Now that a few weeks have past since Djangofest, things are settling down. I am getting myself back into a regular practice routine again. This week I spent some time re-memorizing “la Gitane” up through the “AaBCa” part. All that I have left is to learn the final A part, then memorize the chords, and then record myself on a jam track. When I am finally done, which will be 1-8 weeks from now (as time permits) then I will post my finished MP3 so that all of you can enjoy what will be an amateur waltz recording.
I will continue to have lots of time to put into practice. For a while Lindy Hop was consuming a lot of my time but swing dancing in Portland is starting to become extinct and the whole swing fad which lasted from 1996-2002 is finally drawing its last breath. Things are changing, music is changing, and its time for me to move on and get more serious about playing music.
My newest discoveries are some Tchan Tchou and Maurice Ferre recordings, of gypsy jazz, with electric guitars and/or Stimers, and I think this is the future. If you don’t have the classic “Guitare Partie” album already, then you should find it. I wish someone would officially re-release it on CD. Its hip, its raw, and its real. There is so much unexplored territory in this area. Of course, Moreno (and the other Paris players) are a good example of this stuff also. (many thanks to Ted Gottsegen for awaking my ear to this form of gypsy jazz)