Paris and Django
Published in Vallarta Tribune
By Christie Seeley
vallartasounds.com
Many people would wonder why I chose to come to France, not for shopping, paintings or monuments or wonderful cuisine, although I expect to find plenty of that too, but to contemplate the life and work of a man I fervently admire, Django Reinhardt.
I came to know the music of Django Reinhardt many years ago when traveling with a friend in the southwest of France and entering a small family run restaurant in the countryside we were welcomed by the recorded music of Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli. My friend who grew up in a music loving environment immediately commented and that was the beginning of a grand love affair both with the sweet restaurant and the enchanting music. Madame and Monsieur were great fans of Django and his Jazz Manouche as was most of France and much of the world. I guess I will never disassociate the passionate music of Django and the marvelous farm made fois gras served by our hosts.
Over the years I have become even more involved with the life, culture and music of this talented musician. His story is fascinating and I wanted to cover some of the territory he did especially in his younger years and the later years of his life, both times of innocence and relative peace. His was a short but super packed life as Django passed away at the young age of 43 in 1953.
As a young boy Django and his younger brother Nim Nim ran all over Paris playing music on street corners for centimes and sometimes sneaking into the cinema to see maybe the only thing that interested them about non gypsy life, Hollywood’s film creations. Their life in the Zone (referring to the Roma encampments surrounding the city) was carefully monitored by their single mother Negro. She kept tabs on the boys to the best of her ability but sometimes they were just too slippery and stayed away playing their banjos or guitars for days at a time. When Django was hired by a well known entrepreneur who heard his music his mother allowed him to take the job although he was but 14, saying at least she would know where he was and she dutifully met him at the club late each night to make certain he got back home safely. With this new “paying” job Django was able to marry his girlfriend, Bella. Her family gifted them a caravan where they lived surrounded by friends and family for several years. One fateful night just after being approached by a very successful empresario, Jack Hylton, who offered him a super contract which he accepted, Django returned to the caravan with his good news. Upon his arrival his wife accidentally knocked over a candle incinerating hundreds of celluloid flowers she had made for a funeral the next day. The caravan burst into flame immediately and Django was just able to save her but In his attempt to exit suffered horrible burns that almost took his life and indeed left him with only two good fingers on the left hand. He was years in recovering and no one thought he would ever play again.
Django suffered a great deal in the hospital and his mother finally got him released and cared for him at home. His wife Bella and son Henri (Lousson) who was born while he was in the hospital left and never returned. Later he was readmitted to a nursing home for physical therapy and during that time his brother brought the despondent young man a guitar with which he worked developing a new way of playing utilizing only the fingers he had running them up and down the guitar neck while making very limited use of his two shriveled fingers on chords, double-stops and triple-stops. When he left the hospital his first love, Naguine was waiting for him and the two of them remained together for the rest of his life with their pet monkey and young son Babik. Sometime later he surprized the entire community when he brought out his guitar and played like an angel. There was no more Jack Hylton in his life but lots of successful engagements over the years and even during the war as, though Hitler outlawed jazz per se, the troups were so fond of it that they tolerated and even encouraged Django’s music. This was an extremely difficult time for the entire gypsy community however as the Nazi’s rounded them up and destroyed their camps. Django composed a mass for his people but it was never performed and little of it remains. There were, however, success after success for Django including a trip to USA to tour with Duke Ellington and play at Carneigie Hall. But that is another story.
World War II brought many American service men including musicians to Paris and many of them loved the freedom there and decided to stay. France was crazy about jazz. The group formed by Hubert Panniere and Charles Delaunay and friends in the 30’s called the club hot de france had been the main vehicle for the new sounds produced by Django and friends. Soon the music evolved and the introduction of BeBop from America drew the attention of Django and Charles but the old guard of the jazz aficionados did not think it was “true” jazz and rejected it. There occurred a sort of schizm in the group with Delaunay and Django on one side and Panniere on the other. The result was a kind of Jazz concert standoff with Delaunay and Django in Paris and Panniere organizing a festival in Nice. In the end Django did play in Nice and it was a successful event but Django and friends were not happy to be playing the “old” music and the real event became the jam session afterward where bebop could be played until the wee hours of the morning. This was perhaps one of the happiest times of his life.
Django, however, reacted to the politics with a decision to leave music entirely and paint. He moved his family to the Pigalle area of Paris where artists thrived and did just that. It took an offer of a one man showing of his paintings to coax him back to performing. Some of his most moving pieces including the breathtaking Anouman were composed and recorded during this period. His art was well received and eventually he moved his family to Samois sur Seine where he could paint, fish—a lifelong passion for him—and spend time with his wife Naguine and son Babik. He played little during those years.
Plagued with headaches, Naguine encouraged him to consult a doctor but as he had very bad memories of his time with physicians, he refused. One morning having his usual tea with friends in the local cafe before going out to fish, he passed out and although they rushed him to Fontainbleau to the hospital, he never revived. According to gypsy tradition his home and all of his belongings were burned. A funeral was held several days later and was attended by many close friends from the jazz era.
I will visit Paris, Nice and Samois sur Seine on this trip. Since shortly after that first festival in 1948, Nice has hosted an annual jazz festival which I have been fortunate to attend. Django’s resting place Samoir sur Seine is home to a yearly Django festival which is extremely popular. Yearly Django events are held all over the world.
I’ll get back with details.
Published in Vallarta Tribune
By Christie Seeley
vallartasounds.com
Many people would wonder why I chose to come to France, not for shopping, paintings or monuments or wonderful cuisine, although I expect to find plenty of that too, but to contemplate the life and work of a man I fervently admire, Django Reinhardt.
I came to know the music of Django Reinhardt many years ago when traveling with a friend in the southwest of France and entering a small family run restaurant in the countryside we were welcomed by the recorded music of Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli. My friend who grew up in a music loving environment immediately commented and that was the beginning of a grand love affair both with the sweet restaurant and the enchanting music. Madame and Monsieur were great fans of Django and his Jazz Manouche as was most of France and much of the world. I guess I will never disassociate the passionate music of Django and the marvelous farm made fois gras served by our hosts.
Over the years I have become even more involved with the life, culture and music of this talented musician. His story is fascinating and I wanted to cover some of the territory he did especially in his younger years and the later years of his life, both times of innocence and relative peace. His was a short but super packed life as Django passed away at the young age of 43 in 1953.
As a young boy Django and his younger brother Nim Nim ran all over Paris playing music on street corners for centimes and sometimes sneaking into the cinema to see maybe the only thing that interested them about non gypsy life, Hollywood’s film creations. Their life in the Zone (referring to the Roma encampments surrounding the city) was carefully monitored by their single mother Negro. She kept tabs on the boys to the best of her ability but sometimes they were just too slippery and stayed away playing their banjos or guitars for days at a time. When Django was hired by a well known entrepreneur who heard his music his mother allowed him to take the job although he was but 14, saying at least she would know where he was and she dutifully met him at the club late each night to make certain he got back home safely. With this new “paying” job Django was able to marry his girlfriend, Bella. Her family gifted them a caravan where they lived surrounded by friends and family for several years. One fateful night just after being approached by a very successful empresario, Jack Hylton, who offered him a super contract which he accepted, Django returned to the caravan with his good news. Upon his arrival his wife accidentally knocked over a candle incinerating hundreds of celluloid flowers she had made for a funeral the next day. The caravan burst into flame immediately and Django was just able to save her but In his attempt to exit suffered horrible burns that almost took his life and indeed left him with only two good fingers on the left hand. He was years in recovering and no one thought he would ever play again.
Django suffered a great deal in the hospital and his mother finally got him released and cared for him at home. His wife Bella and son Henri (Lousson) who was born while he was in the hospital left and never returned. Later he was readmitted to a nursing home for physical therapy and during that time his brother brought the despondent young man a guitar with which he worked developing a new way of playing utilizing only the fingers he had running them up and down the guitar neck while making very limited use of his two shriveled fingers on chords, double-stops and triple-stops. When he left the hospital his first love, Naguine was waiting for him and the two of them remained together for the rest of his life with their pet monkey and young son Babik. Sometime later he surprized the entire community when he brought out his guitar and played like an angel. There was no more Jack Hylton in his life but lots of successful engagements over the years and even during the war as, though Hitler outlawed jazz per se, the troups were so fond of it that they tolerated and even encouraged Django’s music. This was an extremely difficult time for the entire gypsy community however as the Nazi’s rounded them up and destroyed their camps. Django composed a mass for his people but it was never performed and little of it remains. There were, however, success after success for Django including a trip to USA to tour with Duke Ellington and play at Carneigie Hall. But that is another story.
World War II brought many American service men including musicians to Paris and many of them loved the freedom there and decided to stay. France was crazy about jazz. The group formed by Hubert Panniere and Charles Delaunay and friends in the 30’s called the club hot de france had been the main vehicle for the new sounds produced by Django and friends. Soon the music evolved and the introduction of BeBop from America drew the attention of Django and Charles but the old guard of the jazz aficionados did not think it was “true” jazz and rejected it. There occurred a sort of schizm in the group with Delaunay and Django on one side and Panniere on the other. The result was a kind of Jazz concert standoff with Delaunay and Django in Paris and Panniere organizing a festival in Nice. In the end Django did play in Nice and it was a successful event but Django and friends were not happy to be playing the “old” music and the real event became the jam session afterward where bebop could be played until the wee hours of the morning. This was perhaps one of the happiest times of his life.
Django, however, reacted to the politics with a decision to leave music entirely and paint. He moved his family to the Pigalle area of Paris where artists thrived and did just that. It took an offer of a one man showing of his paintings to coax him back to performing. Some of his most moving pieces including the breathtaking Anouman were composed and recorded during this period. His art was well received and eventually he moved his family to Samois sur Seine where he could paint, fish—a lifelong passion for him—and spend time with his wife Naguine and son Babik. He played little during those years.
Plagued with headaches, Naguine encouraged him to consult a doctor but as he had very bad memories of his time with physicians, he refused. One morning having his usual tea with friends in the local cafe before going out to fish, he passed out and although they rushed him to Fontainbleau to the hospital, he never revived. According to gypsy tradition his home and all of his belongings were burned. A funeral was held several days later and was attended by many close friends from the jazz era.
I will visit Paris, Nice and Samois sur Seine on this trip. Since shortly after that first festival in 1948, Nice has hosted an annual jazz festival which I have been fortunate to attend. Django’s resting place Samoir sur Seine is home to a yearly Django festival which is extremely popular. Yearly Django events are held all over the world.
I’ll get back with details.