - Lev Kopelev, Günter Wallraff, myself and Böll's sons - and the mourners on the way the graveyard. It was Böll's wish. It was what he wanted to play him into the grave, that deeply tragic, despairingly gay music. It has taken me until now to understand him. Let half a million and more Sinti and Romanies live among us. We need them. They could help us by irritating our rigid order a little. Something of their way of life could rub off on us. they could teach us how meaningless frontiers are: careless of boundaries. Romanies and Sinti are at home all over Europe. They are what we claim to be; born Europeans!" GUNTER GRASS
Babik Reinhardt
“Of course, he was a giant of the jazz world, and all his fans know he was a Gypsy. But many people don't realize what an enormous effect being a Gypsy had on his music which in fact transcended jazz. His behavior was at times puzzling to non-gypsies. Every true genius behaves differently to the rest of us. But, above all, my father was a gypsy.” - Babik Reinhardt
Conversation with Boulou Ferre, Elios Ferre, Christophe Astolfi
It all begins with an idea.
A few months ago, I had the great pleasure of speaking with three of the most significant musicians in the French jazz scene. Their family’s history of close association and collaboration with the great Django Reinhardt indelibly links them to a rare form of artistry and particular musicianship. A certain “mystique” has always accompanied the name of Django Reinhardt. The public’s common misconception of Django’s musical
history and the evolution of his genre is much different than what actually transpired.
These days a pop-culture fantasy of “Gypsy Jazz” has taken on a life of its own, often abandoning the truth. What is found today on video, internet sites, discussion forums, etc., presents an oversimplified and homogenized version of Django’s music. That’s why the Ferrés are so important and relevant. The Ferré brothers are two of the very few individuals actually preserving authentic artistry. I recently heard exciting news via our mutual friend Christophe Astolfi, of a new project instigated by Boulou and Elios Ferré. We agreed to rendevous with them in Paris at one of the most notorious cafes of Django’s era, “La Coupole,” to learn more about their latest album, their life’s work and their art.
Tommy: I am quite curious about your project and its repertoire. And how did you (Boulou and Elios) come to know guitarist Christophe Astolfi?
Elios: So, if I may begin and then I will let my brother speak. Why Christophe? Because Christophe plays the exact school of the Ferré family, but with his own personality. It’s important to work with guitarists who have their own personality, which makes it not a monologue, but a dialogue. It’s a music where we exchange a lot. It’s like a conversation. And when you have the same point of view, you communicate much faster, when, for example, you have a fantastic drummer – and I’ve experienced this too – and the bassist is superb. But if there is no communication, it doesn’t work. And although they are great, it can fall apart. And when working with other people, music is always like walking on eggshells. I’m talking about real music. If you are like a ‘copycat,’ it serves nothing. And I think with Christophe here, it’s a mini-orchestra made up of three, it’s a trio. It’s an exchange.
In regards to the repertoire, first of all, it’s a surprise. It’s like a magician who mustn’t divulge his magic tricks! It will be pretty-colored, but without being folkloric. Because at the present time, we “corrupt” it a little, I believe. We change it for whatever reason. Notably, what occurred during a certain era- for example, the “New Orleans” jazz music was totally “de-naturalized” and it’s a shame. And in the “gypsy” genre, the two most important families were the Reinhardt family and the Ferré family. As you know, there have been many others. We were fortunate to have played with Stéphane Grapelli; Louis Vola, one of Django’s pianists; Maurice Vander, Django’s drummer; Roger Paraboschi, who was also drummer for my uncle Baro. Baro, as it happens, in his Valses d’hier et d’aujourd’hui, would say: “to inspire oneself, yes, to be a copycat (mimic), no.” To be accused of forgery and the practice of forgery, normally that would mean prison. It’s a form of rape. I think when I say bebop, world music, swing, New Orleans, of course we are inspired! That’s natural. Because before being a father, you have to be son. At a certain age, you have to be the father. Because after a while, you have to make your own analysis.
Boulou: Would you perhaps like me to tell you a story?
Tommy: Yes, of course, as you wish!
Boulou: The mission of the trio’s project is fragile one. It’s fragile because I myself had formed a trio thirty years ago, and we know very well that the model for us was “Le Quintette du Hotclub de France.” Why? When Django created this ensemble with Stéphane Grapelli, this project of the “Jazz of France” quintette, it was jazz without drums or trumpet, contrary to the big bands of Duke Ellington or Count Basie. This jazz was a typically “French” jazz, “French connection jazz”, without drums or trumpet. The notion of a trio is the same: no drums, no brass, and no big band: “The Trio.” So, it’s a fragile project. It’s like chamber music, like a trio: violin, piano, cello. It’s not one guitar with two accompanists, there are three soloists, three personalities, three guitars, three identities. We two are brothers, Elios and I, we are a bit similar to Stéphane Grappelli and Django, that is, we are very different from one another and at the same time very complimentary. And that’s it, music is made but of contrasts. Or else it would all be the same.
The idea behind this album isn’t to play like Django, because Django is unique. It’s like Matisse, Picasso, Aragon, or Bach. It isn’t needed. To recreate the original is not possible. There is one, but not two. But to play for Django, with our music. Elios and I are like two old travel companions. We have created over thirty albums in this world!
Last night, a friend of mine phoned me at 5 A.M.! Hervé, (he is in Montreal.)
He said, “Boulou, I love you! I have talked with all the American guitarists who live in Montreal, and they all have you and your brother’s albums, and all have Gypsy Dreams! I’m sorry to wake you up, but here it’s night-time!”
That’s right! That’s why the phone rang at 5 A.M. So, our music is known throughout the world.
Now, here is the new recruit. (gesturing to Alstolfi) I will make it short. He is twenty years younger than us, but his value is not in the number of his years. He represents the new generation of guitarists. It’s true that he brings something new to the trio. What is our trio? There are no standards. We’ve played the standards. We know them. Now, we play our originals, our music. Elios’s music, my music, adding Christophe’s playing, and we make a beautiful cocktail of music. …a trio.
Tommy: Would you please talk about your approach to improvisation?
Elios: A theme, in terms of jazz standards, (as Charlie Parker and Django did, as well as Dizzie Gillespie) is a conversational subject. If we are really true improvisors, which we are, we would have written themes on paper on our music stands and after that we would have as Stéphane Grappelli said, “Cook up something in the kitchen.” Of course there are themes, of course there are many things but we will be improvising. Because in that case if it weren’t for improvisation, it would be better to play classical music. Although, the great master Rostropovich would create cadenzas. And if we’re truly talking about classical music-you know Bach. At the end of the sheet of music it’s written “improvisation!” Because the theme suggests to us (the theme, is what we call a conversational subject) to improvise in the spirit of this theme. So of course we will improvise. Of course we won’t play all the written notes with music stands, what we’ve been working on for 6 months… no! That’s the goal of an improviser, or a Church Master. For example, a great organ player like Pierre Cochereau, whom we have known, or Jean Guillou from St-Eustache, I sing him a little song and he will improvise for hours and hours. Because we improvise on what we feel, which is what we call a “language” and language means conversation. So, absolutely we will improvise.
Tommy: I noticed that Boulou recently released an album of solo improvisations. Will all the tracks on the upcoming trio album be trio or will there be solo tracks as well?
Boulou: This trio is a communion of three artists. The solos, the pieces are, in reality, written with a structure. There is a structure because we cannot improvise with the wind, not at all, or else it would be chaos. It’s necessary to have a point of departure so that we always improvise. You, for example, you are a musician, so you understand. There are harmonic progressions. We respect them and we play through those changes. So, to improvise spontaneously, the structures are already imposed. There is effectively, some writing. There is writing and there is what we call spontaneous improvising. Elios improvises on the structures, Christophe the same and myself as well. And of course, we improvise on originals, on compositions by my brother as well as some of mine. We play some lines together, which are already written because it’s like “arranged” music. It’s not like we will arrive at the studio and say “so what should we do and what should we improvise on?” No, we already know that when we arrive to the studio. We have already strategically planned out how we will find our physical and musical placement. And on top of that, the things we will be playing are difficult things. They demand a very serious preparation in terms of psychic and physical levels and also erotic. What we play is very erotic. It’s very sensual. It demands strength, an energy, to be thrown into the flux.
Also, I did forget to say one thing. In this album as well, there is a second important thing. This album represents the taking of a risk. It’s the taking of a risk, because in this album I sing and I make an homage to George Brassens. There we go. So there are many components.
Elios: I’d like to add a parenthetical comment. Complementary to what we call the rhythm section, we will be playing harmonic progressions. We will divide the chords. It’s not D D D D G G G G D D D D. We divide the chords, there are progressions. As Fats Navarro, the great trumpet player once said, “We will make great jazz when we are making good harmonic progressions.” And we ourselves, we know that system. My brother had the chance to play with some people, most notably, Dizzie Gillespie and I had the chance to play with Chet Baker and Jaco Pastorius. Well, your school (the American school) we know it very well. But, we also know our own patrimony. There is a difference between different musicians. I had the chance to play with some musicians like Billy Hart. We have played with these people, so we know the American culture very well, the same as we know the gypsy culture and I don’t mean the folk-gypsy culture, because Django’s music, is “Djangology” and the Ferré music is “Ferré music” and Parker’s music is “Parker Music.” And that is the difference.
Boulou: Wouldn’t now be the time to ask some questions of Christophe?
Tommy: Yes, absolutely. Please tell me of your history and what drew you to this kind of music?
Christophe: So, when I decided to learn music at the age of 12, I actually wanted to play like Jimmy Hendrix. Since I didn’t have any guitar teacher or music teacher, it was the people of my village who showed me the chords, who taught me how to be autonomous in regards to music. That is, how to learn from albums and to get my ears to work. So I wanted to play like Jimi Hendrix and this person who showed me how to play my first chords said, “You know, it’s great to play like Jimi Hendrix, but there are two people you need to listen to if you are a guitarist. They are Joe Pass, who like you is of Sicilian origin, and Django Reinhardt.” So I kept this in mind and I was fortunate later on to be taken under the wing of someone who trained me to be an accompanist in the dance orchestras and this person wanted me to accompany like Django. At the time, we didn’t say “la pompe,” we said “la loco” to mark all the beats. So he really had me learn how to play rhythm like Django Reinhardt.
Let’s say that in regards to this music, that’s how it started. Later on, at about 17 years of age, I started to be really interested in Django’s music, his followers, and the different ways to play in Django’s style. And that’s how I discovered Boulou and Elios’s albums, parallel to albums from different people, especially Mr. Baro Ferret and Mr. Matelo Ferret. They really had a lot of impact on me. And after that I think I’ve always followed this path, that is, the way of eclecticism. I love tradition but what I search for before anything is an “open-ness” in music and I think that we are all three united by this “open-ness” as with modern jazz, American jazz, classical music and contemporary music.
So for me, the adventure started very early via dance music, Django Reinhardt and then during my teens the Ferré Family, the American school, up until today with our meeting and our album project.
Elios: I’d like to propose another parenthetical comment: “Long live tradition”- but with a static tradition we will end up in a museum. An evolving tradition, as in painting and music, like Igor Stravinsky, Bela Bartok, like Benny Goodman who was capable of playing concertos, like the Wynton Marsalis family… I would say this music is not eclectic, it is diverse. It’s different. It’s a little bit like medicine, the way we healed and practiced medicine one hundred years ago. Do we keep it that way? The standard was one thing a hundred years ago, but medicine and science has evolved. You see, candles are pretty, they’re romantic, they’re very beautiful. When we press a button, you see…(turning on a light) So I think: past, present and future. And the future, what is it? It is an evolving past. If you stay in the past, you don’t evolve, that means that you are 4 years old and then at 40 years old, you are still only 4 years old in your head… It’s in the mind because in each human being there is a child. One has to evolve because with music, for us, it’s an urgent state. Repeating what was done by our elders, not only jazz, but contemporary, classical, because when we look at Bach’s harmonic treatise, we can already see there was an evolution. So, we honor our elders, and we with our means, we try to leave our own footprint -our little grain of rice.
Tommy: How exactly do we classify this music? I don’t want to say “Gypsy swing”, or “Gypsy jazz.” These aren’t the correct terms are they?
Boulou: No, they are not. Our father, who was on the road with Django Reinhardt, did not define himself at all as such. To say we play “Jazz Manouche” is not pejorative, but saying that, for my brother and I who are already of a certain age, who have grown up in the tradition of this music, who have known Django Reinhardt’s brother, myself who has worked with Django R.’s son in trio, Babik Reinhardt, no, we’ve never thought “Jazz Manouche.” Not at all. Django’s music as Elios said is a music like the music of Louis Armstrong or of Bix Beiderbecke or James P. Johnson. No! It’s jazz, first of all with drums or trumpet. It’s a Parisian jazz. Djangos’ jazz, Matelo’s jazz, or Sarane, or Baro. It’s a jazz that was born here in the capital, Paris, with George Bracques or Édith Piaf. And it’s a music that started off in Montmartre, in Pigalle and later here in Montparnasse. My father played with Django during the war, right here at La Coupole in 1942. It’s a jazz that seduced the Americans because it admired north American culture, but at the same time the Americas would tell themselves “this is a music that sounds a little different from ours” and what I mean by that is that the notion of “jazz Manouche” is simply French jazz music. But at the same time, with a Tzigane side to it, “Gypsy.” Because “Gypsy” is not Manouche, it’s more than that, it’s thousands of years. The gypsies come from India, from the Ganges. As I’ve been asked, “You are Manouche?” I say, “No!” or “You are Gypsy?” I say, “My brother and I are, like in Prosper’s libretto “Mérimée” (from Bizet’s Opera Carmen) Bohemian children or children of Gypsies. We are the Arlésienne.” (Boulou starts singing Carmen’s Habanera) We are Bohemian children, because of the roulotte (trailer caravan). I have it here, in my head. It’s the “dreams.” Like Jim Morrisson, like Hendrix, like Charlie Chaplin, like Modigliani! So, like yourselves, we are makers of dreams, because our roots are in the lines of the hand, our origins are the very lines of our hands. So we are truly real gypsies. It’s more than Manouche. To say “Me, Tzigane. Me, Manouche. Me, this. Me, that.” That is dreadful. No! Our music is universal, it’s the music of the world.
Elios: Just as Django Reinhardt did it. You have a great example. I won’t be the one to talk about it, rather, Django Reinhardt’s discography will. Well, he’s played with Benny Carter, Coleman Hawkins, Bill Coleman and Max Stewart. Later, thanks to my dad he played with Édith Piaf. His friends were Marcel Cerdan and Colette, etc., etc. Because to say “Manouche” is the what happened in the 80’s, because the journalists didn’t know how to categorize us. So, they had to label us. I will tell you something. You too have a great example in the U.S. He’s a great saxophonist who, unfortunately, is dead, a creator. He’s one of Brazilian music’s greatest, but he is not Brazilian! It’s Stan Getz. When you see Stan Getz’ album sessions with Red Mitchell, well, at the end of the day they were playing… Brazilian music! He was known throughout the world and his music is still being played…Le Roi du Tango. He’s a Frenchman! It’s Charles Romuald, whose stage name was Carlos Gardel. He was from Toulouse. Music is like love, you don’t need a passport. Either we play the right notes… as Miles (Davis) would say.
Christophe: I’d just like to add something about the term “Manouche.” I’d like to bring to mind someone who was not gypsy at all, but who greatly contributed to the creation of this music, being maybe one of the rare people who actually knew Django Reinhardt in the 30’s. It’s Mr. Stéphane Grappelli. With this cult of the guitar “hero” we often forget the people who were around Django, who permitted the creation of this quintette and also Django’s artistic stimulation. I believe that yes, Django was a genius, that he succeeded by himself, but having had someone like Stéphane at the beginning of his career, as well as someone like Hubert Rostaing to be able to write down his music (since it was structure-less.) We can’t forget that these people were not at all Gypsy. So I think the people we cited earlier, may it be the Reinhardt family or the Ferré family, had the intelligence to know exactly what the world was because the world is an exchange, it’s sharing. If tomorrow I go to New York to listen to some bebop, I’m not going to ask someone on the street to bring me to a club where I can listen to “black jazz,” and if I’m a fan of Charles Mingus of the “café au lait” jazz, it makes no sense, really… They are sort of distortions, maybe a little commercialized pushed to an extreme that has no consideration for what the music is. We say it’s a universal form of expression. I think music has enough value to be able to pass above these limitations.
Elios: Notably, a great example – without being political – is the United States of America! It’s a melting pot. Canada… it’s a melting pot, you (gesturing to Luanne) are our cousins of the West. And music is the same.
One last thing I’d like to establish: when one says, “Manouche guitar” (or gypsy guitar) I would say it’s false. Why? Because of the creator of this guitar was Italian, Mr. Mario Macaferri. The second, who almost perfected it was Henri Selmer from Lorraine. It’s true that the Reinhardt family and the Ferré family were practically the first to play on those guitars. Thanks to who? Well, it’s Louis Vola! He was the double bassist for Django Reinhardt. And there’s a guitar at the Paris National Conservatory which is a prototype of the 1934 model where we see a photo of Django playing it in a big band, with Louis Vola, but this guitar is neither Macaferri or Selmer, it’s a Ramirez, by a Spanish luthier who lived on Rue Rodier. So, I will repeat myself, the instrument must be in harmony with your thoughts. If it isn’t in harmony, it’s like a car that has no fuel.
Christophe: It’s true, to repeat what Elios was saying, you have to take note of all the luthiers (until the international popularity of “jazz Manouche” took off at the end of the 90’s) all the luthiers who carried on this tradition. Not to be provincial, because if one really knows the traditions, they’re either Italian or Sicilian…
Elios: Busato, Favino, Gino, Di Mauro, Carbonell…
Christophe: So Manouche guitar. I only know of one gypsy who builds these guitars…
Tommy: One more question. I want to ask about the relationship between your family and Russian music, the cabarets, and this branch of the genre.
Elios: Ah! So the relationship- it is simple, very simple. Because in the Russian cabarets, they were pretty much no bigger than this club. (La Coupole) Back in the day, you had the Scheherazade, which was one of the biggest cabarets where American actors like George Edward would come. In these Russian Cabarets, there was the “Gypsy Orchestra” and in gypsy music, there is a lot of improvisation. Like jazz, with harmonic progressions and all. After that was the Russian Orchestra. After was what we called “the Attractions,” such as singers. Afterward, there was what we call the “Typical Orchestra” (l’Orchestre Typique). And after that there was the Quintette of the Hot Club of France! Or, also the Quintet of Paris which was directed by my uncle Sarane, with the violinist Georges Effrose, who unfortunately had a sad ending.
Tommy: Well, Christophe, Elios and Boulou. I am sad we have come to the conclusion of our interview today. It has been a great pleasure and honor to talk with you about subjects that are near and dear to my heart. Perhaps we shall talk again in the future? For now, abiento. Merci, merci a tous!