The musical style was first named jazz tsigane in the French language, which translates to "gypsy jazz" in English. Some scholars have noted that the name "manouche jazz" began to be used around the late 1990s as a … See more

The Quintette du Hot Club de France initially played acoustically, without a drummer. After 1940, the group often recorded with a drummer. Guitar and violin are still the main solo instruments, although clarinet, saxophone, mandolin, and accordion are … See more

Gypsy jazz has its own set of frequently played standards, which are fairly distinct from the standards tunes of mainstream jazz. However, contemporary ensembles may adapt almost … See more

The largest audiences and highest number of musicians were found in Europe in 2006 as this is where the style originated. Contemporary gypsy … See more

The origins of gypsy jazz can be traced to the Manouche gypsy Django Reinhardt. After serving his musical "apprenticeship" playing in musette bands with accordionists and … See more

Rhythm
In gypsy jazz, the rhythm guitar uses a special form of strumming known as "la pompe", i.e. "the pump". This form of percussive rhythm is … See more

The first generations of gypsy jazz musicians learned the style by the "gypsy method," involving intense practice, direct imitation of older … See more