Grappelli in the New Yorker

thickpick

Can't forget Stephane! A great article from 1976 in which he tells many stories about working with Django. Sample quote: "The troubles he gave me! I think now I would rather play with lesser musicians and have a peaceable time than with Djangoo and all his monkey business."

HotTinRoof

[While in New York Grappelli]

"...Attended the beginning of a typically thunderous Mahavishnu Orchestra concert..."

at 76 - played 14 shows in 6 days...


Awesome.

thickpick

Another great quote from the article:

Improvisation--it is a mystery, like the pyramids. You can write a book about it, but by the end no one still know what it is. When I improvise and I'm in good form, I'm like somebody half asleep. I even forget there are people in front of me. Great improvisers are like priests; they are thinking only of their god. Sometimes I get an attack of memory. I have been playing 'Nuages' twenty-five years, and then one night I completely forget it. And once when I'm playing 'Lady Be Good' I think of the letter I just get telling me the water in the bathroom in the house I own at Chartres does not transport itself properly. Mostly, I improvise on the chords of the people playing behind me. The more good the chords the better I play.

spatzo

Tks for that article!

Best