Cole Porter's song combines a quiet tonic pedal with a contrasting minor-coloured middle passage. The inherited chart is a harmonic sketch, so phrasing must be established from the chosen arrangement.
If you study one thing
Keep the tonic pedal calm while the upper harmony moves.
FormContrasting song sections; 25 source cells require duration review
FeelBallad / gentle swing
Meter4/4
MusicCole Porter
Guide coverage11 / 12 sections present
Owner content reviewed — 2026-10-06T18:37:38Z 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.
2 historical recording entries · source text preserved
Entry
Year
Recording / session / release evidence
Listen
01
1936
In The Still Of The Night, 15/10/36, OLA 1294-1,"Fremeaux FA 305, Classics 739 Affinity AFS 1003, JSP 344, EMI 780671-2, Jazz Time 790560-2, Mosaic MD6-190(6 CD Set).", - Paris - Louis Vola (b) replaces Simoens
—
02
1937
In The Still Of The Night, 29/5/37, Fremeaux FA 305," - BBC Jazz Show Programme - Stephane Grappelli (v), Django & Joseph Reinhardt (g), Pierre Ferret (g), Louis Vola (b)."
—
A dash means no video has been associated with this exact historical recording. Tune-level listening resources remain available above.
History & Listening
In The Still Of The Night is credited here to Cole Porter. The source date is 1937; publication, composition and later lyric adaptations may have separate dates. The inherited archive lists 2 recording entries, with dated entries spanning 1936–1937. 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: Cole Porter
Words: Cole Porter
Published / composed / adapted — see history: 1937
Original key: Not established
Study level: Intermediate; advanced where the inherited roadmap needs reconstruction
Melody & head
Allow long vocal phrases to float over the pedal rather than breaking them at each chord symbol.
Listening task: Allow long vocal phrases to float over the pedal rather than breaking them at each chord symbol. Mark the key, pickup, phrase lengths and ending before comparing another version.
Session evidence
In The Still Of The Night, 15/10/36, OLA 1294-1,"Fremeaux FA 305, Classics 739 Affinity AFS 1003, JSP 344, EMI 780671-2, Jazz Time 790560-2, Mosaic MD6-190(6 CD Set).", - Paris - Louis Vola (b) replaces Simoens
Compare the first and last listed entries for tempo, instrumentation and arrangement. Do not infer identical takes from a shared title. Keep the tonic pedal calm while the upper harmony moves.
Session evidence
In The Still Of The Night, 29/5/37, Fremeaux FA 305," - BBC Jazz Show Programme - Stephane Grappelli (v), Django & Joseph Reinhardt (g), Pierre Ferret (g), Louis Vola (b)."
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 alternates with C6 over G, followed by Cm6. The middle material contrasts Bm with G7 before F♯7, E7–Am7 and D7 prepare the return.
The source has 25 cells and inconsistent slash counts; it does not establish a conventional full bar-by-bar chorus. Match phrase lengths to a selected Cole Porter recording.
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. · 4:28
No match is established in the current chart metadata.
Behind the illustration
Owner-selected illustration. A perfectly still midnight window frames a single adult musician and a motionless hanging curtain; only one narrow curving line from the guitar crosses the empty dark space. Night-time intimacy through stillness, no star-filled fantasy.
Original AI-assisted editorial artwork inspired by the tune; not a documented historical scene.
Original AI-assisted illustration created for Djangopedia
In the Still of the Night - The Hot Club of Austin (Homage to Django Reinhardt & Stephane Grappelli)
The Hot Club of Austin
Homage to the 1937 Hot Club of France recording · 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 ensemble homage; no verified standalone note-for-note Django solo claimed.
Start with the chord tones of each written harmony. Lower E to E♭ as C6 becomes Cm6.
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 the opening with a sustained G bass and moving upper thirds. Rehearse the Bm–G7 contrast separately before reconnecting the sections.
Comping & voicings
Keep the opening G bass steady and voice the upper chord changes quietly. Avoid treating every change over the pedal as a new accented downbeat.
Voicing note sets
G: G–B–D; C6/G: G–A–C–E; Cm6: C–E♭–A.
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 a backing track for the unrelated Five Satins song.
Crowding the melody with dense extensions or doubling another accompanist’s register.
Practice room
Start around 60–90 bpm and preserve the full phrase
Your assignment
Play the opening with a sustained G bass and moving upper thirds. Rehearse the Bm–G7 contrast separately before reconnecting the sections.
Loop these changes
Lower E to E♭ as C6 becomes Cm6.
Use A♯ to define F♯7 and resolve it into B.
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
In The Still Of The Night — G major; Contrasting song sections; 25 source cells require duration review. 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.
Contrasting song sections; 25 source cells require duration review. The source has 25 cells and inconsistent slash counts; it does not establish a conventional full bar-by-bar chorus. Match phrase lengths to a selected Cole Porter recording.
Using a backing track for the unrelated Five Satins song.
Arranging the tune
Solo guitar
Start with melody and bass only. Add the following colour without interrupting the melody: Lower E to E♭ as C6 becomes Cm6.
Trio or larger group
Keep the opening G bass steady and voice the upper chord changes quietly. Avoid treating every change over the pedal as a new accented downbeat. 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 pedal-bass accompaniment with root-position changes and decide which best supports the melody's sustained notes.
The source has 25 cells and inconsistent slash counts; it does not establish a conventional full bar-by-bar chorus. Match phrase lengths to a selected Cole Porter recording.
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 AI-assisted illustration created for Djangopedia
Original AI-assisted editorial artwork inspired by the tune; not a documented historical scene.
Generated with the native image-generation tool on 2026-10-26; original editorial artwork, not a historical photograph.
Prompt: Use case: stylized-concept. Create one finished original landscape 1536x1024 (3:2) raster illustration for Djangopedia, tune In The Still Of The Night.
Tune context for interpretation only: In The Still Of The Night is credited here to Cole Porter. The source date is 1937; publication, composition and later lyric adaptations may have separate dates. The inherited archive lists 2 recording entries, with dated entries spanning 1936–1937. 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.
Scene: A perfectly still midnight window frames a single adult musician and a motionless hanging curtain; only one narrow curving line from the guitar crosses the empty dark space. Night-time intimacy through stillness, no star-filled fantasy.
Art direction: Lively late-1930s editorial cartoon screenprint: rhythmic black contours, expressive adult posture, flat separated colour plates and a strong asymmetrical composition. Palette: charcoal, golden yellow, restrained rose and ivory. Subtle dry ink and paper texture, controlled print misregistration. Make it an artwork with a memorable singular idea, readable as a thumbnail and rewarding at full size; vary viewpoint and composition.
Constraints: entirely original composition, not a copy of an artist's print. No title, words, notation, logos or watermark. No photorealism, glossy 3D, gradients, airbrushed romantic haze, generic sunset or decorative hearts. If Django appears, swept-back dark hair, pencil moustache and a distinct mature individual face; period clothes, no ethnic stereotypes. Respect plausible instruments and hands, keep key subjects within frame. Use strong flat ink shapes rather than photorealistic rendering.
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.
