The 2nd annual Ann Arbor Django Reinhardt Festival features host band Djangophonique and their new material with the latest addition to the ensemble, vocalist Katie Smith, along with other midwestern musicians who draw inspiration from the Django lineage. Christo Rupenthal's Novelty Combo from Madison, WI, brings a fusion of antique Hawaiian steel guitar and hot club music, and Erik McIntyre from Flint, MI will be playing early American archtop guitar influenced by musicians such as Eddie Lang, whose recordings with violinist Joe Venuti served as the blueprint for Reinhardt and Grapelli's work. With a range of diverse offerings, united together by enthusiasm, skill, and passion for the legacy surrounding the music of Django Reinhardt, this iteration of Ann Arbor's burgeoning new series is sure to delight, transport, and inspire.
Djangophonique is an award winning project that delivers the infectious joy, and expressive freedom that is at the heart of Django Reinhardt’s jazz manouche. With respect for the tradition and a fearless creativity that bends the conventions of the style, Djangophonique is keeping the Hot Club revival alive and well. The result is a sound that’s unmistakable to fans of the music, and alluring to the uninitiated—a sound that can bring the lively energy of a Parisian dance hall to the quietest listening room or captivate a buzzing festival audience with the aching nostalgia of a shimmering ballad.
Christo Ruppenthal is an award-winning multi-instrumentalist and music entrepreneur whose professional career started in 2003. He presents a unique mixture of Vaudeville-era novelty infused hot steel guitar playing from the 1920s and 30s "Hawaiian Craze" combined with the swinging sounds of Django Reinhardt’s 1930s and 40s guitar-driven Hot Club jazz. Think “Hot Hawaiian guitar meets Jazz à la Django!” Christo is an avid recording artist and performer with thousands of gigs both across the U.S. and internationally to his credit.
Inspired by a melting pot of moods, styles, and spirit heard in recordings from the 1920s and 30s (by such artists as Eddie Lang, Louis Armstrong, Blind Blake, Lonnie Johnson, Billie Holiday, Django Reinhardt, Blind Boy Fuller, Agustín Barrios Mangoré, The Carter Family, Jimmie Rodgers...), Erik McIntyre continues to hone a distinct musical voice that pays homage with a personal touch. His playing is spontaneous yet studious — synergizing “muse” and “ic”. Whether as soloist or sideman, his arrangements, improvisations, and compositions weave a tapestry that is filtered through a warm lens of nostalgia and invites listeners to his inner world.