French jazz

Jazz music has been popular in France since the 1920s. Its international popularity peaked in the 1930s, and it has been continually enjoyed since.

History

Following World War I, a number of American expatriates settled in Paris and began to build up a jazz scene. France did not suffer from racial discrimination as much as the US, so a mixture of musical styles from different cultures began to emerge.^[1]

As with Brazil, the French were at first concerned it was too American of an influence before "making it their own". Although in the case of the French, the adjustment proved faster, as by the 1930s, jazz had become acceptable. Between the 1930s and 1950s, the biguine, a style of jazz from the French Caribbean was popular among dance orchestras. Lacking recognition at home, several biguine artists from Martinique moved to mainland France, where they achieved greater popularity in Paris, especially in the wake of the colonial exhibition in 1931. Early stars like Alexandre Stellio and Sam Castandet became popular in Paris.^[2] An important event in that it is the creation of the Quintette du Hot Club de France in 1934. This is among the most significant jazz groups in European history.^[3]

Starting in the late 1940s, the Le Caveau de la Huchette would become an important place for French and American jazz musicians. Many American jazz artists have lived in France from Sidney Bechet to Archie Shepp. For example, Sidney Bechet settled in France in 1949 and played with Claude Luter and André Réwéliotty. These Americans would have an influence on French jazz, but at the same time, French jazz had its own inspirations as well. For example, Bal-musette had some influence on France's form of Gypsy jazz. Similarly, the violin, and to an extent the guitar, were traditionally more popular in French jazz than American. Related to that, Jean-Luc Ponty and Stéphane Grappelli are among the most well-respected violinists in the history of jazz. That stated, the violin is also popular in Eastern European jazz.^{[citation needed]}

French jazz musicians

Jazz festivals in France

Banlieues Bleues in Seine-Saint-Denis
Blues Passions Cognac in Cognac
Europa Jazz Festival in Le Mans
Festival International Django Reinhardt in Samois sur Seine
La Défense Jazz Festival in Paris
Jazz à Porquerolles in Porquerolles
Jazz à Sète in Sète
Jazz à Toulon in Toulon
Festival de jazz d'Orléans in Orléans
Jazz à Juan in Antibes
Jazz aux Remparts in Bayonne
Jazz à Vienne in Vienne [1]
Jazz en tête in Clermont-Ferrand [2]
Jazz in Marciac in Marciac [3]
Jazz sous les pommiers in Coutances
Jazz à Saint-Germain-des-Prés in Paris
Swing in Deauville in Deauville
Les Rendez-vous de l'Erdre along the Erdre river
Jazz sur son 31 in Toulouse
JVC Jazz Festival in Paris
Festival de jazz de La Rochelle in La Rochelle
La Villette Jazz Festival in Paris
Les nuits du Jazz in Nantes
Musiques Métisses in Angoulème
Musiques de Jazz et d'ailleurs in Amiens
Nancy Jazz Pulsations in Nancy
Nice Jazz Festival in Nice
Paris Jazz Festival in the Bois de Vincennes
Reims Jazz Festival in Reims
Sons d'hiver in Val-de-Marne
Tourcoing Jazz Festival in Tourcoing
Uzeste Musical in Uzeste

Tribute

In 1970, Walt Disney Pictures paid humorous tribute to French jazz of the 1930s with its hit cartoon The Aristocats, who performed their standard song Everybody Wants to Be a Cat ("Tout le monde veut devenir un cat") during a jam session in Paris with a view of the Eiffel Tower.

References

Citations

^ Jackson 2003, pp. 85–86.
^ Martinique biguine. Bloomsbury Encyclopedia of Popular Music of the World, Volume 9. 24 April 2014. ISBN 9781441132253. Retrieved March 6, 2014.
^ "Quintette of the Hot Club of France". www.redhotjazz.com. Archived from the original on September 26, 2010. Retrieved June 14, 2025.

Bibliography

Jackson, Jeffrey (2003). Making Jazz French: Music and Modern Life in Interwar Paris. Duke University Press. ISBN 978-0-822-33124-7.