A compact minor-key conversation between guitar, violin and rhythm section. The familiar introduction and ending frame a 16-bar improvising chorus; the main challenge is making those repeated changes tell a story.
If you study one thing
Make the E7 resolution audible without increasing the number of notes.
William P. Gottlieb / Library of Congress / restoration by Adam Cuerden Aquarium, New York, N.Y. · circa November 1946 · Photo credits
Chart keyA minor
Form16-bar solo chorus; separate intro and ending
FeelSwing
Meter4/4
MusicDjango Reinhardt, Stéphane Grappelli
Guide coverage12 / 12 sections present
Owner content reviewed — 2026-10-04T23:08:17Z by admin. Coverage measures presence, not accuracy. Content review does not certify rights or musical perfection.
See what is here and what is missing
✓ Recording evidence
✓ Key & form
✓ Chart
✓ History
✓ Playing notes
✓ Practice plan
✓ Backing track
✓ Django recording
✓ Django solo study aid
✓ Photograph
✓ Sources
✓ Difficulty
Django's Recordings
Django recordings for this tune. Uploader dates and take labels remain source claims; only an evidenced exact association enables a row’s Listen control.
5 historical recording entries · source text preserved
Entry
Year
Recording / session / release evidence
Listen
01
1937
Minor Swing, 25/11/37, OLA 1990-1, Fremeaux 306, Classics 762, Jazz Time 790560-2, EMI 780671-2, Suisa JZCD 376, Conifer HD 206, Jazz Archives ZET 752, Blue Note CDP 7243837138-2, Mosaic MD6-190(6 CD Set). Paris - QHCF - Stephane Grappelly (v), Django Reinhardt, Joseph Reinhardt, Eugene Vees (g), Louis Vola (b)
—
02
1947
Minor Swing, 29/8/47, Fremeaux FA 314, Classics 1046, Vogue 228E 6006, Vogue 668003-2, Legacy 411("Swinging Down") - Paris - Souvenirs de Django - Django Reinhardt (elg), Maurice Meunier (cl), Eugene Vees (g),Emmanuel Soudieux (b), Andre Jourdan (d)
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03
1948
Minor Swing, Dec 1948, Fremeaux FA 316, Vogue 228E 6009, RCA 74321 237692 - Concert in Brussels - Hubert Rostaing (cl), Django Reinhardt (g), Henri "Louson" Baumgartner (g), Louis Vola (b), Arthur Motta (d)
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04
1949
Minor Swing, Jan-Feb 1949, CW 40, Fremeaux FA 317, RCA ND 70929-2, RCA ND 90448 - Rome - Django Reinhardt (g), Stephane Grappelly (v),Gianni Safred (p), Carlo Pecori (b), Aurelio de Carolis (d)
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05
1950
Minor Swing, 1950, BL102, Fremeaux FA 318, BGO CD 198, Jazz Time 827447-2 - Rome - Django Reinhardt (elg), Andre Ekyan (as,cl), Ralph Schecroun (p), Alf Masselier (b), Roger Paraboschi (d)
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A dash means no video has been associated with this exact historical recording. Tune-level listening resources remain available above.
History & Listening
The legacy discography begins with the Paris session of 25 November 1937, matrix OLA 1990-1. Later entries document different ensembles and electric-guitar settings. The original page’s description of the harmony as II–IV–I is misleading: the main centres are tonic minor, subdominant minor and dominant seventh.
Tune details
Music: Django Reinhardt, Stéphane Grappelli
Published / composed: 1937
Original key: Not established
Study level: Accessible harmony; intermediate phrasing
Melody & head
Learn the composed opening and final answer as an ensemble arrangement.
Separate the intro from the 16-bar solo form; sing the bass movement without a chart.
Listening task: Learn the composed opening and final answer as an ensemble arrangement. Count the head before comparing solo choruses.
Session evidence
Minor Swing, 25/11/37, OLA 1990-1, Fremeaux 306, Classics 762, Jazz Time 790560-2, EMI 780671-2, Suisa JZCD 376, Conifer HD 206, Jazz Archives ZET 752, Blue Note CDP 7243837138-2, Mosaic MD6-190(6 CD Set). Paris - QHCF - Stephane Grappelly (v), Django Reinhardt, Joseph Reinhardt, Eugene Vees (g), Louis Vola (b)
Compare the tempo, key, introduction and final cadence with the first entry. Make the E7 resolution audible without increasing the number of notes.
Session evidence
Minor Swing, 1950, BL102, Fremeaux FA 318, BGO CD 198, Jazz Time 827447-2 - Rome - Django Reinhardt (elg), Andre Ekyan (as,cl), Ralph Schecroun (p), Alf Masselier (b), Roger Paraboschi (d)
Count its form and check its key before joining in. Hear Am as home, Dm as the departure and E7 as the return signal. The A7 that can lead into Dm is a local dominant, not evidence that the tune has changed to A major.
Chart & Form
Hear Am as home, Dm as the departure and E7 as the return signal. The A7 that can lead into Dm is a local dominant, not evidence that the tune has changed to A major.
Chord symbols follow the inherited Djangopedia chart. Slashes are rhythmic marks; chord quality and turnaround choices may differ from the backing track. This is a chord reference, not a melody transcription.
Django Reinhardt - Minor Swing 1949 (Solo Transcription)
Nils Frechilla
source-described; accuracy not independently verified
Creator presents a study of Django’s recorded solo. Use it alongside the original recording; exact transcription accuracy has not been independently reviewed.
Chosen as a view of Django from circa November 1946, to place the study beside his changing performing life. The closest dated recording entry here is 1947. This is an editorial pairing; the photograph is not claimed to depict a performance or session of this tune.
Part of William P. Gottlieb’s documented Aquarium photographs in New York, circa November 1946. The catalogue supplies the location and approximate date; this is not evidence of a particular tune being played.
Over Am6, outline A–C–E–F♯; the sixth is colour, not an obligation.
Over Dm, make F audible; over E7, let G♯ resolve into A.
Try C→C♯→D when a passing A7 leads to Dm.
Pitch choices
A minor chord tones for the tonic; A harmonic minor around E7.
Use chromatic approaches to a chosen chord tone instead of running one scale through the chorus.
Play three choruses: roots only, then thirds only, then a two-bar motif with a full bar of silence after each answer. Record the result and check whether the Dm arrival remains audible without accompaniment.
Comping & voicings
Use compact Am6, Dm6 and E7 shapes with even, short releases. Coordinate the volume of beats two and four with the rhythm guitarist rather than adding a second backbeat.
Voicing note sets
Am6: A–C–F♯; Dm6: D–F–B; E7: E–G♯–D.
Move upper voices by a semitone into the next chord wherever possible.
Keep the accompaniment clear
Start with a quiet, even pulse. Leave an entire phrase unfilled and listen to how the melody breathes.
Starting the solo chorus at the wrong point after the arranged intro.
Adding dense extensions that obscure the melody or duplicate the pianist’s register.
Practice room
Start at 100–120; build toward 160–200 bpm
Your assignment
Play three choruses: roots only, then thirds only, then a two-bar motif with a full bar of silence after each answer. Record the result and check whether the Dm arrival remains audible without accompaniment.
Loop these changes
A7 → Dm
E7 → Am
Bars 9–16 into the top
Metronome
Start below the suggested tempo. First hear four quarter-note clicks, then halve the click rate and place clicks on beats 2 and 4. Keep the same phrase length.
Transposition
Move A7 → Dm up one whole step by naming each chord’s function before finding a guitar shape.
Return to A minor and play the original melody without the chart.
At the session
Minor Swing — A minor; 16-bar solo chorus; separate intro and ending. Agree the tempo, pickup, solo order and ending before the count.
Start together
Use the recorded guitar/violin opening only if everyone knows its length; otherwise agree on a two-bar count-in.
Finish together
Cue the composed ending ahead of the last chorus; a final Am6 is the simpler agreed alternative.
Let guitar and violin divide the opening responses, then leave the soloist room. Decide the coda cue before the first count.
Starting the solo chorus at the wrong point after the arranged intro.
Arranging the tune
Solo guitar
Alternate the short opening melody with low Am6 and Dm6 responses; keep the bass sparse enough to preserve the pulse.
Trio or larger group
Let guitar and violin divide the opening responses, then leave the soloist room. Decide the coda cue before the first count.
Vocal considerations
This guide studies an instrumental arrangement. Any later lyric adaptation requires its own credit and chosen key.
Further study
Compare minor-sixth tonic voicings with plain minor triads. Hear how F♯ creates motion toward E7 without requiring a scale change on every beat.
Chord symbols follow the inherited Djangopedia chart. Slashes are rhythmic marks; chord quality and turnaround choices may differ from the backing track. This is a chord reference, not a melody transcription.
Compare the session evidence below before attributing one arrangement to every Django performance. The legacy discography begins with the Paris session of 25 November 1937, matrix OLA 1990-1. Later entries document different ensembles and electric-guitar settings. The original page’s description of the harmony as II–IV–I is misleading: the main centres are tonic minor, subdominant minor and dominant seventh.
This player guide combines inherited recording evidence and editorial study notes. Musical study notes are editorial suggestions; compare them with the recording.
Minor Swing (160 bpm) (Old Style) - Gypsy jazz Backing track / Jazz manoucheGuitare Improvisation5:09✓ Featured
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Minor Swing - Backing trackMusic School Grudziadz2:46Select video
Django Reinhardt - Minor Swing 1949 (Solo Transcription)Nils Frechillasource-described; accuracy not independently verifiedCreator presents a study of Django’s recorded solo. Use it alongside the original recording; exact transcription accuracy has not been independently reviewed.✓ Featured
Minor Swing Django Solo + TabSébastien Dorotte · Gypsy Jazz Manouche - Sébastien DorotteOwner requested this resource; watch page identity and availability checked 2026-10-05.Owner-selected Minor Swing solo transcription with tab.Select video
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PARIS jazz SESSIONS - "Minor Swing" (D. Reinhardt) Feat Hugo Guezbar & Giacomo SmithHugo Guezbar, Giacomo Smith and Paris jazz Sessions ensemble · Edouard PennesLive in Paris · Source title/description and available watch page checked 2026-10-05; independent performance; owner accuracy not independently verified.Clarinet and acoustic guitars; source credits Rémi Oswald, Julien Cattiaux and Edouard Pennes.Select video
Minor Swing - Peter Beets live at the Django Reinhard NY FestivalPeter Beets and Django Reinhardt NY Festival ensemble · Peter Beets2004 · Birdland, New York · Source title/description and available watch page checked 2026-10-05; independent performance; owner accuracy not independently verified.Piano-led festival interpretation; source's guest roster is not treated as verified personnel on this particular track.Select video
Joscho Stephan quintet - Minor swing live 2021!Joscho Stephan Quintet · Jazz Club Hannover by Gartenheim2021 · Hannover summer concert · Source title/description and available watch page checked 2026-10-05; independent performance; owner accuracy not independently verified.Three-guitar setting with Fredi Gebhard, Sven Jungbeck, Thimo Niesterok and Volker Kamp.Select video
Minor Swing (Django Reinhardt) played by Joscho Stephan Trio & Matthias StruckenJoscho Stephan Trio with Matthias Strucken · Jazz Club Hannover by GartenheimJazz Club Hannover by Gartenheim · Source title/description and available watch page checked 2026-10-05; independent performance; owner accuracy not independently verified.Contrasting concert ensemble; upload date not used as performance date.Select video