65Jaypee

A true gentleman. Interesting detail: his very first recording session was also Django Reinhardt's very last. In fact, he was the last (known?) living musician to have played with Django. Of course, there are many recordings to be recommended, both solo and in trio. But I have a particular fondness for his duets. I've always found that he was also an outstanding accompanist and that his duets - without bass or drums - were very often particularly successful. I am of course thinking of recordings such as the one with Lee Konitz (MPS and Hatology), Didier Lockwood (JMS), Toots Thielemans (Erato), Michel Portal (BMG France), Stéphane Grappelli (Owl), Dave Liebman (Sunnyside), Éric LeLann (H&L), Niels-Henning Oersted-Pedersen (MPS), Johnny Griffin (Dreyfus Jazz), Dave Douglas (CamJazz) and a lesser-known one, but also quite excellent, with Jimmy Raney (Stil). I am not familiar with his piano duos with Joachim Kuhn and Hampton Hawes though... But I'm sure there's great music there too! And then there are his big band sessions... Many treasures to find there as well. An exemplary discography, just like the musician himself! Finally, a personal note: I had the chance to chat with him several years ago and, on top of being a first-class musician, he was en extremely nice person with a good sense of humour and self-irony. The jazz world is in mourning and so am I!

Really sad. An excellent guitarist, constantly exploring new avenues and a very nice person. His duet with Biréli Lagrène ("Duet", released in 1999) is probably one of the records that has been played most often in my home over the past 25 years. But he made many other records, just as good and completely different. We'll miss him. 58 is not an age to die...

As far as 'historically informed' performance is concerned, I am always amazed at how the United States seems to have completely ignored this movement, which took root in Europe over 60 years ago. There's hardly a country in Europe that doesn't have its top ensembles playing on early instruments, and I'm always amused when discussions come up about Bach and his organ music, or discussions about the harpsichord, to see these prehistoric recordings mentioned. As if nothing had happened since... Yes, Wanda Landowska was a pioneer, but apart from historical curiosity, her recordings are hardly relevant today. Sorry. As for Ruzickova, I was expecting a lot from this set after reading the rave reviews, but I have to admit that the sound of her harpsichord is rather unpleasant to say things politely. As for today's harpsichordists, I recommend Céline Frisch (her recordings of Bach's two WTC books are fantastic), Jean Rondeau (all his recordings on Erato), Justin Taylor, Skip Sempé (mentioned above), Pierre Hantai (his six discs of Scarlatti sonatas are must-haves), Blandine Rannou, Christophe Rousset, Andreas Staier, Masaaki Suzuki... So many names!

I think that one reason for the near disappearance of this genre is the changing status of classical music in general. For the generations born before WW2, classical music represented the absolute pinnacle of music, even for those who didn't like it that much. Easy listening with its "sophisticated" arrangements and full orchestras was a way of making oneself believe that one was listening to classical music, without actually listening to it. To have what you like about classical music (the melodies, the rich sounds) without what you don't like (the tension, the conflicts, the dissonances). A way to look sophisticated without suffering! I worked in a record store in my native Québec City in the 80's and I remember older customers asking me for "semi-classical" music. Since I was the "classical & jazz guy", they were sent to me and I must admit that I had no idea what they were talking about. One day they explained it to me. I find the term "semi-classical" very telling: not "really" classical but "orchestral". With the post-war generation no longer so interested in classical music, these orchestras (Percy Faith, Jackie Gleason, Lex Baxter, James Last, et al.) lost their raison d'être since their "sophistication" no longer appealed to them. My two cents...