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Gypsy jazz (also known as "Gypsy Swing") is an idiom often said to have been started by guitarist Jean "Django" Reinhardt in the 1930s.¹ Because its origins are largely in France it is often called by the French name, "Jazz manouche," or alternatively, "manouche jazz," even in English language sources.² Django was foremost among a group of Gypsy guitarists working in and around Paris in the 1930s through the 1950s, a group which also included the brothers Pierre "Baro" Ferret, Etienne "Sarane" Ferret, and Jean "Matelo" Ferret and Reinhardt's brother Joseph "Nin-Nin" Reinhardt.³

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.

Gypsy jazz, along with traditional Gypsy music, is learned by the passing down of knowledge from older generations. Many Gypsy musicians do not read notated music. It is more common for beginners to spend hours learning and memorizing songs from recordings and gleaning techniques from more experienced players.

In Gypsy jazz, guitar and violin are the main solo instruments, although clarinet and accordion are also common. The rhythm guitar is played using a distinct percussive technique, "la pompe", that essentially replaces the drums; however, in Eastern gypsy jazz, rhythm section is most likely covered by one or two cymbaloms, or (less frequently) a cymbalom and/or drums and an acoustic guitar (the cymbalom accompaniment technique is called in Romanian "ţiitură"). An upright bass fills out the ensembles. Although many instrumental lineups exist, a group including one lead guitar, violin, two rhythm guitars, and bass is often the norm.

Techniques

Gypsy jazz is a unique guitar discipline, and due to this, is associated with multiple techniques that are definitive of the sound of this music.

Rhythm

Rhythm guitar in gypsy jazz uses a special form of strumming known as "Le Pompe". This form of percussive rhythm is similar to the "boom-chick" in bluegrass styles. The strumming hand, which never touches the top of the guitar, must make a quick up-down strum followed by a down strum. The up-down part of Le Pompe must be done extremely fast, regardless of the tempo of the music. It is very similar to a grace note in classical music, albeit the fact that an entire chord is used. Another important aspect of this style of playing is based on the chord shapes Django was forced to use due to his injury. Standard barre chords are not an acceptable form in gypsy jazz, and these are instead replaced with chords that use just two or three fingers. Standard major and minor chord are almost never played, and are instead replaced by minor 6th, major 6th, and 6/9 chords.

Lead

There are many techniques associated with lead playing in this style. As mentioned above, chromatic notes play a large role in this style of music, as do arpeggios. Many of Django's solos contain arpeggios where each note of the arpeggio is preceded by its own leading tone. Another important aspect of lead playing is the glissando, in which the player slides up a string, articulating each note on the way, in order to get a fast, virtuosic sound. Another important aspect of gypsy jazz lead is the use of diminished chords and arpeggios. Diminished runs, in which the shape of a diminished 7th chord is played in all inversions,one after the other, is a widespread gypsy jazz technique. Diminished 7th arpeggios are also used over Dominant 7th chords. Example: If an A7 is being played, a diminished run starting on C# would be played, creating an A7b9 sound over the dominant chord.

Contemporary Gypsy jazz

Gypsy jazz is thriving today, with fans and practitioners — some faithful copyists, others innovators — found all over the globe. The largest audiences and highest caliber of musicians are still found in Europe as this is where the style originates.⁴ Stochelo Rosenberg, Biréli Lagrène and Tchavolo Schmitt are perhaps the most famous performers today.^{citation needed} There is also a substantial American Gypsy Jazz movement headed by groups like Pearl Django and the John Jorgenson Quintet.

France

Belgium

Netherlands

The Netherlands is home to a number of contempoary players such as Lollo Meier and the Rosenberg family (Jimmy, Nou'sche, Nonny and Stochelo). The Fapy Lafertin Quintet and Robin Nolan Trio are based in the Nertherlands

Germany

The German gypsy-jazz scene has a rich history with a variety of famous players such as Schnuckenack Reinhardt, Lulu Reinhardt (composer of "lulu swing"), Wawau Adler, Titi Winterstein, Zigeli Winter Quartet,Romeo Franz, Joe Bawelino and many more. Today gypsy-jazz has its share in cultural life in Germany, thanks to the activities of the late Eberhard Tscheuschner, who was the founder of the Djangofestival in Burgthann, the restless Bernhard Gierstl (Djangomemorial) and Norman Ort, who runs the site gypsyguitar.de not only for business reasons, but to keep a music alive. The main events are the annual Djangomemorial Festival in Augsburg (organised by Bernhard Gierstl), the Djangofestival in Burgthann/Nuremberg, the Sinti-Festivals in Hildesheim and Koblenz.

Hungary

The Hungarian group, Hot Club of Hungary⁶ plays high quality gypsy jazz in the style of Django Reinhardt, Stephane Grappelli, and the Hot Club of France.

Romania

Gypsy jazz came into prominence in Romania only in the early 1990s, when Gypsy music was featured on recordings as a different approach to lăutari music (Gypsy folk music). It is however probable that these practices date decades back, but no such recording is known for evidence. Gypsy jazz of Romania would rather make use of vocals in the 1990s and, following a hiatus at the turn of the centuries, that of the early 2000s is instrumental music, even tighter to the traditional lăutari orchestra setting.

While lăutari music was highly appreciated and frequently recorded in communist Romania (late 1940s to 1989), a mix between jazz and lăutari music never emerged on tape during that period. In the early 1990s, numerous musicians who weren't previously permitted to record at the national record label Electrecord, saw their debut releases. It was a couple of Gypsy singers who would mix lăutari music with jazz and pop (mainly Arab pop) and thus create Romanian Gypsy jazz and manele music respectively. The best known ensemble of the 1990s to perform Gypsy jazz was that of singer Nicolae Guţă, which was compared by critics with Django Reinhardt's repertoire (mostly for the very fast pace of the music and for the virtuosity shown off by musicians); besides, the modern sound (featuring electrical guitar and synthesizers along with fiddle and accordion) was also appreciated positively.⁷ Guţă's Gypsy jazz was issued on foreign discs and caught interest in European countries, mostly France. By late 1990s Guţă renounced jazz music and started singing manele (Gypsy pop) music instead. However, his recent compositions hint a possible returning to his jazzy "roots".

Instrumental Gypsy jazz of the 2000s was developped by artists such as clarinetist Mieluţă Bibescu and his band (featuring traditional lăutari instruments, such as the cymbalom and double bass). Their jazz combines melodic patterns featured in swing jazz and lăutari music; Bibescu's band sometimes improvises over classical music "standards".

Spain

United Kingdom

London has a specialist Gypsy Jazz venue, Le QuecumBar, which concerts featuring some of the world's musicians, such as Angelo DeBarre, Ritary Gaguenetti, Gary Potter, John Jorgenson, Moreno, Lollo Meier and many others. Regular gypsy jazz sessions are held in Shaftesbury (Bell Steet Cafe ⁸), near Ormskirk, Lancashire (Beaufort Jazz ⁹), Northampton (the Black Cat) and Brighton and Hove (Club Chat Noir ¹⁰at the Hanbury Club ¹¹). There are study groups in Marlow and Penzance¹² (both called 'Club Django').

‘The Gypsy Jazz Guitar Festival’ was held from 1997 to 2000 and a series of festivals called L'Esprit Manouche was held in Moseley, Birmingham in 2003/4/5.

United States of America

DjangoFest NW, a celebration of Gypsy Jazz, takes place each September at Whidbey Island Center for the Arts in Langley, Washington, in the USA, which features such performers as the Canadian guitarist Marc Atkinson.

Every year, in August, New York's Lincoln Center hosts a Concert at Rose Hall, and the world famous Jazz Club, Birdland, in New York, features a week long Gypsy Jazz concert series in November.

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