Hot Club Edmonton

Websites:  https://www.facebook.com/HotClubEdmonton/?checkpoint_src=any
Origin: Edmonton, Alberta, 🇨🇦
Biography:

May 11, 2015: Celebrating 15 years with The Museum of Canadian Music!
Gypsy Jazz was shaped within the context of Paris in the 1930s by Django Reinhardt, Stéphane Grappelli and the Quintette du Hot Club de France. Together, these two masters popularized this style and made waves throughout the world. Gypsy Jazz is an utterly infectious genre of music that encompasses haunting airs, swinging melodies, driving rhythms and virtuosic improvisation. All of this is delivered with the Gypsy flair. When listening to this music, one can imagine a smoky and crowded bar in France. It is our goal with this project to capture the essence of the Quintette du Hot Club de France while paying tribute to two giants in the history of jazz. Cheers to Django Reinhardt and Stéphane Grappelli!

Clinton Pelletier and Daniel Gervais were first drawn to Gypsy Jazz in 2003. Clinton was recording his debut album at the time and wanted to cover this style. At that point, Clinton and Daniel decided to fully immerse themselves in Gypsy Jazz. A trip to Europe in the spring of 2006 allowed them to further experience this music from the very source. Inspired at the site of Stéphane Grappelli's columbarium in Paris, Daniel composed Hommage à Grappelli. In the summer of 2009, Clinton and Daniel returned to France for a tour with the French-Canadian dance troupe Zéphyr. On this trip, they were fortunate to meet a wonderful French Gypsy Jazz violinist, Matthias Guerry. This musical encounter led to an impromptu concert and a very authentic experience, which was an excellent background for the completion of the Hot Club Edmonton debut album.

Although Clinton and Daniel are not Gypsies themselves, there are certain parallels between their world and that of Django's and Stéphane's. Firstly, they both have French heritage. Secondly, like the Gypsy peoples, their lives as professional musicians include a lot of travelling. Finally, having grown up listening to Country and Western Swing, they were exposed to and developed an appreciation for improvisation at an early age. Just as Gypsy Jazz was shaped within the context of Paris in the 1930s, the Hot Club Edmonton sound could be described as a product of Gypsy Jazz combined with Western Canadian musical influences.

When listening to this music, one can imagine a smoky and crowded bar in France. Hot Club Edmonton captures the essence of Quintette du Hot Club de France while paying tribute to two giants in the history of jazz, Django Reinhardt and Stéphane Grappelli.

Hot Club Edmonton’s debut album featuring violinist Daniel Gervais and guitarist Clinton Pelletier takes you on a journey to a smoky lounge in Paris, back in the swingin’ 1930s. Haunting airs, swinging melodies, driving rhythms and the sultry vocals of Thea Neumann.

Upon inception in early 2010, Hot Club Edmonton performed at the Regina Folk Fest, recorded for CBC Canada Live and were recently awarded “Instrumental Album of the Year” at the Western Canadian Music Awards. Collectively, their musical education and experience has had them performing with an adverse line up of globally accomplished musicians. Everything from performances at Disneyland, Detroit Jazz Festival, SXSW to sharing the stage with Jim Cuddy of Blue Rodeo and Herbie Hancock, to name a few.

Hot Club Edmonton is perfect for any event. This is stated in the diversity of their musical prowess. Hot Club Edmonton’s unique sound is created by the extraordinary instrumentation. This group has the capabilities to perform as an instrumental four piece or five piece including the stunning vocalist Thea Neumann. (Seven piece with the addition of 2 horn players)

Hot Club Edmonton is also available in a bilingual (English & French) format upon request