‘I always try to be as relaxed as possible when playing as it makes the music flow better.’

Ahead of his trio hitting the stage at Steamin’ Jazz Club later this month (17th September), I chatted with London Django Collective co-founder, arranger, and guitarist Harry Diplock about the groups beginnings, contrasting playing styles, and musically memorable moments.

How did the London Django Collective come about?
Fellow co-founder Matt Holborn and I had just come back from a crazy weekend doing 11 gigs over 3 days (!) as part of Cork Jazz Festival and wanted to start a new project that showcased the great scene of gypsy jazz that was in London at the time.  London is an ever-changing place where people come and go and we thought a collective would suit this perfectly.

What drew you to focus on gypsy jazz as opposed to other sub genres of jazz?
I grew up with flamenco and folk and I’ve always loved the acoustic guitar.  The sound of the Selmer guitar is very unique and the mixture that Django had of Jazz, Folk and traditional gypsy music stood out for me.

How are you connected to Swing from Paris who run Steamin’ Jazz Club?
I remember seeing Swing from Paris at the International Gypsy Guitar Festival IGGF many many years ago when I was first getting into the music.  Over the years I’ve chatted to Andy Bowen about guitars and gypsy jazz and Fenner was of course kind enough to ask us to play at Steamin’ Jazz Club! Get your tickets here.

‘I love to tinker with gear and set ups and am always trying to get the most out of my instruments.’

You’ve performed in a range of larger and more intimate venues, which setting do you most prefer and why?
Either can be great it really depends but if I had to choose probably an intimate venue as we can play as acoustic as possible and it feels easier to connect with everyone. The most important thing for me is whether the audience are up for the music and if they are then it’s always going to be a great gig!

Having travelled around, how do you feel the London jazz scene differs to that in other areas of the country where you have performed?
I do feel it’s more intense than other parts of the UK (both positive and negative). There’s a higher concentration of musicians trying to do the same thing and the cost of living is so high that it puts a lot of pressure on everyone but the result is that it’s a great meeting place for people that are truly into the music.

I understand you’re a maker of guitars as well an instrumentalist. How does this impact your playing and arranging styles?
I can’t really say I’m a guitar maker per se as I’ve only made 3 and a half guitars in the past 10 years! But I would love to get back into it in the future.  I love the Selmer style acoustic guitar, made famous by Django Reinhardt and think its wholly underused in jazz in general. I love the idea of playing more contemporary music in an acoustic trio of two guitars and double bass but with these specific guitars. I also love to tinker with gear and set ups and am always trying to get the most out of my instruments.

And linked with this, how does the way you voice harmonies and melodies alter across the different ensembles you work with?
I definitely play differently depending on the style and what guitar I’m playing. The Selmer guitar has a high action and requires a certain rest stroke technique whereas playing electric you can do whatever works to get a good sound. Django was a master of strong melody and was inspired by jazz greats like Louis Armstrong, he was also influenced by modern music at the time and I really like that ethos!

Other than Django Reinhardt, which other musicians are you inspired by?
Guitarists there’s too many! Definitely Pat Metheny, Allan Holdsworth, Lenny Breau, Bireli Lagrene, Ralph Towner… outside of guitar Keith Jarret, John Coltrane, Meshuggah, Jaco Pastorius, Aphex Twin

You appear to have a very relaxed style when performing live. How do you feel this impacts the way you connect with your audience?
I’m glad to hear that! I always try to be as relaxed as possible when playing as it makes the music flow better.  Same goes for presenting a concert, I try to let the audience into our world by talking a bit about the music and our influences.

‘Intimate venues allow us to play as acoustically as possible and connect with everyone there.’

What does one of your recording sessions normally look like?
We have one coming up this December at lightship 95, a studio on a boat on the Thames. Amazing place – 2 days in the studio recording and then 2 days mixing. Lots of cups of tea. We’ve done about 20 gigs so far this year with this new trio so we’ll go in and do what we’ve been doing recently on the gigs and hopefully something exciting will happen! We’ve got a new album coming out in 2026!

What is the most important factor when choosing the fellow musicians to work with?
That they are listening, have a sense of musicality, and individualism. That we get on well also helps!

What was the first musical encounter that you remember and what made this stay in your mind?
Listening to ‘Take me I’m yours’ by Squeeze in my Parents living room when I was about 6. Loved the bass line and the guitar at the beginning.

And finally, where can people see you performing during the rest of 2025?
We’re at Duc des Lombards in Paris on 24^th September, the Nutshell Theatre in Winchester on 20^th November, the Hum in London on 28^th November and the Hunter Club in Suffolk on 29^th November.

Thanks Harry Diplock for chatting with Listen to Discover