Nachman Fahrner | |
---|---|
Born | Paris, France | September 21, 1972
Genres | Roots rock, Americana, rockabilly, rock |
Occupation(s) | Singer, songwriter, musician |
Instrument(s) | Guitar, vocals |
Years active | 1987-present |
Website | www |
Nachman Fahrner (born September 21, 1972) is a contemporary religious Jewish musician in Israel. He is a convert to Judaism. Fahrner's main influences are Elvis Presley, Django Reinhardt, 1940s and 1950s blues, R&B, and rockabilly. He received encouragement from Luther Allison and was a long-time friend of French jazz guitarist Patrick Saussois. Both his musical styles and songwriting distinguish him from other religious musicians who often combine traditional Jewish music with folk/rock elements and choose their lyrics from verses from the Torah.
Fahrner started singing and playing rhythm guitar as a child after discovering Elvis Presley through his parents' record collection. He performed at school events and parties. [1]
At age eleven he began teaching himself lead guitar by playing along with records by Memphis Slim, Elvis Presley, and Luther Allison. An encounter with Allison left a profound impression on a young teenage Nachman. While shaking hands, Allison looked at their black and white hands and said, "Black and white. That is what rock and roll is all about." [2] Around this time Fahrner discovered the music of gypsy jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt. [3]
Fahrner career as lead guitarist began in 1988 when he joined the Roadrunners [4] [5] a rockabilly bands with a female lead singer. In 1990, he moved to Paris and was hired by the teddy boy/rockabilly band Jim and the Beams. The band toured Europe, performing primarily for biker and rocker audiences. [1] Fahrner became part of the Parisian Gypsy jazz scene through friends Jean-Yves Dubanton and Patrick Saussois and incorporated this style into his guitar playing. [6]
By the mid 1990s, he was in demand as guest player, playing with acts such Claudia Colonna and French rockers Hotel Du Nord. [7] In 1999 Nachman, a descendant of Turkish Jews, declined an offer to join Patrick Saussois' band so that he could travel to Israel and convert to orthodox Judaism. [7] [8]
Since then, Fahrner has taught guitar and performed in Israel [9] and Europe. [10] He was the founder and leader of the Jerusalem Swing Jam" [6] He started writing songs with an emphasis on spiritual themes, [7] in particular the teachings of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov. [11] In 2012 he released the album Azamra, a collection of original songs, as well as Early Recordings, volumes one and two.
Jean Reinhardt, known by his Romani nickname Django, was a Belgian Manouche or Sinti jazz guitarist and composer. He was one of the first major jazz talents to emerge in Europe and has been hailed as one of its most significant exponents.
Winfield Scott Moore III was an American guitarist who formed The Blue Moon Boys in 1954, Elvis Presley's backing band. He was studio and touring guitarist for Presley between 1954 and 1968.
Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western musical styles such as country with that of rhythm and blues, leading to what is considered "classic" rock and roll. Some have also described it as a blend of bluegrass with rock and roll. The term "rockabilly" itself is a portmanteau of "rock" and "hillbilly", the latter a reference to the country music that contributed strongly to the style. Other important influences on rockabilly include western swing, boogie-woogie, jump blues, and electric blues.
Martin Taylor, MBE is a British jazz guitarist who has performed solo, in groups, guitar ensembles, and as an accompanist.
"A Big Hunk o' Love" is a song originally recorded by Elvis Presley and released as a single on June 23, 1959 by RCA Victor, which topped the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks.
"Blue Moon of Kentucky" is a waltz written in 1945 by bluegrass musician Bill Monroe and recorded by his band, the Blue Grass Boys. Some think the origins may trace back to "Roll Along, Kentucky Moon", a similar waltz recorded 20 years prior by Jimmie Rodgers. The song has since been recorded by many artists, including Elvis Presley and Paul McCartney. The song is the official bluegrass song of Kentucky.
Stochelo Rosenberg is a Gypsy jazz guitarist who leads the Rosenberg Trio.
Biréli Lagrène is a French jazz guitarist who came to prominence in the 1980s for his Django Reinhardt–influenced style. He often performs in swing, jazz fusion, and post-bop styles.
William Charles "Diz" Disley was an Anglo-Canadian jazz guitarist and banjoist. He is best known for his acoustic jazz guitar playing, strongly influenced by Django Reinhardt, for his contributions to the UK trad jazz, skiffle and folk scenes as a performer and humorist, and for his collaborations with the violinist Stéphane Grappelli.
Gypsy jazz is a musical idiom inspired by the Romani jazz guitarist Jean "Django" Reinhardt (1910–1953), in conjunction with the French jazz violinist Stéphane Grappelli (1908–1997), as expressed by their group the Quintette du Hot Club de France. The style has its origins in France and the Manouche clan of Romanis, and has remained popular amongst this clan. Gypsy jazz is often called by the French name "jazz manouche", or alternatively, "manouche jazz" in English-language sources.
The Quintette du Hot Club de France, often abbreviated "QdHCdF" or "QHCF", was a jazz group founded in France in 1934 by guitarist Django Reinhardt and violinist Stéphane Grappelli and active in one form or another until 1948.
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Jean-Jacques "Babik" Reinhardt was a French guitarist and the younger son of gypsy jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt by Django's second wife, Naguine. He was christened Jean-Jacques, but generally known by his family nickname, Babik. His elder half-brother Lousson, Django's son by his first wife, Bella, was also a guitarist, but the two grew up in different families and rarely met.
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Jean Pierre "Matelo" Ferret was a French musette and gypsy jazz guitarist and composer. He was an associate of Django Reinhardt and the youngest brother of guitarists Baro and Sarane Ferret. He recorded with his own sextet in Paris in the 1940s and continued performing there, with occasional recording sessions, until his death in 1989. He was noted for a musical style that incorporated Russian and Hungarian influences and lived long enough to see a resurgence of interest in gypsy jazz in which he was recognised as one of the great surviving players of the genre. Two of his sons, Boulou and Elios Ferré, continue to play a more modern and individualistic form of gypsy jazz-based guitar music in Paris.
The Blue Moon Boys were an American rock and roll band that was formed by Elvis Presley, lead guitarist Scotty Moore and double bass player Bill Black. The group members were introduced by Sun Studio owner Sam Phillips in 1954, except for drummer D.J. Fontana, who joined the group during a Louisiana Hayride tour in 1955. The Blue Moon Boys were inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2007. The band was named after Bill Monroe's song "Blue Moon of Kentucky".
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Paulus Schäfer is a guitarist, composer, and arranger from the Netherlands. A member of the Dutch Sinti-Romani, he considers Django Reinhardt his idol. He has worked with Stochelo Rosenberg, Fapy Lafertin, Tim Kliphuis, Jimmy Rosenberg, Dominique Paats, Biréli Lagrène, and Andreas Öberg.
Ian Cruickshank was an English electric and acoustic guitarist most associated with the blues-rock and gypsy jazz genres, also well known in the U.K. as an educator, author and columnist, record producer and record label owner, festival organiser and promoter of artists in the gypsy jazz world. He achieved some success in the 1960s in the Keef Hartley Band playing electric guitar under the pseudonym Spit James before becoming enamoured of the gypsy jazz style originated by Django Reinhardt in the 1930s and devoting almost all of his energies to educating, performing and promoting activities in this area up till his death in 2017. He published several influential books on gypsy jazz, was producer and music co-ordinator for the TV Documentary Django Legacy, was the owner of the Fret Records record label, and organised the UK Gypsy Jazz Guitar Festival annually from 1997 to 2000.