Bireli Lagrene

Bireli Lagrene was born on September 4, 1966 in Saverne, Alsace, France. The son of Fiso Lagrene, a popular guitarist in pre-war France, Lagrene displayed a prodigious talent as a very young child. Born into a gypsy community, his origins and his fleet, inventive playing style inevitably generated comparisons with Django Reinhardt. In 1978, he won a prize at a festival at Strasbourg and subsequently made a big impact during a televised gypsy festival.

In his early teenage years Lagrene toured extensively playing concerts and festivals across Europe, often accompanied by distinguished jazz artists such as Benny Carter, Benny Goodman, Stéphane Grappelli and Niels- Henning Orsted Pedersen. He also made his first record Routes To Django, which helped to prove that early estimates of his capabilities were not excessive.

An outstanding technician, Lagrene has revealed influences other than Reinhardt, happily incorporating bebop phraseology, rock rhythms and Brazilian music into his work. By the late 80s he had moved substantially from his early Reinhardt-style to fully embrace jazz-rock and other electronically-aided fusions.

Lagrene returned to his roots with such brilliant offerings as 1994’s My Favorite Django and 1998’s Blue Eyes as well as violinist Didier Lockwood’s 2000 recording Tribute To Stephane Grappelli and last year’s highly acclaimed Gypsy Project, which eminent jazz critic Gary Giddins hailed as “electrifying... represents his best work in years.” On Gipsy Project & Friends, Bireli burns a blue streak on the knucklebuster “Babik,” a blistering uptempo ode composed by Django for his guitar-playing son Babik Reinhardt. Elsewhere, Bireli reveals his deep gypsy soul on the mournful minor key “Ou Es-Tu Mon Amour” and the haunting ballad “Laura,” composed by David Raskin and Johnny Mercer for the 1944 film of the same name. He oozes sheer joie de swingon infectious showstoppers like “Djangology,” “Les Yeux Noirs,” “Minor Swing” (catch Bireli’s playful, tongue-in-cheek intro to that Django anthem) and “Artillerie Lourde,” reprising the buoyantly swinging spirit of the Hot Club of France alongside the remarkable violinist Florin Niculescu, who reads Bireli’s mind the way Stephane Grappelli read Django’s. Special guest Henri Salvador lends his velvety smooth French crooning style to the seductive ballad “Envie de Toi.”

Torino Jazz Festival 2021

by Antonio Baiano
July 9, 2021

A collection of photos from the Torino Jazz Festival 2021, held in Torino, Italy from June 19-27, 2021, featuring Gianluigi Trovesi, Fabrizio Bosso, Federico Marchesano, Biréli Lagrène, Emanuele Cisi, Donny McCaslin, Nate Wood and Gail Ann Dorsey. ...

406

Album Review

Bireli Lagrene Trio: Gypsy Trio

Read "Gypsy Trio" reviewed by Victor L. Schermer

by Victor L. Schermer
October 25, 2010

While his playing reflects diverse influences, guitarist Biréli Lagrène clearly comes out of the gypsy tradition of Django Reinhardt, whose 100th birthday is being celebrated in 2010. Gypsy Trio captures the feeling of Reinhardt's musical era, with some tunes, rhythms, and the atmosphere of a lively Paris nightclub between the two world wars--energetic and fun, but equally contemplative on lovely ballads, including Lagrène's “Sir F.D," and The Beatles' “Something." Lagrène plays with strong feeling, sometimes reminiscent of Charlie Byrd's acoustic ...

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Extended Analysis

Bireli Lagrene: Djangology/To Bi Or Not To Bi

by Larry Taylor
December 28, 2007

Bireli Lagrene Djangology/To Bi Or Not To Bi Dreyfus Records 2007

Bireli Lagrene, heir apparent to the legacy of legendary Gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt, has recently released an outstanding two-CD set, Djangology/To Bi Or Not To Bi . The first disc was recorded live with the powerhouse German big band, WDR; the second is a solo endeavor that showcases Lagrene's remarkable virtuosity.

Born in Germany in 1966, within a traditional Gypsy community, ...

202

Album Review

Bireli Lagrene: Swing

by Jim Santella
April 13, 2007

Guitarist Biréli Lagrène recorded this tribute to the swing jazz of Django Reinhardt when he was only fourteen (and it was his second album release!). From a Gypsy family in the French region of Alsace, he started out as a child prodigy who learned from his father and brother. But it was the recordings of Reinhardt that affected him the most. This reissue features Lagrène with two rhythm guitarists, one double bassist and guest appearances by drummer Allen Blairman on ...

179

Film Review

Bir

by Jim Santella
August 7, 2006

Biréli Lagrène Live In Paris Dreyfus Records 2005

Biréli Lagrène and Gipsy Project interpret music from all over the world in this program of swing, bebop, blues and ballads. The New Morning nightclub is a large venue, but the set-up affords Lagrène's quartet intimacy and great acoustics. The lighting and camera work provide excellent visuals, while the program's audio remains centered as the DVD's focus.

The clarity with which Lagrène ...

297

Album Review

Bireli Lagrene Gipsy Project: Move

by Andrew Velez
January 31, 2006

Listening to Bireli Lagrène's renditions of “Melodie au Crepuscule and “Hungaria instantly recalls his deeply bonded connection with the music, the style, and the sound of guitar legend Django Reinhardt. As inevitable as the Django connection seems to be, there is nothing shallow or merely imitative about Lagrène's playing. As this latest set attests, he's a deliciously enjoyable, absolutely contemporary musician in his own right. As a child prodigy at age four (he's now an ancient 39!), ...

195

Album Review

Bireli Lagrene and Gipsy Project: Move

by Jim Santella
March 6, 2005

In a celebration of the music of Django Reinhardt, Biréli Lagrène uses his virtuostic technique to interpret classic songs from several different jazz eras. The album's title track, by Denzil Best, was one of bebop's early anthems. Reinhardt originals recall the swing tradition that the gypsy guitarist espoused, while fresh originals honor his memory with a personal nod.

“Move" places the quartet in an up-tempo meeting of the minds. Lagrène and saxophonist Frank Wolf improvise at length over ...

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Recording

The Rosenberg Trio and Bireli Lagrene Celebrate Django in 2010

Source: Michael Ricci
December 9, 2009

THE ROSENBERG TRIO DJANGOLOGISTS FEATURING BIRELI LAGRENE NEW ALBUM TO BE RELEASED IN JANUARY 2010 DIGITAL DOWNLOAD ONLY ON THE ROSENBERG TRIO'S OFFICIAL WEBSITE AND ITUNES, AMAZON, NAPSTER ETC. As a celebration of the hundredth anniversary of Manouche guitar genius Django Reinhardt, The Rosenberg Trio invite their friend and guitarist extraordinaire Bireli Lagrene, premiering studio time for an unparrallelled Manouche “Dream-Team". The Rosenberg Trio steps into digital distribution, and seizes the opportunity to go BIG : ...
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Recording

Bireli Lagrene's New Album Due November 11th on Dreyfus Jazz

Source: Now Forward Music
September 19, 2008

Birli LAGRNE (with Hadrien Feraud): Electric Side (Dreyfus Jazz) in stores 11/11/2008

Electric Side, the new album by guitar great Birli Lagrne, finds the artist reconnecting with his jazz/rock persona, in the spirit of his 1980's collaborations with Jaco Pastorius.

The sound is an exciting and unique update on contemporary jazz sounds, featuring wonderful new Birli Lagrne compositions, and an incredible cover of Herbie Hancock's “Jack Rabbit."

For the recording, Birli has recruited bassist Hadrien Feraud, the “young Jaco" (John ...
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Performance / Tour

Gypsy Guitar Master Bireli Lagrene to Make a Rare US Appearance in May

Source: All About Jazz
April 9, 2008

GLOBALLY CELEBRATED GUITAR VIRTUOSO BIRELI LAGRENE TO MAKE A RARE US APPEARANCE (May 2 & 3) IN LINCOLN CENTER CONCERT CELEBRATING TWO JAZZ GUITAR HEROES: DJANGO REINHARDT AND CHARLIE CHRISTIAN. LAGRENE - VIEWED BY MANY AS THE GREATEST LIVING INTERPRETER OF DJANGO REINHARDT - WILL MAKE HIS FIRST US APPERANCE IN THREE YEARS CO-STARRING WITH THREE AMERICAN JAZZ GUITAR MASTERS RUSSELL MALONE, BOBBY BROOM AND FRANK VIGNOLA POWERED BY THE LEWIS NASH QUARTET FEATURING MULGREW MILLER New York, NY-- Critically ...
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Performance / Tour

Bireli Lagrene Gypsy Jazz A Tribute To Django Reinhardt at the Iridium Jazz Club May 11-15

Source: All About Jazz
May 9, 2005

May 9, 2005 To: Listings/Critics/Features From: JAZZ PROMO SERVICES Press Contact: JIM EIGO, [email protected] IRIDIUM JAZZ CLUB 1650 BROADWAY (Corner of 51st) NEW YORK, NY 10023 RESERVATIONS: 212-582-2121, www.iridiumjazzclub.com Sets at 8 & 10PM EVERY MONDAY LES PAUL AND HIS QUARTET EVERY TUESDAY THE MINGUS BIG BAND EVERY WEDNESDAY Scott Barbarino & The Cosmopolitans Variety Hour@7PM Every Sunday Starting at 11:00AM Gospel Jazz Brunch in NYC featuring BISHOP NATHANIEL TOWNSLEY, JR. AND THE GOSPEL JUBILEE This Week at Iridium... May ...
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Performance / Tour

Bireli Lagrene Gypsy Jazz Project At The Iridium Jazz Club March 25-March 30

Source: All About Jazz

Bireli Lagrene Gypsy Jazz Project The Music Of Django Reinhardt

Florin Niculescu on violin, Thomas Dutronc on guitar, and Diego Imbert on double bass

When Bireli Lagrene first emerged in 1980 as a 13-year old who sounded exactly like Django Reinhardt, both gypsies, he was considered a marvel. After a few years and several recordings, Lagrene purposely got away from the Reinhardt influence, playing high-powered rock-oriented fusion and recording with Jaco Pastorius in 1986. The guitarist has since returned to ...
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Performance / Tour

Dreyfus Records Presents Guitar Virtuoso Bireli Lagrene's Triumphant Return to the U.S. For March 2003 Tour

Source: All About Jazz

When he does revert to playing Gypsy jazz only a couple of guitarists in the world can rival his spontaneity, technique and deep feel for the style that Reinhardt pioneered in the '30s. --Jim Ferguson, JazzTimes

On the heels of his last two critically acclaimed CD releases--Gypsy Project and Gipsy Project & Friends on Dreyfus Jazz-- Bireli Lagrene triumphantly returns to tour the U.S. in March for the first time since 1995. A return to his musical roots, these releases ...
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