A Jazzy Good Time Celebrating Django's Birthday
Gypsy jazz musicians from around Puget Sound will celebrate Django Reinhardt’s 104th birthday with an evening of music on Saturday, February 1st at the Treehouse Cafe on Bainbridge Island.
The party, from 8 to 11pm, will be hosted by local gypsy jazz band Ranger and the ‘Re-Arrangers’ and will feature several guest soloists including Chris Laughbon on trombone, Tony Kahn on guitar and Amanda Grzadzielewski on Harp.
Django, born in 1910, was an itinerant Gypsy who earned international acclaim in the 1930’s. Many of his compositions became jazz classics and he is considered one of the top guitar soloists of all time. Duke Ellington referred to Django as “the most creative jazz musician to originate anywhere outside the United States.” Decades later, Jerry Garcia said “(Django’s) technique is awesome! Even today, nobody has really come to the state that he was playing at…nobody plays with the whole fullness of expression that Django has.” Django passed away in 1953.
Ranger and the “Re-Arrangers” have performed about 500 times since coming together in 2007, including a concert at North America’s foremost gypsy jazz event, Djangofest Northwest. The evening will feature songs from their repertoire of swing standards, traditional gypsy melodies, and of course, Django’s compositions. According to violinist and bandleader Ranger Sciacca: “Our goal is to make this a really fun event, with tons of amazing guest musicians and different instruments”. There is no cover charge for this event, but donations will be accepted.
Treehouse Cafe
4569 Lynwood Center Rd. NE
Bainbridge Island, WA 98110
(206)842-2814
info@treehousebainbridge.com