There’s a Genius In Maplewood
PHOTO: Stephane Wrembel by Casey Ryan Vock
The term “genius” is tossed around pretty frequently these days. Yet a true genius either invents his own genre like Bill Monroe (bluegrass) or furthers an existing genre into the future by making it palatable again but with a new personal touch so that it is forever irrevocably altered. Guitarist Stephane Wrembel is in the latter category. The Maplewood resident has fully inhabited the gypsy-jazz aesthetic of Django Reinhardt [1910-1953] to the point where he is, indeed, the living personification of Gypsy Jazz. It’s a sub-genre that hovers like a spectral presence over jam-band eccentricities, jazzgrass, world music and Euro-Folk. And he’s done more to further the cause than dear old Django ever dreamed possible.
To that end, The Town Hall in New York City will present the 21st annual installment of Wrembel’s “Django A Go Go” May 4. It will be the long-awaited reunion of the legendary Gypsy Guitars Trio—Angelo DeBarre, Serge Camps and Frank Anastasio—for their first-ever U.S. show. Musicians from France and the U.S. will jam, including Django’s Great-Grandson, Simba Baumgartner. It will also be the public debut of Wrembel’s “4-A” Triptych project (ambitious audacious auspicious adventurous).
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Triptych, a 3-CD set, released individually April 12, 19 and today, inspired in part by the writings of psychologist Carl Jung and novelist Richard Bach, is his “musical portrait of the human journey.” As Wrembel says, “this is an art form which has very few masters, and most of them are in Europe, especially in France and Germany…"an event like Town Hall is not only about putting a bunch of people together. It needs to make sense from beginning to end, and you have to know the musicians and how they can play together, form a collective, and be part of something special.
“Django A Gogo is a huge opportunity to see these great musicians, some of whom few people have seen for over 30 years. This show we've put together is a one-time-only event. I can't wait."
For more information including ticketing, go to https://thetownhall.org/event/django-a-gogo-2024