STÉPHANE GRAPPELLI
Genres: Swing, Jazz Related Soundtracks, Latin Jazz, Hard Bop, Classic Fusion • France

The French jazz violinist, born 26 January 1908 in Paris, France, died 1 December 1997 in Paris, France. He was born Stéfano Grappelli but had his first name gallicized to Stéphane. He was billed as Stéphane Grappelly at first, but the last name spelling on recordings changed to Grappelli in the 1960s, although he still signed his name as "Grappelly." from discogs One of the all-time great jazz violinists (ranking with Joe Venuti and Stuff Smith as one of the big three of pre-bop), Stéphane Grappelli's longevity and consistently enthusiastic playing did a great deal to establish the violin as a jazz instrument. He was originally self-taught as both a violinist and a pianist, although during 1924-28 he studied at the Paris Conservatoire. Grappelli played in movie theaters and dance bands before meeting guitarist Django Reinhardt in 1933. They hit it off musically from the start even though their lifestyles (Grappelli was read more...