The most famous violinist and veteran of European jazz; Stéphane Grappelli was born in Paris on January 25, 1908, and died there on December 1, 1997. Played swing and modern jazz styles. In fact, he was an epochal and contemporary witness to the evolution of jazz throughout the 20^th century.

The musician was born into an Italian family. After the death of his mother and the mobilization of his father for the First World War, he was brought up in an orphanage for several years. In 1918, Ernesto Grappelli returned to Paris and took his son out of the orphanage. The boy dreamed of studying music, and when he turned 12, his father bought a violin, pawning his suit. For some time Stephan practiced on his own, watching street musicians play, but soon he was enrolled in the Paris Conservatory, where he successfully studied music theory. During his studies, he continued to perform in the streets of Montmartre, worked as a hired pianist in movie theaters, and learned to play the saxophone and accordion.

Stephane Grappelli was one of the first violinists to play jazz compositions. His swinging, bright solos and attractive, lush tone of sound had a huge influence on the development of string jazz.

Appearing on the Paris professional scene for the first time in 1934 with the one-of-a-kind guitarist Django Reinhardt and their quintet “Hot Club of France”, Grappelli remained with the group until 1939. (He also played piano during the famous Paris session of Reinhardt and Coleman Hawkins in 1937).  In 1935, a small record company, Ultraphon, issued the first run of the quintet's record and the group gained international recognition. On the recording, the rhythm is led by double bass and two rhythm guitars (there were no drums in the ensemble); young violinist Stephane Grappelli and gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt take turns soloing.

After the outbreak of war, Grappelli lived mainly in England, where he played with the pianist George Shearing. In 1946, he returned to France, resumed his collaboration with Reinhardt and worked with him in Paris (1947-1948) and Rome (1949). Stephane later appeared on stage with the eminent violinists Staff Smith and Joe Venuti. They were called “the big pre-Bebop trio”. The discography of the violinist includes the album of the trio “Violins No End” (1957). Grappelli participated in recordings of various line-ups of musicians. He recorded thirteen albums with the British guitarists Diz Disley and Martin Taylor, and several albums with the famous Indian violinist Subramaniam. He also played with Duke Ellington.

The 1969^th marked the beginning of a new upsurge in the musical career of Stephane. At the same period the violinist released the album “Venupelli Blues”. In 1971, Stéphane Grappelli was invited to a BBC talk show, where he made an important acquaintance with the popular American classical violinist Yehudi Menuhin. A little later, the “wisest musician of the century” and the French self-educated violinist jointly recorded three albums (one was released under the license in Russia at the Melodiya in 1980). The hour of triumph for Grappelli was his performance during the Cambridge Folk Music Festival in 1973, accompanied by Diz Disley and Danny Wright.  In the spring of 1974, Grappelli performed at Carnegie Hall in New York.

In 1975, Grappelli, who happened to be in the same studio with the “Pink Floyd” musicians, recorded several violin passages for the title track of the album “Wish You Were Here”. However, the violin was not included in the final version; hence on November 4, 2011, the recording was released in special editions of the album as a part of the “Why Pink Floyd?” campaign.
In the 1980s, several concerts were given with the young British cellist Julian Lloyd Webber (the composer's brother). The superb skill of Stephane Grappelli, combined with the authentic Gallic wit, elegance of performing and fine taste, gave his art a unique charm that made him instantly recognizable and distinguishable from other jazz violinists.

Being one of the greatest violinists of all time, Stéphane Grappelli lived quite a long life and managed to leave his deep mark in the world of jazz. At the age of 87, he released the album “Live At The Blue Note” in New York.

In the last year of his life, Stéphane Grappelli was awarded The National Order of the Legion of Honour by the French President Jacques Chirac. In 1997, the violinist received the Grammy Award for Lifetime Achievements.
On December 1, 1997, Stephane Grappelli died and was buried in Père Lachaise cemetery in Paris. It is no exaggeration to say that the musician gave the world of jazz music the sound of the violin.