Titi Winterstein

Titi Winterstein, was born in Breisgau (Germany) in 1956. (1956–2008), he truly example of Sinti musician. (violinist). He became one of the most important representatives of German Sinti swing . He spent his childhood in Mainz on the Hartenberg. During many years, he continued traveling by caravan, to keep the sinti spirit and showing his tradition and respect to his roots.

His father Tokeli Winterstein teached him the violin. Tokeli was one of the few of the family who survived the Nazi Holocaust.

During 1972 he became part of the Che Weiss Quintet (Häns’che Weiss). They performed around Europe and Worldwide.

Later in 1978, Titi Winterstein founded his a quintet, including with Lulu Reinhardt and his cousin Ziroli Winterstein. He released six albums. He was part of the SDR television film Saitenstrasse.

From 1987 to 1989, the Titi Winterstein quintett recorded the beautiful Live mit Vanessa & Sorba Merstein with Vanessa and Sorba Kwiatowski. They appeared in the TV series “Tatort” in an episode entitled Arming Nanosh, and finally in 1989, they play “World Festival 89” in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

Politically active, he was involved in Fritz Rau’s Grüner Raupem for the federal election campaign of 1993 and in the Stuttgart-Ulm human chain initiated by the peace movement .He was part of the “All the world’s violins” event in Brussels 1993, performing with numerous great violin players, such as Stephane Grappelli.

In 2003, he was awarded the “Django Reinhardt Prize” at the “European Festival of Music of the Roma and Sinti” in Berlin’s House of World Cultures.