Guitarist Stephane Wrembel plays music inspired by Django Reinhart, who was the architect of the “hot club” sound in the 1930s and ‘40s. Reinhart was born in Belgium and grew up in among the Romani people outside of Paris. Wrembel spent his young years in Fontainebleau, southeast of Paris. As a teen, he took up guitar to learn classic rock tunes, hung out with Django’s son, Babik, and soon after decided music was his calling.
Arriving in New York, Wrembel took on any gig he could, and eventually found a way into the movies. How'd he manage that?
"Persistence," Wrembel said. "When I saw 'Sweet and Lowdown,' I was like in a dream."
Wrembel was fascinated by the Django-inspired movie, written and directed by Woody Allen.
"The next day I was on the Woody Allen Yahoo [internet] groups, trying to see how I could... make music for his movies."
The persistence paid off, and Wrembel's music can be heard in the films "Vicky Cristina Barcelona," "Midnight In Paris," and "Rifkin's Festival."
In this 2025 set recorded live at Jazz, TX, Wrembel is joined by fellow guitarist Josh Kaye and Ari Folman Cohen on bass for a set full of Django tunes, classic jazz, and Wrembel's own music.
SET LIST:
- Improvisation 1
- Gin Gin
- Tiger Rag
- Nuages
- Big Brother
- Bistro Fada
- Anouman/Dark Eyes
WEB BONUS! Here's a tune that didn't make the broadcast show, for time. But the old standard "Dinah," by Harry Akst, turns 100 years old this year, so we couldn't pass up sharing this peppy performance.
