A concert series from London’s Barbican Hall celebrating the 80th birthday of the legendary French jazz violinist.
Filmed earlier in the year, this series captures the birthday concert of jazz violinist Stéphane Grappelli. Introduced by Humphrey Lyttelton, Grappelli performs a selection of standards accompanied by his regular trio of Martin Taylor (guitar), Marc Fosset (guitar), and Jack Sewing (bass). Over the course of three programmes, he is joined on stage by special guests, including the classical violinist Yehudi Menuhin and the singer Marian Montgomery. Later in the run, the core trio is augmented by Laurie Holloway (piano), Jeff Green (guitar), and Allan Ganley (drums).
This celebratory broadcast cemented Stéphane Grappelli’s status as a unique figure in 20th-century music, an artist whose appeal comfortably crossed generational and genre divides. While the performance with his trio confirmed his mastery of the hot club swing he had pioneered decades earlier, the appearance of Yehudi Menuhin was the event’s centerpiece. Their famous collaboration, which began in the 1970s, was a surprising but hugely successful union of classical and jazz sensibilities. The concert put on display the easy, intuitive chemistry between the two masters, a partnership that had introduced both to new audiences and produced a string of critically and commercially successful recordings.
Broadcast: BBC One, 3 Episodes, 13 June – 15 June 1988
Producer: Yvonne Littlewood
Director: Yvonne Littlewood
Introduced by: Humphrey Lyttelton
Main Performers: Stéphane Grappelli (Jazz Violinist), Yehudi Menuhin (Guest), Marian Montgomery (Guest), Martin Taylor (Guitar), Marc Fosset (Guitar), Jack Sewing (Bassist), Laurie Holloway (Pianist), Jeff Green (Guitarist), Allan Ganley (Drummer)
