Django in June

Artists & Staff in 2008

 

One of the great pleasures of Django in June is its blend of time-honored traditions and new directions.  Over the years, our guest artists have run the whole gamut of Hot Club-inspired sounds, from the traditional approach of Lollo Meier and Tim Kliphuis to the envelope-pushing eclecticism of the Stephane Wrembel Trio, and we wouldn't have it any other way.  This year we're excited to welcome back the Robin Nolan Trio — who headlined the first Django in June in 2004 — and to once again introduce some new faces, including a strong contingent from La France: the members of L'Ensemble Zaiti and the co-author of Complete Django, Jean Philippe Watremez. We'll also offer east coasters their first chance to work closely with Argentina native Gonzalo Bergara whose new CD, Porteña Soledad, has been earning rave reviews. They join a number of returning Django in June teachers and performers to offer us all another great opportunity to live, learn and love this music together for one splendid week in June.

You can scroll down this page for a short introduction to each of these artists and a selection of links or, if you like, you can click on an individual's name in the table below to jump to him directly. Enjoy!

 

Guitar Violin
Robin Nolan (England, Holland) Matt Glaser (Boston / Berklee)
Michael Horowitz (Seattle, Djangobooks) Jason Anick (MA)
Gonzalo Bergara (Argentina, California) Mandolin
Jean Philippe Watremez (France) John McGann (Boston / Berklee)
Mathieu Chatelain (France) Accordion
Adrien Moignard (France) Vladimir Mollov (Bulgaria via PA)
Stephane Wrembel (France, via NYC) Didier Dumoutier (Montréal)
Dennis Chang (Montréal) Bass
Ted Gottsegen (NYC) Simon Planting (Holland)
  Jeremiah Arranger (France)
  Saxophone
  Cedric Ricard

 

Robin Nolan : Guitar

We are honored to welcome Robin Nolan back to Northampton, five years after he and his mates made the very first Django in June such a success. Now in its second decade, the Amsterdam-based Robin Nolan Trio has performed the world over at prestigious events, including the annual Django tribute at Samois-sur-Seine, the Montreal, Barcelona, and North Sea Jazz Festivals, and the Lincoln Center Django Festival. A player of warmth, elegance, and humor, he has also been at the forefront of Gypsy Jazz education ever since the most recent Django renaissance began in the late 90's. His series of play-along CD/books—along with his other instructional offerings—has helped establish the current "must-learn" list of GJ standards. The Robin Nolan Trio will be with us for all of Django Camp and headlining our Friday night show. More links for your surfing pleasure:

 

Ensemble Zaiti: Guitar, Bass and Saxophone

Founded by a phenomenal young lead guitarist, Adrien Moignard, and one of France's premier rhythm guiatrists, Mathieu Chatelain, the Paris-based Ensemble Zaiti has grown to now include Jeremiah Arranger (bass) and Cedric Ricard (saxophone).  The group's approach to Jazz Manouche melds the Django tradition with elements of bebop and experimental jazz, resulting in a sound all their own.  In the campgrounds at Samois (where I first met them) Mathieu and Adrien invariably host one of the most popular and, frankly, intimidating jam sites, with some of the best players in the world stopping by for impromptu performances. In that setting, very, very few of us would be up to the challenge of joining in the fun, but at Django in June that's exactly the opportunity we're offering. The whole group will be our special guests for all of Django Camp, leading masterclasses and jams and helping us with our French (because, to my knowledge, only Mathieu speaks English!) Finally, they'll wrap up the week when they headline our Saturday night concert.

 

Michael Horowitz: Guitar

Time it was, if you didn't have direct access to an instructor playing in the traditional Gypsy style you were to left to your own devices when it came to figuring out how Django got his distinctive sound, how he moved across the fingerboard, or how he and his accompanists approached rhythm guitar. With the publication of his Gypsy Picking, Michael changed all that and, in one fell rest stroke, raised the bar for written Gypsy jazz instructional materials everywhere. (I exempt the Gypsies’ own oral tradition from the sphere of his influence. But how many of us have— like Michael—had access to that?) Since then, his Djangobooks publishing company and web site have continued to provide an extraordinary array of resources for students and fans of this rich tradition.

We are happy to report that Michael will be back again for all of Django Camp as both a teacher and purveyor of all things Gypsy Jazz, including a large selection of books, CDs and DVDs in tow for you to peruse and enjoy throughout the year.

 

Gonzalo Bergara : Guitar

Originally from Buenos Aires, Argentina, Gonzalo Bergara moved to the US in 1999 and has since played his blues and jazz from coast to coast.  A fixture on the North American Gypsy Jazz scene, Gonzalo has recorded albums with Dan Hicks and Linwood Slim, leads his own band, the LA-based Trio Gonzalo, and has in recent years held the rhythm guitar chair with the John Jorgenson Quintet.  He recently released his first album as a leader (Porteña Soledad) to great reviews. This will be his first time with us and we're happy to report he'll be teaching and djamming with us for all of Django Camp.

 

 

Jean Philippe Watremez : Guitar

On my last trip to Samois, two people recommended composer, musician, and teacher Jean-Philippe Watremez as a perfect fit for Django in June, especially as a teacher at Django Camp. Though not well known as a performer on this side of the Atlantic he has long been a connoisseur of the Django style, as evidenced by the amazing Complete Django—co-authored with Max Robin—which has quickly proved itself an indispensable resource for Gypsy Jazz musicians the world over.  A longtime fixture on the Parisian Jazz Manouche scene, he also performs an intersection of jazz and Balkan music with his AZ Trio. This will be his first visit to the U.S., for which he assures me he is "working his English hard"! He'll work it with us for all of Django Camp.

 

 

Stephane Wrembel: Guitar

Stephane Wrembel is a regional treasure for those of us with an interest in this style, a world-class player who happens to have settled into our corner of the world. Born in Paris, Stephane was raised in the small town of Fontainebleau, only a few kilometers from the village of Samois-sur-Seine where Django Reinhardt spent the last years of his life and which now plays host to the most prestigious of the international Django festivals. For an interesting glimpse into his life and his formation as a musician check out the short autobiography he has included on his web site.

This will be Stephane's fourth visit to Django in June. We are still finalizing our arrangements, but he will be with us at a minimum on the weekend to offer clinics and jam...maybe more!

  • Stephane has a terrific web site including lots of information, music and even play-along rhythm tracks: StephaneWrembel.com

 

Dennis Chang : Guitar

Dennis Chang has been a great resource to the Gypsy jazz community in the U.S. and Canada. The way it seems to work is this: whatever Dennis learns, he shares. And because he has been such an avid student of the style for many years, he has shared a lot. He first attracted attention among students of the style by virtue of his many high-quality transcriptions of solos by Django Reinhardt and other GJ masters, especially those of the extended Rosenberg clan. In recent years he has continued to offer authoritative assistance both through in-person workshops and his DVD's published by Hyperhipmedia: Jazz Manouche: The Art of Accompaniment, and the four volume Jazz Manouche: Technique & Improvisation.

Having made numerous pilgrimages to Europe and hosted many performers in Montreal, Dennis has studied, performed and recorded with some of the best musicians in the style such as Ritary Gaguenetti, Aurélien Trigo, Edd la Bish, Lollo Meier, Paulus Schäfer, Stéphane Wrembel, Chriss Campion, Andreas Öberg, Fapy Lafertin, and Emmanuel Kassimo of Am Ketenes. He has a B.Mus. from McGill University and has received several scholarships from the Berklee College of Music. His own first recording, Nature Boy, was released in 2006. You can hear clips and watch videos of Dennis in action on his web site: http://www.fleche-dor.com/

 

Ted Gottsegen : Rhythm Guitar

Over the last few years Ted Gottsegen has been making a name for himself on the international GJ scene playing with many of the artists we've featured here at Django in June including Robin Nolan, Wawau Adler, Tim Kliphaus, Andreas Oberg and Kruno Spisic. He's also played with a few we haven't featured yet—Patrick Saussois and Pearl Django come to mind—but we're working to catch up with him.

He has performed at all three of the west coast DjangoFests (Northwest, Los Angeles, and San Francisco), the grand international Django festival at Samois-sur-Seine, the Mid-West Gypsy Jazz Festival and the Gypsy Jazz weekend at The Drake Hotel, Toronto. He is currently touring Europe and the US with the Robin Nolan Trio. Nice work if you can get it.

This will be Ted's second visit with us at Django in June and he'll be around for most of the week. Want a piece of advice from me? Get some advice on your rhythm playing from him while you're here.

 

 

Matt Glaser: Violin

We're happy to report that Matt Glaser will head up the Django in June offerings for violinists this year, including all of Django Camp. Matt has been chairman of the String Department at the Berklee College of Music in Boston for 25 years. The first and only recipient of the Stephane Grappelli Memorial Award, presented by the American String Teachers Association, he has published four books on contemporary violin styles including Jazz Violin (co-authored with Grappelli himself) and written for many publications including Strings, Village Voice, Acoustic Musician, and Acoustic Guitar.

Matt has performed and recorded widely in a variety of idioms ranging from jazz to bluegrass to early music, often with the very best in each of these styles, including Stephane Grappelli, David Grisman, Mark O'Connor, Lee Konitz, Bela Fleck, Bucky Pizzarelli, Bob Dylan, the Waverly Consort, Yo-Yo Ma, and The Boston Pops. He served on the board of advisors of the Ken Burns' Jazz documentary, and appears in the film as a talking head. Come hear his head talk and violin sing live and in person with us!
 

 

Jason Anick : Violin

As the newest member of the John Jorgenson Quintet, Jason Anick is currently touring the US and Europe while completing his jazz violin studies at Connecticut’s Hartt School. Hailing from right here in Massachusetts, Jason is no stranger to Django in June – having made a guest appearance with Tim Kliphuis back in 2006 and graced our jams for years. Last year, Jason won top honors for improvisation in the ASTA Alternative Styles competition and performed with the Robin Nolan Trio at the Montreal Jazz Festival. He has studied the violin styles of all the great Gypsy jazz violinists from Stéphane Grappelli to Florin Niculescu and Didier Lockwood and will share what he has learned both as an assistant to Matt and as a clinician in his own right. He also plays mandolin, counting guitarist Biréli Lagrène among his greatest influences.

 

 

John McGann: Mandolin

John McGann is the rare musician who can do a wide variety of things and do them all extremely well. A multi-instrumentalist composer, arranger, performer, recording artist, producer and educator, John works comfortably in a variety of idioms including Jazz, Bluegrass, American traditional music, and Traditional Irish dance music. Among a multitude of other credits, he was the 1985 US National  Flatpicking Champion on mandolin, hosts the mandolin forum at Djangobooks and has produced a number of instructional materials specifically for Gypsy Jazz mandolin. He is Associate Professor in the string department at the Berklee College of Music in Boston where, among other things, he teaches the Django class.

John returns for a second time this year to hold the mandolin chair at Django in June, including all of Django Camp. To my knowledge, we are still the only Gypsy Jazz event in the country that is actively encouraging mandolin players to claim this tradition as their own, something that may over time prove to be a uniquely American contribution to the genre. For those players who are up for blazing that trail, we can't provide you with a better guide than John McGann.

 

Vladimir Mollov: Accordion

The accordion has a long and interesting association with Gypsy jazz. Django's first gigs as a child-professional were as an accompanist for accordionists playing la musette in rough and tumble dance clubs of working-class Paris. Much as American flatpickers like Doc Watson have adapted fiddle tunes for guitar, Gypsy guitarists have adapted and extended what was traditionally accordion repertoire, often in ways that require and showcase true virtuosity. Similarly, some notable accordionists — Gus Viseur and Jo Privat come immediately to mind — made their mark my demonstrating that accordion could be a delightful jazz instrument. Despite this history, the accordion is still underrepresented on the US Gypsy jazz scene. We're doing our bit to address that deficiency by welcoming back Vladimir Mollov, who rejoins our Django in June staff to work specifically with accordionists.
A native of Bulgaria, "Vlado" was born into a family of wedding musicians and began studying the accordion at age seven. At age 13 he placed 4th in an international accordion competition held in Vladivistok, Russia. Throughout his teens he was to either win or rank among the top contestants at a series of such competitions in Europe, winning accolades and awards for his playing of both folk music and jazz.While at Duquesne University between 2002 and 2006, Vlado was a member of the Tamburitzans, performing over 350 shows with the ensemble. During this time he also began playing Gypsy jazz with guitarist Kruno Spisic, another artist with deep roots in Slavic musical traditions. He is currently working on composing, arranging and recording a solo accordion album featuring folk music of Eastern Europe, jazz and his own experimental fusions of various styles.

 

Didier Dumoutier : Accordion

Born in France, Didier Dumoutier has lived most of his life in Quebec where, since 1975, he has performed as a soloist and accompanist in a wide variety of ensembles and settings. For the past ten years he has been director of (and a featured performer at) Montreal’s accordion extravaganza, Printemps des bretelles. He currently soufflés and swings with the Hot Club de ma Rue (which also features Josianne Laberge on violin, whom some of you will recall from Django in June ’07). He will join us informally throughout the weekdays of Django Camp and then, on the weekend, offer workshops that draw on his vast repertoire of French songs, la musette and jazz manouche.

 

Simon Planting: Bass

Simon Planting, a native of Holland, is best known in the U.S. as the bass player for the Robin Nolan Trio. Already recognized as a straight ahead jazz player, Simon was invited to join the great Dutch Roma guitarist Fapy Lafertin in 1986, an association that has so far spanned 2 LP's and 6 CD's and endures to this day. He has also worked extensively with other Dutch artsist in this tradition, including Reinier Voet (of Pigalle 44) and virtuoso Jimmy Rosenberg.

Simon has toured widely beyond the borders of Holland and worked with many of the best known Django-influenced players in Europe and the US: Dorado and Tchavolo Schmitt, Angelo Debarre, Andreas Oberg, John Jorgenson, Howard Alden, Frank Vignola, Kruno... In fact, it is getting harder and harder to name a well-known Gypsy Jazz player with whom Simon has not worked. We are pleased and priviledged that he'll be back with us this year not only as a performer, but as our primary bass clinician for all of Django Camp.

Thanks to the Western New England Double Bass Society for sponsoring the bass componant of Django in June!

 

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