We’d be remiss if we didn’t wish a happy birthday (at least in spirit) to the man without whom gypsy jazz would not have existed. Django Reinhardt was born on January 23, 1910, in Liberchies, Pont-à-Celles, Belgium, into a family of Manouche gypsies. Already a seasoned professional on the six-string banjo by the age of 13, he made a living playing in the musette dance halls of Paris until, when he was 18 years of age, a fire in his caravan left him with two crippled fingers on his left hand. He switched to guitar and painstakingly taught himself to play around this “handicap.” Soon he discovered jazz and met a young violinist named Stephane Grappelli, and the rest is history. Jazz would never be the same.

Our very first performance at The Company House in Halifax takes place on February 18 at 8:30 PM. In their own words, The Company House is first and foremost a live music venue, and we love ‘em for that. They’ve been honored by the ECMA as Venue of the Year for multiple years. We’ll be joined yet again by Jack and Cynthia (of course – why would we do anything else?). This is another good chance for you to show off your dancin’ style, so dust off the dancin’ shoes, dig out those vintage outfits, and come swing with us at the Company House at 2202 Gottingen Street in Halifax. Cover charge $15.00 at the door, $12.00 advance at the Company House, and $10.00 for students. Call (902) 404-3050 for info.

The Coldest Day of the Year is an annual fundraiser for the Chester Drama Society, and the highlight is a full day of performances by musicians from around the province. Local businesses provide products and services to raffle off, as well as larger items for auction. All of the musicians donate their talents, and the Foc’s’le Tavern at 42 Queen St. in Chester hosts the event. The music starts at 3:00 and goes until 11:00. We’ll be on in the 5:15 time slot. Some of the other great artists performing that day will include Andy & Ariana, Morgan Davis, the Market Boys, Darren Arsenault, and the Parsons Brothers. We’ll be joined once again by Jack on clarinet and Cynthia on vocals (natch).

Put on your dancin’ shoes and come on down for a great evening of classic gypsy swing as Roadside Willie’s in Truro puts on a swing dance on Saturday February 4, 8:00 – 11:00 PM. With vocals by Cynthia Myers and hot clarinet by John Malmstrom. For reservations, click here.

Well, the hepcats and kittens were jumpin’ Saturday night at the Trellis Cafe in Hubbards NS. Our new chanteuse Cynthia Myers joined us for her Swingology debut performance. If you didn’t know better, you’d think we’d been together for years. Put a smokin’ hot torch singer in front of a gypsy swing band and watch out! The dance floor was pretty packed all evening long as we tore through classic swing tunes, ballads, torch songs, and Latin numbers. You haven’t heard “Why Don’t You Do Right” until you’ve heard it with a gypsy rhythm. We can safely say a swell time was had by all! And Wilma (the owner) plans to have us back in the spring, so stay tuned.

The folks at the Trellis Cafe in Hubbards NS tell us that advance reservations for the swing dance on Nov 19 are completely sold out. Is that cool or what? It’s going to be even more crowded than we thought. Besides the packed house, we’ll be trying to stuff six (count ‘em, six) musicians into a tiny space. Besides the usual complement (Ben Robertson and Vincent Leys on guitar, Andy Connolly on bass, and Andrew Kent on violin), we’ll be featuring the hot clarinet of Mr. John Malmström (aka “Smilin’ Jack”), with vocals by the fabulous swing singer Cynthia Myers (Jazzette), who will be making her debut with Swingology.

And to prove (as we always thought), that Jack has way too much time on his hands, he unleashed his artistic talents to come up with this little gem of a poster to commemorate the event:

We’re excited to announce that the folks at the Trellis Cafe in Hubbards will be pushing back the tables for a swing dance with none other than little ol’ us providing the music. The big event is happening on Saturday Nov. 19, with the music running from 8:00 in the evening until 10:00. To make things even MORE exciting, we’ll be featuring a new vocalist, the lovely and awesomely talented Cynthia Myers, who many folks know as the swing diva from the great combo Jazzette. And of course, besides the regular gang on stringed instruments – Ben, Vincent, Andy and Andrew – we’ll also be featuring our good buddy Mr. Dapper Dan himself, John Malmström (aka “Smilin’ Jack”) on the licorice stick. We’re expecting a good crowd, so be sure to call the Trellis at (902) 857-1188 for reservations. There’ll be a $10.00 cover (a bargain!). Lace up your dancin’ shoes and come on down (or just enjoy a fine dinner and listen if you’re so inclined).

Au revoir á une tres belle chanteuse…

We are sad to announce that the chanteuse who has delighted our audiences (and won our hearts) for over a year now is moving on. Kirsten McDonald has moved to Hamilton ON to complete her internship in music therapy. She graduated from the program at Acadia University last year, and this is the next step on her way to becoming fully accredited to practice as a music therapist in Canada. Kirsten first sang and played the accordion with us at the Halifax Jazz Festival in 2010 and has appeared at several concerts since, the last performance being our fantastic evening at Stayner’s Wharf in Halifax in September. We have been privileged to work with Kirsten, and we’ll miss her singing, playing, and delightful personality and onstage presence. We hope this is truly “’til we meet again.”

 

 

 

… et bienvenue á une autre

At the same time, we are excited to announce that Cynthia Myers will be adding her vocal talents to our sound, starting on Nov 19 at the Trellis Cafe. Cynthia is just about the swingin’est lady around, with totally awesome vocal chops and a real ability to put a song across. She sings with the great jazz combo Jazzette, as well as being a writer, actress, and director. She’s a busy lady, and we’re going to do our best to make her even busier.

Ben & Debbie got back last week from a fabulous vacation in Paris (France, not Texas). We did all the usual touristy stuff – Eiffel Tower, Louvre and other wonderful museums, Arc de Triomphe, a stroll down the Champs Elysees, boat ride on the Seine, Notre Dame, Montmartre, the Latin Quarter and St. Germain des Pres. And the list goes on.

And of course Paris is the home of gypsy jazz, where it all began with Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli way back in the 1930s. Thankfully, it is still going strong, with clubs all over Paris featuring some of the top performers of the present day.

Here we are sharing a ridiculously expensive champagne toast at the top of the Eiffel Tower. Yeah, maybe 10 Euros a glass is a trifle much, but how many times in your life do you get to do this?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And here’s the object of an afternoon pilgrimage: Django’s favorite Selmer guitar, serial number 503, now on display at the Musee de le Musique.

Wow! If you missed our Saturday night gig at Stayner’s Wharf in Halifax, you missed one swell party! We had the best crowd ever, and the hep cats and kittens kept the dance floor jumpin’. Here’s a great action shot by our staff photographer Susan Malmström. Kirsten is torchin’ up the vocals, Vincent & Ben are cranking out the dance rhythms on guitar, along with Andy on bass, and Jack and Andrew are cookin’ in the back on violin and clarinet.

We’re excited to announce that we will be returning to one of our very favorite haunts, when we bring our classic brand of gypsy swing to Stayner’s Wharf in Halifax on Saturday September 17 at 9:00 PM.
We’re planning a swell evening, with an extra special lineup: we’ll be joined by our favorite man on the licorice stick, the always dapper Mr. John Malmström (aka “Smilin’ Jack”), and our lovely chanteuse et accordioniste Mlle. Kirsten McDonald. And the food at Stayner’s is fantastic as well, so plan to make an evening of it. Come on down to Stayner’s for a swingin’ time and show your support for live music in Halifax!

… and we’re on Facebook at last!
Yes, we’ve finally come over to the darkside and joined Facebook. Come on over to our band page and become a fan by clicking on “Like,” or just look in the sidebar to the right. Of course, this only works for Facebook members, so if you’re not one, you’ll want to get yourself signed up. It’s easy. And it will allow you to stay up to date on the band’s coming and goings. We promise not to overwhelm you with stuff, just the essentials.