Both the public and the critics have been won over by Django à la Créole, the group led by Evan Christopher, no doubt the greatest jazz clarinettist on today’s New Orleans scene. Reaching the end of a hugely successful world tour, the band decided to record a live album that would show the rapport they’d created with audiences thanks to the extraordinary colour and savour of their music. And here it is. Soaring swing, soft and elegant Creole excursions, sidesteps into bossa nova… its taste explodes in your mouth like a great wine. The music is intimate and generous, and the band goes way beyond gypsy swing and the jazz of New Orleans: the concept here is to take music outside the notion of genres. In fact, Django à la Créole is a genre of its own: a fantastic universe of sound somewhere between the Old World and the New. Combining solid roots with crossbred identities and the simple pleasure of playing, this is music we can all share. Augustin BONDOUX