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PSYC E-1704, Carson Paper # 1, Personality: Django Reinhardt Student 2 Musicians and fans alike often place Django Reinhardt’s name near the top on lists ranking the most influential guitarists of the twentieth century, if not of all time. Reinhardt’s contributions run deeper than mere talent playing the guitar, however, for he was also a gifted composer. His work melding the conventions of musette (accordion-led dance hall music) with the loose, improvisational elements of American jazz led to a new form of jazz in the 1930’s and ‘40’s known as hot guitar jazz, or simply “hot jazz.” This new genre would go on to not only legitimize the guitar as a true jazz instrument, but pave the way for many of today’s most popular styles of music: country and rock, for example. Those studying Reinhardt might be interested to learn that while the level of refinement evident in his surviving recordings and photographs suggests a composed, even debonair professional, in many ways this was not the case. Those who knew him might have more accurately described the nature of Django Reinhardt’s personality as daring, unrestrained and undependable. A Romany Gypsy by birth, Django Reinhardt grew up on the road in Europe, primarily France and Belgium, with his family and all their belongings crammed into a single horse-drawn caravan. The Gypsies were a people without a country, always moving, either towards the next town to try their luck at reading palms and selling trinkets, or away from law enforcement officials, who always seemed a half- step behind them. As Michael Dregni notes in his biography Django: The Life and Music of a Gypsy Legend; life for the Gypsies was difficult, money was scarce, and it was therefore an accepted practice among the Romanies—even an admired one—to steal from the gadjos (non-Gypsies) when necessary. Accordingly, “Django became a proficient robber of chickens” (Dregni, p. 5). Just a boy helping to feed his family, such behavior might have been excusable, and yet Reinhardt continued to steal well into adulthood. In one instance, a promoter went looking for him before a show, opened the door to his caravan and found “it stocked with the finest of silver cutlery, all marked with the proud imprint of the Palm Beach” (Dregni 56), the venue they had booked to play. Another time, Django accompanied a fellow band member to a high-end tailor in a swanky London neighborhood. Despite a 1 PSYC E-1704, Carson Paper # 1, Personality: Django Reinhardt Student 2 wad of cash in Django’s own pocket, the band member noticed upon leaving that Reinhardt “had pocketed three silk neckties that caught his fancy” (Dregni, p. 67). Petty theft aside, Reinhardt’s daring behavior nearly got him killed on more than one occasion. After a performance one night, Django retired to bed when his caravan caught fire. He leapt to action and was able to pull his wife, pregnant in her third trimester, from their bed and to safety. But Django decided to jump back into the caravan to try to put out the fire. This was a daring, risky decision and one that would prove life-altering; for he soon collapsed from smoke inhalation and was fortunate to have been pulled out by a few of his neighbors. A large part of his body had been severely burned; most notably two fingers on his left hand, now rendered useless. It would take the better part of a year for him to fully recover and figure out a new way to play guitar using only his thumb and two good digits. Reinhardt lived life in the moment; a preference likely formed after years of sleeping under the stars, with none of the pressures and responsibilities that came with living in the gadjos’ world of rules and standards. To everyone else, though, Django seemed to act with a reckless impulsivity: he was unrestrained. At times this trait served him well, such as in his style of play. Had he not played guitar boldly, ferociously, he would not have been heard over the accordion’s din in the unamplified musette halls, and may have never been discovered in the first place. Fortunately he was, and his unrestrained, inspired playing style would later quiet critics who felt guitar was not an instrument suitable for jazz. Being unrestrained in most cases was a liability for Reinhardt, however. This was most evident on pay day, as he had a habit of spending all his money as soon as he earned it. Django was particularly fond of gambling and fast cars, and an opportunity for one or the other to spirit away his earnings was never far off. Countless times he gambled away every dollar he had, and when he happened to win, more often than not he’d still blow all his money on a lavish feast or party for his family and friends. There was one instance when Reinhardt, early in his career, became enamored with a race car he noticed for sale. It was the first of many he would own in his lifetime. Built only for speed, this particular car had no 2 PSYC E-1704, Carson Paper # 1, Personality: Django Reinhardt Student 2 seats, no roof, not even a windshield. It was winter. Nevertheless, Django couldn’t help himself and convinced his band leader to give him a month’s advance on his wages, even as his wife at the time was unable to pay for basic necessities such as groceries. He bought the car, drove it as fast as it would go until he blew the engine, and pushed it into the sea. Reinhardt’s bohemian tendencies may have served him well musically, but others who relied on him to show up for gigs or recording sessions as well as paying customers found him routinely undependable. Early in his musette days, when he tired of playing the same, stale traditional numbers night after night, he would often send his brother or an acquaintance to take his place, or simply not show up. Instead, he would play billiards, find a poker game, or just stay home and sleep. On one occasion, the Quintette du Hot Club de France, which was the band that would earn Django wide recognition, had purchased time in a recording studio. Fellow band member Stéphane Grappelli— violinist and legendary musician in his own right—relayed the difficulties in working with Reinhardt on the album: “For Django, it was always an act of pure martyrdom to get out of bed in the morning….I truly had to drag him out of bed—along with many promises and, if necessary, threats—and I had to make him understand that without his presence the rendezvous would be canceled. Each time it was an incredible drama” (Dregni, p. 89). There are a number of positive descriptors one might use to capture the essence of Django, the musician: passionate, innovative, free-spirited, brilliant. Descriptors of his personality tend to differ, however, when attempting to capture the essence of Django, the man. These include adjectives like daring; as with his proclivity towards thievery and his disregard for personal safety, unrestrained; as with his weakness for gambling and automobiles, and undependable; as with his tendency to do what he wished, regardless of the impact on others. For Reinhardt’s sake, it is perhaps beneficial that history’s light shines for the most part on an artist’s contributions, and not his nature. Dregni, M. (2004). Django: The life and music of a gypsy legend. New York: Oxford University Press. 3