Django Reinhardt was a Belgian guitar virtuoso and pioneer of chanson manouche music. He was born in 1910 in the city of Liberchies, Belgium, in the Roma family. He started playing the guitar in early childhood, and later joined the Parisian chanson manouche scene.
Reinhardt was a self-taught musician and developed a unique playing style that combined elements of classical, jazz and traditional Roma music. His virtuosity and original playing style made him one of the greatest guitar masters of all time.
In 1928, Reinhardt experienced a severe fire in which he lost the use of two fingers on his right hand, but managed to return to the guitar and continued playing with the help of new techniques. His popularity and influence only grew, and he became an indispensable part of the chanson manouche movement and one of the most important founders of modern jazz guitar.
Reinhardt collaborated with many notable musicians of his time, including Stéphane Grappelli, Duke Ellington and Louisa Armstrong. His music is still alive and appreciated all over the world, and many have called him the king of chanson manouche guitar. Reinhardt died in 1953, at the age of 43, but his influence and legacy have endured.
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