Django Comes Alive In New York

  I   The 4th Annual Django Reinhardt NY Festival hits the Birdland Nov. 18–23.

In memory of the 50th anniversary of the guitarist’s premature death, a group of Django Festival "gypsies" brought the Bossa Nova around the country this summer. Now the international lineup comes back home.

French composer and guitarist Dorado Schmitt will play with his son, guitarist Samson Schmitt, and accordionist Ludovic Beier from Paris.

New additions include German guitarist Joscho Stephan. He will appear in a trio with his father, guitarist Gunter Stephan, and bassist Maximilian Schaaf. This is 20-year-old Stephan’s first trip to the U.S.

Also making his first trip overseas is Alexandre Cavaliere, a 17-year-old violinist from Belgium. Russian violinist Vitali Imereli will "bow" to Django as a special guest this year.

American saxophonists James Carter and Harry Allen, along with clarinetist Ken Peplowski, drummer Grady Tate, bassist Brian Torff and harmonica player Enrico Granafei, have also been listed as special guests throughout the week.

For information about show times or reservations, call (212) 581-3080 or visit www.birdlandjazz.com

For information about various workshops throughout the week, call (212) 744-8836 or e-mail producer Pat Philips at patmusic2@aol.com.



  • DB26_Joshua_Redman_Courtesy_Joshua_Redman.jpg

    A solo concert by saxophonist Joshua Redman will close the first night of the Hyde Park Jazz Festival on Sept. 26.

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    “It was just that suddenly … I could hear it,” Ravi Coltrane said of an epiphany he experienced during his late teens regarding his father’s music. “And it was almost like a calling, like something saying, ‘Hey, man, come on. It’s time to get serious.’ And the first time you really tune in and dial in and focus like that, it can be very life-changing.”

  • Thurman_copy.jpeg

    Camille Thurman took to the stage alongside bassist Kenny Davis and drummer Tommy Campbell for a rendition of Johnny Mercer’s “I’m An Old Cowhand” that recalled Rollins’ epochal 1957 trio outing Way Out West.

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    Kurt Elling, Katherine Russell and Emmet Cohen (host on the 2027 Jazz Cruise) share a laugh at sea.

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