Christian Escoudé (23 September 1947 – 13 May 2024) was a French

Gypsy jazz Gypsy jazz (also known as sinti jazz, gypsy swing, jazz manouche or hot club-style jazz) is a musical idiom inspired by the Romani people, Romani jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt, Jean "Django" Reinhardt (1910–1953), in conjunction with the Fr ...

guitarist. Escoudé grew up in

Angoulême Angoulême (; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Engoulaeme''; ) is a small city in the southwestern French Departments of France, department of Charente, of which it is the Prefectures of France, prefecture. Located on a plateau overlooking a meander of ...

and was of Romani descent on his father's side. His father was also a guitarist who was influenced by

Django Reinhardt Jean Reinhardt (23 January 1910 – 16 May 1953), known by his Romani people, Romani nickname Django ( or ), was a Belgium, Belgian-born Romani jazz guitarist and composer in France. He was one of the first major jazz talents to emerge in Europe ...

. When Escoudé was ten, his father began teaching him the guitar, and he became a professional musician at age fifteen. His style was a mix of

bebop Bebop or bop is a style of jazz developed in the early to mid-1940s in the United States. The style features compositions characterized by a fast tempo (usually exceeding 200 bpm), complex chord progressions with rapid chord changes and numerou ...

and

gypsy jazz Gypsy jazz (also known as sinti jazz, gypsy swing, jazz manouche or hot club-style jazz) is a musical idiom inspired by the Romani people, Romani jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt, Jean "Django" Reinhardt (1910–1953), in conjunction with the Fr ...

influences, featuring the use of

vibrato Vibrato (Italian language, Italian, from past participle of "wikt:vibrare, vibrare", to vibrate) is a musical effect consisting of a regular, pulsating change of pitch (music), pitch. It is used to add expression to vocal and instrumental music. ...

portamento In music, portamento (: ''portamenti''; from old , meaning 'carriage' or 'carrying'), also known by its French name glissade, is a pitch sliding from one Musical note, note to another. The term originated from the Italian language, Italian exp ...

, and fast runs. In 1972, he started work in a trio with Aldo Romano. By the 1980s, he was in

John Lewis John Robert Lewis (February 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020) was an American civil rights activist and politician who served in the United States House of Representatives for from 1987 until his death in 2020. He participated in the 1960 Nashville ...

's quartet. He also played with

Philip Catherine Philip Catherine (born 27 October 1942) is a Belgian jazz rock guitarist. Biography Philip Catherine was born in London, England, to an English mother and Belgian father, and was raised in Brussels, Belgium. His grandfather was a violinist i ...

for a time. In his forties, he signed with the French division of

Verve Records Verve Records is an active American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). Founded in 1956 by Norman Granz, the label is home to the world's largest jazz catalogue, which includes recordings by artists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Ca ...

Career

1970s–1980s

From 1969 to 1971, he was a member of the

Aimé Barelli Aimé Barelli (1 March 1917 Lantosque, France – 13 July 1995 Monaco) was a French jazz trumpeter, vocalist, and band leader. At the beginning of the 1940s Barelli moved to Paris, where he worked with Fred Adison, Alix Combelle, André Ekyan, Ma ...

band. In Paris, he joined the trio of Eddy Louiss Bernard Lubat, and Aldo Romano. Later, he joined Didier Levallet's Swing String System and the

Michel Portal Michel Portal (born 27 November 1935) is a French composer, saxophonist, and clarinetist. He plays both jazz and classical music and is considered to be "one of the architects of modern European jazz". Early life Portal was born in Bayonne on 27 ...

Unit. In 1976, l' Académie du Jazz awarded him the Prix Django Reinhardt. He then formed a new quartet with Michel Graillier, Aldo Romano, and Alby Cullaz, the latter soon replaced by

Jean-François Jenny-Clark Jean-François "J.F." Jenny-Clark (12 July 1944 in Toulouse, France – 6 October 1998 in Paris) was a French double bass player. He was estimated as one of the most important bass players of European jazz. Allmusic credits/ref> Together with drum ...

. He also worked with Michel Portal or

Slide Hampton Locksley Wellington Hampton (April 21, 1932 – November 18, 2021) was an American jazz trombone, jazz trombonist, composer and arranger. As his nickname implies, Hampton's main instrument was slide trombone, but he also occasionally played tub ...

, Martial Solal and Jean-Claude Fohrenbach. In 1978, he performed at the Festival de Nice with

Bill Evans William John Evans (August 16, 1929 – September 15, 1980) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist and composer who worked primarily as the leader of his trio. His use of impressionist harmony, block chords, innovative chord voicings, a ...

Stan Getz Stan Getz (born Stanley Gayetski; February 2, 1927 – June 6, 1991) was an American jazz saxophonist. Playing primarily the tenor saxophone, Getz was known as "The Sound" because of his warm, lyrical tone, with his prime influence being the wis ...

Freddie Hubbard Frederick Dewayne Hubbard (April 7, 1938 – December 29, 2008) was an American jazz trumpeter. He played bebop, hard bop, and post-bop styles from the early 1960s onwards. His unmistakable and influential tone contributed to new perspectives fo ...

Philly Joe Jones Joseph Rudolph "Philly Joe" Jones (July 15, 1923 – August 30, 1985) was an American Jazz drumming, jazz drummer. Biography Early career As a child, Jones appeared as a featured tap dancer on ''The Kiddie Show'' on the Philadelphia radio stat ...

Lee Konitz Leon "Lee" Konitz (October 13, 1927 – April 15, 2020) was an American jazz Alto saxophone, alto saxophonist and composer. He performed successfully in a wide range of jazz styles, including bebop, cool jazz, and avant-garde jazz. Konitz's ass ...

, and

Shelly Manne Sheldon "Shelly" Manne (June 11, 1920 – September 26, 1984) was an American jazz drummer. Most frequently associated with West Coast jazz, he was known for his versatility and also played in a number of other styles, including Dixieland, ...

. The same year, he began a tradition of participating in the annual Festival de Samois, a tribute to Reinhardt. He performed in the Festival de Dakar in 1979 with the trio of René Urtreger, Pierre Michelot, and

Daniel Humair Daniel Humair (born 23 May 1938 in Geneva, Switzerland) is a Swiss drummer, composer, and painter. He is widely renowned and became a Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 1986 and Officier in 1992. He has played with many jazz perf ...

. Escoudé toured in a duo with guitarist John McLaughlin during 1980. The following year he joined the big band of Martial Solal and in 1982 performed in a quartet with Shelly Manne. In 1983, he played in duo again, this time with Didier Lockwood. Soon after, they added

. Escoudé formed the Trio Gitan with

Boulou Ferré Boulou Ferré (born Jean-Jacques Ferret, 24 April 1951) is a French virtuoso jazz guitarist, composer, arranger, and improviser. He is the brother of Elios Ferré, also a jazz musician, with whom he has recorded widely. His repertoire includes ja ...

and Babik Reinhardt, Django's son. Then he played in quartet in 1988 with Jean-Michel Pilc, François Moutin and Louis Moutin. In 1989, he created an octet, half of them guitarists: Paul Challain Ferret, Jimmy Gourley, Frédéric Sylvestre, and himself. The rest of the octet consisted of Marcel Azzola on accordion, Vincent Courtois on cello, Alby Cullaz on bass, and

Billy Hart Billy Hart (born November 29, 1940) is an American jazz drumming, jazz drummer and educator. He is known internationally for his work with Herbie Hancock's "Mwandishi" band in the early 1970s, as well as with Shirley Horn, Stan Getz, and Quest (b ...

on drums.

1990 onwards

In 1990, Escoudé played at the

Village Vanguard The Village Vanguard is a jazz club at Seventh Avenue South in Greenwich Village, New York City. The club was opened on February 22, 1935, by Max Gordon. Originally, the club presented folk music and beat poetry, but it became primarily a jaz ...

in New York City with Pierre Michelot,

Hank Jones Henry Jones Jr. (July 31, 1918 – May 16, 2010) was an American jazz pianist, bandleader, arranger, and composer. Critics and musicians have described Jones as eloquent, lyrical, and impeccable. In 1989, The National Endowment for the Arts h ...

, and Kenny Washington. The following year he recorded an album of compositions by Django Reinhardt while supported by a string orchestra. In 1998 he recorded ''A Suite for Gypsies,'' a

jazz fusion Jazz fusion (also known as jazz rock, jazz-rock fusion, or simply fusion) is a popular music genre that developed in the late 1960s when musicians combined jazz harmony and improvisation with rock music, funk, and rhythm and blues. Electric gui ...

album. On the fiftieth anniversary of Reinhardt's death in 2003, he formed a big band of seventeen musicians. In 2004 Escoudé organized the New Gypsy Trio with David Reinhardt (another relative of Django) and Martin Taylor (or Jean-Baptiste Laya). The next year, he released the album ''Ma Ya''. He formed his Progressive Sextet with Marcel Azzola, Jean-Baptiste Laya, Stéphane Guillaume, Jean-Marc Jafet, and Yoann Serra. In 2012, he released the album ''Christian Escoudé joue Brassens: Au bois de mon cœur'', a tribute to French poet and musician

Georges Brassens Georges Charles Brassens (; ; 22 October 1921 – 29 October 1981) was a French singer-songwriter and poet. As an iconic figure in France, he achieved fame through his elegant songs with their harmonically complex music for voice and guitar and ...

. Escoudé played the compositions of Brassens with bassist Pierre Boussaguet and drummer Anne Paceo, with guests violinist Fiona Monbet, clarinetist Andre Villeger, Gypsy jazz guitarist Biréli Lagrène and 11-year-old Gypsy guitarist Swan Berger.

Death

Escoudé died on 13 May 2024, at the age of 76.

Discography

As leader/co-leader

* ''Reunion'' (Musica, 1976) * ''Les 4 Éléments'' with Jean-Charles Capon (Musica, 1976) * ''Christian Escoude & Alby Cullaz'' (Red, 1979) * ''Return'' (Red, 1979) * ''

Gitane Gitane is a French bicycle industry, French manufacturer of bicycles based in Machecoul, France; the name "Gitane" means Romani people, gypsy woman. The brand was synonymous with French bicycle racing from the 1960s through the mid-1980s, sponsori ...

'' with

Charlie Haden Charles Edward Haden (August 6, 1937 – July 11, 2014) was an American jazz double bass player, bandleader, composer and educator whose career spanned more than fifty years. Haden helped to revolutionize the harmonic concept of bass playin ...

(All Life, 1979) – recorded in 1978 * ''Gousti'' with Jean-Charles Capon (All Life, 1980) * ''Gipsy's Morning'' (JMS, 1981) * ''Trio'' (JMS, 1983) * ''Christian Escoude Group Featuring Toots Thielemans'' (JMS, 1983) * ''Three of a Kind'' (JMS, 1985) * ''Gipsy Waltz'' (Mercury, 1989) * ''Plays Django Reinhardt'' (EmArcy/Gitanes, 1991) * ''Holidays'' (EmArcy/Gitanes, 1993) * ''In L.A.'' (Verve/Gitanes, 1993) * ''Cookin' in Hell's Kitchen'' (Verve/Gitanes, 1995) * ''At Duc Des Lombards'' (Verve, 1997) * ''A Suite for Gypsies'' (EmArcy/Gitanes, 1998) * ''Charentes'' (Elabeth, 2001) * ''Paris Ma Muse'' (Fremeaux, 2001) * ''Ma Ya. Ya'' (Nocturne, 2005) * ''20 Ans De Trio Gitan: Live in Marciac'' (Nocturne, 2007) * ''Le Nouveau Trio Gitan'' (Nocture, 2007) * ''Catalogne'' (Plus Loin, 2010) * ''Au Bois de Mon Coeur'' (Universal/EmArcy, 2011) * ''Saint-Germain-Des-Pres/The Music of John Lewis'' (Universal, 2013)

As sideman

* Andre Ceccarelli, ''Ceccarelli'' (Carla, 1977) * Louis Chedid, ''Ces Mots Sont Pour Toi'' (Philips, 1992) * Jean Corti, ''Couka Mon'' (Slip, 2001) * Michel Graillier, ''Libra'' (Musica, 1978) * Jean-Marc Jafet, ''Mes Anges'' (Cristal, 2004) *

, ''Mirjana'' (Ahead, 1978) * John Lewis, ''Midnight in Paris'' (Emarcy, 1988) *

Guy Marchand Guy Marchand (22 May 1937 – 15 December 2023) was a French actor, musician, and singer. He appeared in over 100 films in over 30 years, but was best known for his role as the fictional television private detective Nestor Burma. Life and care ...

, ''NostalGitan'' (Virgin, BRJ/EMI, 1998) * Florin Niculescu, ''Plays Stephane Grappelli'' (Blujazz, 2008) *

, ''L'ombre Rouge'' (Saravah, 1981) * Steve Potts, ''Musique Pour Le Film D'Un Ami'' (Un-Deux-Trois,1975) * Martial Solal, ''Martial Solal Big Band'' (Gaumont, 1981) * Rene Urtreger, Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen, ''Masters'' (Carlyne, 1987) * Mike Zwerin, ''Not Much Noise'' (Spotlite, 1979)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Escoude, Christian 1947 births 2024 deaths French jazz guitarists French male guitarists Gypsy jazz guitarists French Romani people People from Angoulême French male jazz musicians EmArcy Records artists Sunnyside Records artists Verve Records artists Mercury Records artists Red Records artists