Club Django Toronto

(Before a crowd of 10,000 Club Django Sextet opens for the John Pizzarelli Trio)

The evening began with a generous , enjoyable set from the Club Django Sextet, a Toronto group that grew out of weekly jam sessions devoted to the timeless music of gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt and violinist Stephane Grappelli. By adding an accordion to the classic Reinhardt/Grappelli quintet of three guitars, violin and bass, Club Django provided a warm, round
feeling to its faithful rendition of the tangos, waltzes and straight-ahead swing tunes first made famous by its heroes in Paris of the 1930's.

(Sunday July 21 2002) - Doug Fisher, Ottawa Citizen

It's a pleasure to submit this letter of thanks to the entire Club Django. As presenters, we look for talented musicians performing material with high audience appeal and we hope for an appreciative audience. It all came together at the October 20th concert, making it an evening to remember. All of you delivered great performances prompting several of our regular tickets buyers to class the evening as one of the best we've had, This is no small praise when considering some of the remarkable talent that has graced our stage in nine years of business.

(November 2001) - Rene Demers

On behalf of the Markham Jazz Festival, may we express our sincere thanks to your band for performing at this year's event. We were most impressed by the audience reaction and felt honoured that we were able to hear some outstanding compositions, ensemble and solo work. What a thrill it was to hear comments from the audience such as "Wow, what a line-up", "How did you manage to book this band?", "Who wrote the incredible arrangements?", "What an all-star band that was", and on and on: well you get the picture.
(September 2001) - Hal Hill, director/associate producer

This relatively new group of Toronto musicians has come together to invoke the essence of a well-nigh forgotten European sub-genre of 30' swing , made popular in tits day by the brilliance of Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli. The Club Django have done a fine job in capturing the energy of the elementary vibe of this music, and have come very close to a true feeling of authenticity. Buy this record and file it in your collection under "Gypsy Swing". You may not have a Gypsy Swing section in your CD collection, but you should.
(January 2001) - Stephen Lukacic, CD Review

Instead of forking out thousands to fly to Europe in search of winter chic, you could have saved a buck or two by browsing midtown's Cumberland Street on Saturday. You would have been drawn to the venerable Pilot, were the music of 1930s Paris was getting an industrial-strength workout from a Toronto band bent on replicating the sound of the Hot Club de France, which became the European band of its time, featuring the immeasurable talents of guitarist Django Reinhardt and violinist Stephane Grappelli. Many a band ploughs this noble furrow, but the Club Django Sextet certainly gets into the spirit of music now known generally as gypsy swing. The group, warmly received by a crowd more familiar with smaller assemblies playing bop and modern modal mainstream, achieved lift-of early with "All Of Me", Honeysuckle Rose" and "It Don't Mean A Thing" and a host of tunes penned by the master ("Daphne", "Douce Ambiance", Minor Swing", with its slick chorus swaps, "Swing Guitar", "Stompin' at Decca". They turned in a lively show that took the chill out of a cold afternoon.
(2005) - Geoff Chapman, Music Critic, Toronto Star