Django Reinhardt Biography
The most influential jazz musician to arise from Europe, Gypsy guitar pioneer Django Reinhardt (1910-1953) was the first to establish the acoustic guitar as a viable jazz instrument, and did so with unprecedented style and verve. At a time when amplification was still a rarity, Reinhardt—whose Gypsy background, and his early experience playing violin, were reflected in his vivid melodies—spun exuberant, imaginative solos. His most enduring recordings were cut with an all-string combo that also featured the violin of Stephane Grappelli, whose innovative style complemented Reinhardt’s own.
While his playing maintained an unmistakably European sensibility, Reinhardt’s innovations reached the U.S. to influence the first generation of American jazz guitarists, including Charlie Christian and Les Paul. Jazz wasn’t the only genre upon which Reinhardt exercised a profound influence; his fluid style informed Western swing, which in turn would provide the foundation for 20th-century country music.
Jean Baptiste “Django” Reinhardt was born in Belgium and grew up in gypsy camps near Paris. He began playing violin and banjo early in life, and by his teens was performing professionally in Paris cafes. When he was 18, Reinhardt was badly burned in a caravan fire that robbed him of the use of the fourth and fifth fingers of his left hand. To compensate, he devised his own fingering system, playing all of his solos with only two fingers and using his two injured digits for chord work. According to legend, while recovering from his injuries, Reinhardt developed a deep affinity for American jazz after stumbling across a copy of Louis Armstrong’s “Dallas Blues” at a flea market. Reinhardt’s fascination for jazz, his Gypsy background and his unique fingering approach would all inform the unique style that would soon make him internationally famous.
In 1934, Reinhardt began performing at Paris’ Hot Club, leading the “Quintette du Hot Club de France,” whose all-string lineup matched him with two rhythm guitarists, a standup bassist and Grappelli’s violin, with various vocalists occasionally joining them. That group made numerous recordings, which quickly gained Reinhardt an international reputation; Reinhardt also played guitar on Grappelli’s recordings during this period. Reinhardt also worked with such visiting American jazzmen as Louis Armstrong, Coleman Hawkins, Benny Carter and Rex Stewart.
World War II helped to break up the original Quintette, which was on tour in Britain when the war broke out in 1939. Grappelli remained in London, while Reinhardt returned to Paris. Reinhardt reorganized the quintet, replacing Grappelli with clarinetist Hubert Rostaing. Reinhardt also led a more conventional big band during the war years. In 1946, Reinhardt rejoined Grappelli in London for the first of a series of live and studio reunions that merged their old sound with new bop influences. The same year, Reinhardt made his U.S. debut, touring America as a soloist with Duke Ellington’s band. Although Reinhardt died in 1953 at the age of 43, his recorded legacy—particularly his Hot Club recordings from the ’30s—remain a source of inspiration to multiple generations of guitarists.
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