A sequence of descending major centres makes this tune a clear test of harmonic hearing. The two halves begin alike and return home differently, so the turnaround deserves as much attention as the opening.
Owner content reviewed — 2026-10-06T18:37:04Z 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
✓ Illustration
✓ 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
1944
How High The Moon, Dec.1944, ST 1227-2 ,"Fremeaux FA 312, Classics 945 "," - Paris - Jazz Club Mystery Hot Band - Bernie Previn (tpt), Peanuts Hucko (cl,ts), Mel Powell (p), Django Reinhardt (g),Josz Schulman (b), Ray McKinley (d)"
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02
1947
How High The Moon, 26/3/47, OSW 450-1 ,"Fremeaux FA 313, Classics 1001, Jazz Time 789103-2, Mosaic MD6-190(6 CD Set)."," - Paris - QHCF - Stephane Grappelly (v), Django & Joseph Reinhardt, Jean Ferret (g), Emmanuel Soudieux (b)"
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03
1947
How High The Moon, 21/11/47, "Fremeaux FA 315, Vogue 228E 6008, Vogue 668003-3, Collectables CD 7139", RTF Broadcast
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04
1947
How High The Moon, Nov. 1947, "Fremeaux FA 315, Vogue 228E 6009, Vogue 600121", RTF Broadcast
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05
1949
How High The Moon, Jan-Feb 1949, BL 110,"Fremeaux FA 317, BGO CD 198"," - Rome - Django Reinhardt (g), Stephane Grappelly (v),Gianni Safred (p), Carlo Pecori (b), Aurelio de Carolis (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
How High The Moon is credited here to Morgan Lewis. The source date is 1940; publication, composition and later lyric adaptations may have separate dates. The inherited archive lists 5 recording entries, with dated entries spanning 1944–1949. These are archive rows, not a claim that every entry is a distinct released take. The linked recording rows preserve the original discographical wording. Compare their dates, matrices and personnel when choosing a performance to study.
Tune details
Music: Morgan Lewis
Words: Nancy Hamilton
Published / composed / adapted — see history: 1940
Original key: Not established
Study level: Intermediate; advanced where the inherited roadmap needs reconstruction
Melody & head
Retain long melody notes over the moving harmony; avoid making the head sound like an exercise in arpeggios.
Listening task: Retain long melody notes over the moving harmony; avoid making the head sound like an exercise in arpeggios. Mark the key, pickup, phrase lengths and ending before comparing another version.
Session evidence
How High The Moon, Dec.1944, ST 1227-2 ,"Fremeaux FA 312, Classics 945 "," - Paris - Jazz Club Mystery Hot Band - Bernie Previn (tpt), Peanuts Hucko (cl,ts), Mel Powell (p), Django Reinhardt (g),Josz Schulman (b), Ray McKinley (d)"
Compare the first and last listed entries for tempo, instrumentation and arrangement. Do not infer identical takes from a shared title. Hear G, F and E♭ as destinations.
Session evidence
How High The Moon, Jan-Feb 1949, BL 110,"Fremeaux FA 317, BGO CD 198"," - Rome - Django Reinhardt (g), Stephane Grappelly (v),Gianni Safred (p), Carlo Pecori (b), Aurelio de Carolis (d)."
The inherited chart is in G major. Confirm the backing track’s sounding key, pickup and complete form before playing; an instrument label may describe a transposed score.
Chart & Form
G major turns into Gm7–C7 to reach F, which then becomes Fm7–B♭7 to reach E♭. The route back through Am7–D7 must distinguish the first and second endings.
Chord symbols and source cell divisions are preserved from Djangopedia. Slashes mark rhythm; 0 is inherited diminished notation whose exact voicing should be checked against the melody. This is a chord reference, not a melody transcription.
How High The Moon (210 bpm) - Gypsy jazz Backing track / Jazz manouche
Guitare Improvisation
210 BPM · 5:07 · Owner-approved study selection. YouTube identity and player availability checked 6 October 2026; musical accuracy and exact take not independently certified.
Owner selected 6 October 2026. Preferred practice resource; confirm its sounding key and full form before playing.
Transcription: Django Reinhardt - How High the Moon
Robin Willems
Owner-approved study selection. YouTube identity and player availability checked 6 October 2026; musical accuracy and exact take not independently certified.
Owner selected 6 October 2026. Django transcription/score study; a new played recreation is not demonstrated.
A small high moon sits above three broad descending landscape terraces, each catching a different cool light; a fine ribbon links the terraces and splits into two related returns. The descending major centres, not literal altitude, govern the composition.
An original editorial interpretation of the tune. This is an illustration, not an archival photograph or a documented reconstruction of a recording session.
Original Djangopedia illustration · AI-assisted, 2026
Start with the chord tones of each written harmony. Lower B to B♭ when G becomes Gm7.
Use passing notes only after the destination chord and phrase length are secure; this guide does not assign one scale indiscriminately to the whole tune.
Play only each major tonic’s third, then add the preceding ii–V. Sing B, A and G as the centres descend G–F–E♭.
Comping & voicings
Keep the major seventh sonorities open and the ii–V chords compact. Announce each new major centre with voice leading rather than volume.
Voicing note sets
Gmaj7: G–B–F♯; Gm7: G–B♭–F; C7: C–E–B♭.
Keep the accompaniment clear
Keep a quiet, even swing pulse, adjusting its density to the melody and ensemble.
Practise one chorus with only two chord attacks per bar, then restore four without changing tempo.
Using the first half’s G-minor detour at the final ending.
Crowding the melody with dense extensions or doubling another accompanist’s register.
Practice room
Start around 100–140 bpm; increase only after the form stays secure
Your assignment
Play only each major tonic’s third, then add the preceding ii–V. Sing B, A and G as the centres descend G–F–E♭.
Loop these changes
Lower B to B♭ when G becomes Gm7.
Lower A to A♭ when F becomes Fm7.
Resolve C–B across D7–G.
Metronome
Begin with four quarter-note clicks. Halve the click rate and hear beats 2 and 4 while maintaining the same phrase lengths.
Transposition
Transpose the first complete phrase up a whole step, including its cadence. Name chord functions before finding new fingerings.
Return to G major and play the melodic phrase from memory.
At the session
How High The Moon — G major; 32 bars, two related 16-bar halves. Agree the pickup, tempo and ending before counting in.
Start together
Suggested rehearsal entry: give two clear bars of count-in and start the agreed pickup or first melody note. This is not claimed as a historical Django introduction.
Finish together
Agree a final melody statement and hold its tonic arrival; remove any turnaround intended to restart the chorus. Check the chosen arrangement for tags or a separate coda.
32 bars, two related 16-bar halves. Keep the head and solo chorus lengths explicit at the count-in.
Using the first half’s G-minor detour at the final ending.
Arranging the tune
Solo guitar
Start with melody and bass only. Add the following colour without interrupting the melody: Lower B to B♭ when G becomes Gm7.
Trio or larger group
Keep the major seventh sonorities open and the ii–V chords compact. Announce each new major centre with voice leading rather than volume. Agree the full roadmap and signal the last head before it starts.
Vocal considerations
Choose a comfortable vocal key and transpose the whole arrangement, including its introduction and ending.
Further study
Compare a melody-led chorus with a continuous eighth-note chorus. Both should reveal the same three major centres without accompaniment.
Chord symbols and source cell divisions are preserved from Djangopedia. Slashes mark rhythm; 0 is inherited diminished notation whose exact voicing should be checked against the melody. This is a chord reference, not a melody transcription.
Compare the linked archive entries before attributing one arrangement to all Django performances. Keep composition history separate from the dates of Django’s recordings.
This player guide combines inherited recording evidence and editorial study notes. Musical study notes are editorial suggestions; compare them with the recording.
Photo identification and provenance; reuse rights remain unverified
Illustration credit & provenance
Original Djangopedia illustration · AI-assisted, 2026
An original editorial interpretation of the tune. This is an illustration, not an archival photograph or a documented reconstruction of a recording session.
Generated with the native image-generation tool on 2026-10-08; original editorial artwork, not a historical photograph.
Prompt: Use case: illustration-story. One original editorial feature illustration for Djangopedia's guide “How High The Moon”. Landscape 1536 × 1024, opaque background.
Scene: A small high moon sits above three broad descending landscape terraces, each catching a different cool light; a fine ribbon links the terraces and splits into two related returns. The descending major centres, not literal altitude, govern the composition.
Musical basis from the guide: A sequence of descending major centres makes this tune a clear test of harmonic hearing. The two halves begin alike and return home differently, so the turnaround deserves as much attention as the opening. The supplied chart is G major; form: 32 bars, two related 16-bar halves; feel: Swing. These describe musical inspiration, not visible writing. Historical context: How High The Moon is credited here to Morgan Lewis. The source date is 1940; publication, composition and later lyric adaptations may have separate dates. Do not illustrate disputed historical claims or suggest this imagined scene is an archival session.
Medium: cut-paper collage. Dominant palette: indigo pale blue and silver. Composition: descending terraces under small moon. Human presence: none. Strong intentional design, clearly drawn/painted, distinctive material marks; keep essential subject safely within the central 70 percent width and middle 80 percent height for card crops. Maintain enough visual substance at thumbnail size.
Broad inspiration observed in old photo, ONLY scale/rhythm and never a reference image: two figures; wide light field; triangular grouping. Independently invent every pose, perspective, clothing, setting and lighting.
Avoid: No musician portrait, moon face, generic centered moon poster. No photorealism, archival simulation, generated text, letters, numbers, labels, fake musical notation, logo, signature, watermark, fake dates, yellowed-paper patina, recognizable artwork or copied photograph. No imitation of any named artist. Render the art edge to edge without borders, mockup or typography.
Research & rights notes
Specialist review of original editorial playing advice
Original key and precise composition date where not independently established
Inherited notation, session details and arrangement variants
Photograph reuse permissions
Photograph provenance and rights are stated separately. Attribution does not establish permission.
How High The Moon (210 bpm) - Gypsy jazz Backing track / Jazz manoucheGuitare Improvisation210 BPM · 5:07 · Owner-approved study selection. YouTube identity and player availability checked 6 October 2026; musical accuracy and exact take not independently certified.Owner selected 6 October 2026. Preferred practice resource; confirm its sounding key and full form before playing.✓ Featured
How High the Moon Backing TracksaxsolosThe inherited chart is in G major. Confirm the backing track’s sounding key, pickup and complete form before playing; an instrument label may describe a transposed score. · 7:20Select video
How High The Moon ⎮ Joscho Stephan TrioJoscho Stephan Trio · Joscho StephanArtist-channel trio performance · YouTube title, uploader metadata and player availability checked 6 October 2026. Independent interpretation; proposed order awaits owner decision. No full-video musical audition claimed.Stage 4N private performance. Performed intro, theme, solo and bass feature; optional online lesson promotion.✓ Featured
Gypsy Jazz Duets: 'How High The Moon' - Tim Kliphuis & Paulus SchäferTim Kliphuis and Paulus Schäfer · Tim KliphuisIn Conversation, artist-channel violin/guitar duet · YouTube title, uploader metadata and player availability checked 6 October 2026. Independent interpretation; proposed order awaits owner decision. No full-video musical audition claimed.Stage 4N private performance. Independent interpretation; recording date unspecified.Select video
How High The Moon | Jonny Hepbir Quartet | UK & International Gypsy Jazz Band HireJonny Hepbir Quartet · Jonny Hepbir Trio2014 · Pangdean Barn, November 2014 · YouTube title, uploader metadata and player availability checked 6 October 2026. Independent interpretation; proposed order awaits owner decision. No full-video musical audition claimed.Stage 4N private performance. Artist-channel live quartet.Select video
"How High The Moon" gypsy jazz (Eva Scholten, vocals)Eva Scholten, Adrian Holovaty and Arnoud van den Berg · Adrian HolovatyArtist-channel vocal/guitar/bass arrangement · YouTube title, uploader metadata and player availability checked 6 October 2026. Independent interpretation; proposed order awaits owner decision. No full-video musical audition claimed.Stage 4N private performance. Vocal arrangement is a tribute to Les Paul/Mary Ford, not a performed study of Django’s solo.Select video
Gypsy Swing Quintett: How high the moon, live at the Jazzclub Brunssum (Holland)1992Gypsy Swing Quintett · rogermoreno561992 · Jazzclub Brunssum, Netherlands, 1992 · YouTube title, uploader metadata and player availability checked 6 October 2026. Independent interpretation; proposed order awaits owner decision. No full-video musical audition claimed.Stage 4N private performance. Roger Moreno violin; Tsjawo and Moro Adell, Mani Weiss guitars; Guus Pisters bass.Select video