The Ritary Gaguenetti Quartet ‎- Le QuecumBar Live in London (2007) [Hi-Res]

Ritary is one of the great young gypsy guitarists on the scene today. I've had the pleasure of knowing him for many years and lately he has also been exploring mainstream jazz, mixing it up with his gypsy roots and tradition. That sets him apart from many of the more traditional players around. This CD, recorded live at the Quecumbar is a great display of Ritary, his band and his guitar style. You can really hear the joy and happiness in their playing, creating a nice vibe and ambiance together with the enthusiastic audience! --Andreas Oberg

Here you have the quartet from Dôle recorded live (no cheating here!) on January 22, 2007 at the Quecumbar, one of the temples of gipsy swing in London. The Ritary Gaguenetti Quartet brings together the same instruments as the last Bireli Gipsy project: bass (Vladimir Torres), accompanying guitar (Hervé Gaguenetti), saxophone (Christopher Panzani) and solo guitar (Ritary); a formula that allows a change from all strings, freeing the solo guitar from constantly having to be there up front. These young musicians are already solid and the January 27, 2007 set is more than convincing. Like all the young upcoming musicians, Ritary has the tendency sometimes to produce a lot of notes but that is more than compensated for by his free but precise phrasing and his tuneful choruses; propelled by the powerful drive of the rhythm section, the two soloists, particularly inspired, produce long choruses and dialogue beautifully on a repertoire that alternates between the usual standards (What is the thing called love? , Undecided , with guest singer Helena Jessie...), some less common pieces (Django s Nuit de Saint Germain des Prés , Riz Ortolani s More or Ninine Garcia s Cecel s Swing ) and three original masterfully constructed compositions two by Ritary (most notably For Sylvia with its brilliant chorus) and one from papa Robert ( My Home ). You might not be able to tell just by looking at them but the group is finding its way the way of gipsy swing that doesn t forget its roots confirming with this very good CD that its growing reputation is not undeserved. --Francis Couvreux , Etudes Tsiganes

Ouh la.... Grosse ambiance au QuecumBar ! Et tout de suite, une évidence : ce Ritary, il joue fichtrement bien. Et même, de mieux en mieux ! Ils étaient donc quatre, ce 22 janvier 2007, à s être donné rendez-vous dans le célèbre bar londonien pour un concert mémorable : Ritary à la guitare, Chrsitophe Panzani au sax, Hervé Gaguenetti à la pompe et Vladimir Torres à la contrebasse. Et fort heureusement pour ceux qui hésitent encore à prendre le tunnel sous la Manche, le concert à été enregistré pour le nouveau label du Quecumbar, qui se lance (et on s en réjouit), dans la production d albums live. Tour de chauffe sur My home et A l instant en ouverture, où l on sent encore un peu d hésitations chez les deux solistes, et puis c est parti avec Cecel Swing pour six titres très sûrs alternant les compos du groupe et les standards, les balades et les swings. Le jeu de Ritary a pris beaucoup d ampleur depuis les premiers albums ; surtout, on sent que ses influences ont évoluées vers des horizons plus jazz... Le guitariste puise désormais autant chez Benson que chez Django (si ce n es plus...). Son jeu a du coup beaucoup gagné en richesse, gommant parfois le côté rugueux de la guitare manouche pour acquérir une agréable souplesse dans le coup de poignet... Le CD nous plonge parfaitement dans l ambiance live du QuecumBar. La prise de son, excellente, retranscris avec équilibre le son des instruments comme les interventions du public, et en tendant l oreille, on peut même surprendre quelques remarques des artistes, et pas des plus tristounettes (le grrrrrrrrrooooowl !, on le suppose d Hervé Gaguenetti en réponse au chorus de Christophe Panzani vaut son pesant de niglos...). Les échanges sont plutôt réussis, surtout quand Christophe Panzani encouragé par ses collègues se lâche un peu. Enfin, l intervention de la chanteuse Helena Jessie sur Undecided est du plus bel effet... que d enthousiasme ! --Djangostation

Created in 2002, The Ritary Gaguenetti Quartet comes from the pure tradition of gipsy swing. Ritary Gaguenetti (solo gutar/composer) a French Gypsy began playng at age 14. A quietly outsanding virtuoso musician with a style that is smooth and melodious, clean and precise. Hs versatllity encompasses both funk and R & B, his main influences are Django Reinhardt, George Benson, Stochelo Rosenberg and Joe Pass. Herve Gaguenetti (rhythm gutar) cousin to Ritary, portrays as much through his masterful rhythm playng as any great soloist - his sensitive and masterful playng is the faultless heartbeat of the band. Vladimir Torres (double bass) is a self taught musician, coming from a South American music tradition . His powerful playing seeks out the best of his instrument, and his eclectic cultural influences are clearly heard in his work. Christophe Panzani (saxophone ) was classically trained but grew up on Stan Getz, Coleman Hawkins and Sonny Rollins. A player of humour and versatility that leaves his audience enthralled. The group has earned a reputation that has put them at the top of many festival invitation lists all over Europe, including the famous Django Reinhardt festival at Samois, Angers, the International Gipsy Guitar Festival in England, and the Oslo Django Festival 2004, Django fest NYC, tours in Canada, and jazz festivals in France as well as numerous wide spread independent jazz clubs.