Nicolai Foss
I am a great admirer of the “gypsy waltzes” written by Baro and Matelot Ferret, Tchan Tchou Vidal, Pattotte Bousquet, and, closer to our time, Fapy Lafertin, Moreno, Stochelo Rosenberg and Dorado (and of course Tony Murena, Gus Viseur and Jo Privat on a rather different instrument). There are plenty of nice examples of les valses manouches on YouTube. Here are the most famous ones.
It is appropriate to begin with La Minch Valse, here in a classic version with Matelot and Boulou from Samois. Here is the great Stephane Wrembel performing his version of Montaigne St. Genevieve, ascribed to Django (although I suspect that the real composer is Matelot). This is Bousquet’s version. Amazing!! Here is Baro’s great “Swing Valse”. And here is Tony Murena’s beautiful “Indifference.” Apropos Murena, the most beautiful waltz of them all IMHO is his “Passion.” Of course, there are lots of versions of La Gitane. Strangely, nobody has posted one of the earliest and most beautiful gypsy waltzes, Gusti Malha’s Valse de Niglos.
Leave a Reply