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guitars played during his career

Django Reinhardt Guitars

One of the key factors contributing to Django Reinhardt’s unique sound was his choice of instruments and guitars. In this article, we will take a closer look at the instruments and guitars played by Django Reinhardt throughout his career.

Early Years and Banjo Playing

Django Reinhardt’s musical career began in the early 1920s when he started playing the banjo, violin and guitar in dance halls and on the streets of Paris. It was his fascination with jazz and swing music that led him to experiment with different instruments, and he soon discovered his natural talent for the guitar. As he became more skilled, Django began to incorporate his Romani heritage into his playing, blending traditional Romani music with American jazz and swing.

Django Reinhardt, aged 24 in 1934, is pictured with a large-bodied steel-string guitar crafted by luthier Arthur Carbonell. This picture captures the brilliant start of his career, showcasing his unique impact on jazz guitar.

Selmer Maccaferri Guitars

As Django Reinhardt’s reputation grew, so did his collection of guitars. One of his most iconic guitars was the Selmer Maccaferri, a type of guitar made by the Selmer Company in France during the 1930s and 1940s. Reinhardt owned several Selmer Maccaferri guitars throughout his career, including serial numbers #503 in 1949 and #704 in 1948. He was also photographed with the Selmer “Classique model” and “Concert model” Selmer-Maccaferri. Selmer #503 was later donated to the Musée de la Musique in 1964 by Django’s widow, Naguine.

Teddy Dupont information provided at DjangoBooks.com: “..Here is Django with a Concert model Selmer Maccaferri (photo 1) which he certainly posed with but there is no proof he ever actually played one in earnest. There are, however, photos of Joseph Reinhardt playing such a guitar. This is quite a different model to his “classical” guitar (second photo). The last photo is of Django in 1935 playing what looks like a classical guitar which may well have had gut strings on. It could well be the “Classique” model.”

In addition to his Selmer guitars, Django Reinhardt was also photographed playing a variety of other guitars throughout his career.

USA tour in 1946

Gibson ES-300

The Gibson ES-300 played a significant role in Django Reinhardt’s musical journey when he arrived in the USA in 1946 without a guitar. As he joined the Duke Ellington tour, he lacked an instrument for live performances. Thankfully, the William Morris Agency provided him with a Gibson Archtop, the ES-300, to produce the necessary sound and volume for playing with the full band. However, the guitar did not meet Django’s expectations or resonate well with the audience. Recordings of his performances with the Duke in Chicago reveal his discomfort with the instrument and amplifiers.

This historical picture also clarifies that Django did not use a Gibson L5 and did not tour the USA with an Epiphone Zephyr. Instead, he relied on a Gibson ES-300 Archtop without a pickguard and paired it with a large white speaker cabinet. It’s worth noting that the ES-300 was an experimental model during that time.

As the tour concluded, the guitar was returned to Gibson and eventually found its way into the hands of guitarist George Barnes. Later on, Barnes sold the guitar to Barry Galbraith, an influential jazz guitarist, further extending the intriguing story of the relationship between Django Reinhardt and the Gibson ES-300.