welcome to the town hall.
tonight promises to be a special night and we thank you for joining us.
Voice and music have been part of town hall’s legacy and pianos have graced our stage on countless evenings over the last ninety-eight years. But guitars have enjoyed equal prominence and tonight’s show will continue that tradition. from day one, town hall has welcomed visitors and performers from every walk of life from every corner of the world. “it doesn’t matter who you are or where you are from, you are welcome here.” and it goes the same for music.
in 1928 a young andalusian guitarist named andrés segovia made his american debut at town hall. the recital would be the first guitar concert in New York’s musical history. after all, not many people at that time believed that the guitar was a proper instrument on which to perform the classics.
Within 10 years, guitars were not only accepted but were taking their place in every genre of music. reflecting our diversity of programming and spirit of inclusion acoustic, electric, rock, classical, fingerstyle, blues, folk, jazz, country r&B and funk have all had their place on the town hall stage.
among the greats who recorded at town hall included eddie Condon, herb ellis, roy Buchanan, John scofield & pat Metheny, We only wish we had a recording from May 3, 1968 when late into the evening (or early the next morning) Jimi hendrix and Mitch Mitchell jammed on stage with Joe tex at a benefit for Black power. rumor has it that hendrix had just recorded “Voodoo Chile,” and played its first public performance that evening.
But alas, not django rheinhart, which is why we are so delighted that stephane and his friends are here tonight to once again share with us the spirit and music of one the great guitarists of all time.
from everyone at town hall - thank you for coming, please enjoy the show.
tom wirtshafter marvin leffler President President Emeritus
Following the success of last year’s program, stephane Wrembel returns to the town Hall with Django a Gogo 2019: A Celebration of Guitar Through The Music of Django Reinhardt . this year’s program will not only feature reinhardt’s classics and originals inspired by his work, but also an unusual glimpse of the legendary guitarist’s solo pieces. this is a music treasure rarely explored -- and the subject of Wrembel’s latest research.
For this concert, Wrembel has assembled a new international all-star cast in the d jango reinhardt style, including Raphael Fays , David Gastine , Serge Krief (a disciple of Matelo Ferret, a reinhardt accompanist), and his sons Lior Krief and Ezeckiel Krief , and Simba Baumgartner ( reinhardt’s greatgrandson), whose debut cd, produced by Wrembel, releases on April 26. Also guesting are Josh Kaye (guitar/oud), David Langlois (washboard/ percussion) and Daisy Castro (violin). Anchoring will be Wrembel’s long time collaborators Thor Jensen on guitar; Ari Folman-Cohen on bass and Nick Anderso n on drums.
the concert also features special guests Jonny Mizzone , the 17-year-old banjo sensation and viral video star (with 50 million you tube views) and Bria Skonberg on trumpet and vocals, a rising star The New York Times dubbed “the shining hope of hot jazz.”
“It’s the culmination of a week we spend together playing music, sharing stories, sharing a journey, really, and it all builds up to something very special,” says Wrembel, who jump-starts the d jango a Gogo festival with a guitar camp that offers reinhardt aficionados a chance to workshop with these modern masters. “And at the end we’re on stage at the town Hall. I’m not inviting people just to come play solos and help sell tickets. that’s not what I have in mind. I want an extraordinary show, a concert that tells a story.”