Editing Stéphane Grappelli (section)

=== Early years ===
Grappelli was born at Hôpital Lariboisière in Paris, [[France]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Smith |first=Geoffrey |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9msZAQAAIAAJ |title=Stéphane Grappelli: A Biography |date=1987 |publisher=Pavilion |isbn=978-1-85145-012-1 |language=en}}</ref> His father, Italian Ernesto Grappelli, was born in [[Alatri]], [[Lazio]], while his French mother, Anna Emilie Hanoque, was from [[St-Omer]]. Ernesto was a scholar who taught Italian, sold translations, and wrote articles for local journals.{{sfn|Dregni|2004|p=70}} Grappelli's mother died when he was five, leaving his father to care for him.<ref name="Smith">{{cite news |last1=Smith |first1=Geoffrey |title=Obituary: Stephane Grappelli |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/obituary-stephane-grappelli-1286414.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220525/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/obituary-stephane-grappelli-1286414.html |archive-date=25 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |newspaper=[[The Independent]] |access-date=23 August 2018 |date=2 December 1997}}</ref> Although he was residing in France when [[World War I]] began, Ernesto was still an Italian citizen, and was consequently drafted into the Italian Army in 1914.{{sfn|Dregni|2004|p=70}}

Having written about American dancer [[Isadora Duncan]], who was living in Paris, Ernesto appealed to her to care for his son. Stéphane was enrolled in Duncan's dance school at the age of six, and he learned to love French [[Impressionist music]]. With the war approaching, Duncan fled the country; she turned over her château to be used as a military hospital.{{sfn|Dregni|2004|p=71}} Ernesto subsequently entrusted his son to a Catholic orphanage. Grappelli said of this time:

{{blockquote|I look back at it as an abominable memory&nbsp;... The place was supposed to be under the eye of the government, but the government looked elsewhere. We slept on the floor, and often were without food. There were many times when I had to fight for a crust of bread.{{sfn|Dregni|2004|p=71}} }}

Grappelli compared his early life to a [[Dickens]] novel,<ref name="Smith" /> and said that he once tried to eat flies to ease his hunger.{{sfn|Dregni|2004|p=71}} He stayed at the orphanage until his father returned from the war in 1918, settling them in an apartment in Barbès. Having been sickened by his experiences with the Italian military, Ernesto took Stéphane to city hall, pulled two witnesses off the street, and had his son naturalized as a French citizen on 28 July 1919.{{sfn|Dregni|2004|p=71}} His first name Stefano was Gallicized to Stéphane. 

Grappelli began playing the violin at the age of 12 on a three-quarter-sized violin, which his father purchased by pawning a suit. Although Stéphane received violin lessons, he preferred to learn the instrument on his own:

{{blockquote|My first lessons were in the streets, watching how other violinists played&nbsp;... The first violinist that I saw play was at the Barbès metro station, sheltered under the overhead metro tracks. When I asked how one should play, he exploded in laughter. I left, completely humiliated with my violin under my arm.{{sfn|Dregni|2004|p=71}} }}

After a brief period of independent learning, Grappelli was enrolled at the [[Conservatoire de Paris]] on 31 December 1920, which his father hoped would give him a chance to learn [[music theory]], [[ear-training]], and [[solfeggio]]. In 1923, Grappelli graduated with a second-tier medal.{{sfn|Dregni|2004|p=71}} Around this time, his father married a woman named Anna Fuchs and moved to [[Strasbourg]]. Grappelli remained in Paris because he disliked Fuchs.{{sfn|Dregni|2004|p=71}}

At the age of 15, Grappelli began busking full-time to support himself. His playing caught the attention of an elderly violinist, who invited him to accompany silent films in the pit orchestra at the Théâtre Gaumont. He played there for six hours daily over a two-year period.{{sfn|Dregni|2004|p=72}} During orchestra breaks, he visited Le Boudon, a [[brasserie]], where he would listen to songs from an American proto-jukebox. Here he was introduced to jazz. In 1928, Grappelli was a member of the orchestra at the Ambassador Hotel while bandleader [[Paul Whiteman]] and jazz violinist [[Joe Venuti]] were performing there. Jazz violinists were rare, and though Venuti played mainly commercial jazz themes and seldom improvised, Grappelli was struck by his bowing when he played "[[Dinah (song)|Dinah]]".{{sfn|Dregni|2004|p=72}} As a result, Grappelli began developing a jazz-influenced style of violin music.

Grappelli lived with [[Michel Warlop]], a classically trained violinist. Warlop admired Grappelli's jazz-inspired playing, while Grappelli envied Warlop's income.{{sfn|Dregni|2004|p=72}} After experimenting with the piano, Grappelli stopped playing the violin, choosing simplicity, a new sound, and paid performances over familiarity.{{sfn|Dregni|2004|p=72}} He began playing piano in a [[big band]] led by a musician called Grégor. In 1929, after a night of drinking, Grégor learned that Grappelli used to play the violin. Grégor borrowed a violin and asked Grappelli to improvise over "Dinah".{{sfn|Dregni|2004|p=73}} Delighted by what he heard, Grégor urged Grappelli to return to playing the violin.

In 1930, Grégor ran into financial trouble. He was involved in an automobile accident that resulted in several deaths, and fled to South America to avoid arrest.{{sfn|Dregni|2004|p=73}} Grégor's band reunited as a jazz ensemble under the leadership of pianist [[Alain Romans]] and saxophonist [[André Ekyan]]. While playing with this band, Grappelli met [[gypsy jazz]] guitarist [[Django Reinhardt]] in 1931. Looking for a violinist interested in jazz, he invited Grappelli to play with him in his caravan. Although the two played for hours that afternoon,{{sfn|Dregni|2004|p=74}} their commitments to their respective bands prevented them from pursuing a career together.

In 1934 they met again at [[Claridge's]] in London, England, and began a musical partnership. Pierre Nourry, the secretary of the [[Hot Club de France]], invited Reinhardt and Grappelli to form the [[Quintette du Hot Club de France]], with [[Louis Vola]] on bass and [[Joseph Reinhardt]] and [[Roger Chaput]] on guitar.<ref>{{cite book |first=Michael |last=Dregni |title=Django Reinhardt and the Illustrated History of Gypsy Jazz |publisher=Speck Press |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-933108-10-0 |pages=45–59}}</ref>

Also located in the Montmartre district was the artistic salon of [[R-26 (salon)|R-26]], at which Grappelli and Reinhardt performed regularly.<ref>{{cite book|last=Grappelli|first=Stéphane|year=1992|title=Mon Violon Pour Tout Bagage|publisher=Éditions Calmann-Lévy|location=Paris|lang=fr|isbn=2702118550}}{{page needed|date=June 2014}}</ref>

The Quintette du Hot Club de France disbanded in 1939 upon the outbreak of [[World War II]]; Grappelli was in London at the time, and stayed there for the duration of the war. In 1940, jazz pianist [[George Shearing]] made his debut as a sideman in Grappelli's band.