The Centennial Celebration Continues With A Django Reinhardt Documentary on Gypsy Jazz in Occupied France

Django Reinhardt Centennial Celebration~!!

“There are numerous ensembles throughout the history of jazz whose existence left an indelible mark on the genre. Some are driven by great artists, others by a collective sound. Some groups aren’t really groups at all; they’re actually individuals whose artistry is of such magnitude that they’ve come to represent an entire school of jazz, and in some cases to define jazz in its entirety… That is the magic of Django Reinhardt and the Quintet of the Hot Club of France.” – Mike Peters (Mosaic Records, 1999)

Django Reinhardt was born 100 years ago today. Lots of events mark this centennial celebration:

NYPL hosts a screening of “The Sweet and Lowdown” tonight.

Three days of Django music at Iridium next week.

NPR has a nice, brief history up.

Deutsche Welle on France’s celebration of its hero.

The LA Times on Django’s contemporary legacy.

As for Bop and Beyond, I’ll be putting up music and video from Django all week. I also plan to record a special centennial broadcast of my favorite Django music sometime within the next month. Here’s a link to all my previous Django posts, including an amazing rendition of “Stardust” by Django with Coleman Hawkins and a download of last year’s “April In Paris” show featuring the music of Django, Coleman, Don Byas, and more:

http://bopandbeyond.wordpress.com/tag/django-reinhardt/

Countdown to Django Reinhardt’s Centennial:

10 days until the Django Reinhardt Centennial…

Django Reinhardt and the Quintette du Hot Club de France perform “Limehouse Blues” from the Mosaic Records collection: The Complete HMV/Swing Sessions (1936-1940).

Happy New Year from Bop and Beyond~!!

Bop and Beyond wishes everyone a Happy New Year! Big things planned here for 2010, including massive celebrations for the centennials of Django Reinhardt and Mary Lou Williams. I’m also getting a new microphone soon so more shows will be getting made. Things will be kicking off soon so keep checking back…

Django Reinhardt Centennial: January 23rd, 2010.

Coleman Hawkins & Django Reinhardt – Stardust

Coleman Hawkins – Tenor Sax

Django Reinhardt – Guitar

Stephan Grappelli – Piano

78 recording on RCA Victor, 1935