Chart keyE♭ major (inherited chart and documented recording practice)
Form32-bar AABA study form
FeelSwing
Meter4/4
MusicDjango Reinhardt
Guide coverage11 / 12 sections present
Owner content reviewed — 2026-10-15T13:12:32Z 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
1952
Nuit de St.Germain Des Pres, 30/1/52, P 1182 ,"DRG 8473,Musidisc 403222"," - Paris - Django Reinhardt (elg), Roger Guerin (tpt), Hubert Fol (as), Raymond Fol (p), Barney Spieler (b), Pierre Lemarchand (d)"
—
02
1952
Nuit de St.Germain Des Pres, 1952, Vogue 228E 6010," - Paris - Django Reinhardt (elg), Hubert Fol (as), Sadi Lallemand (vib), Maurice Vander (p), Pierre Michelot (b), Pierre Lemarchand (d)"
—
A dash means no video has been associated with this exact historical recording. Tune-level listening resources remain available above.
History & Listening
Nuits de Saint-Germain-des-Prés belongs to Django's late, bebop-facing repertoire. This identity preserves a 30 January 1952 Decca entry, matrix P 1182, and a separate 1952 broadcast row. Django in June recommends learning the E-flat version before exploring G-major performances. The archive also contains a differently spelled Saint-Germaine identity; it is retained untouched rather than silently merged. This guide develops only the requested stable identity.
Tune details
Music: Django Reinhardt
Documented in archive: 1952
Original key: Not established
Study level: Advanced; chromatic movement and brisk melodic articulation
Melody & head
Compare the late Django recording's attack and rhythmic density with a modern acoustic ensemble.
Starting in G when the rhythm section expects E-flat, or treating a general modern solo as Django's transcription.
Compare the late Django recording's attack and rhythmic density with a modern acoustic ensemble.
Session evidence
Nuit de St.Germain Des Pres, 30/1/52, P 1182 ,"DRG 8473,Musidisc 403222"," - Paris - Django Reinhardt (elg), Roger Guerin (tpt), Hubert Fol (as), Raymond Fol (p), Barney Spieler (b), Pierre Lemarchand (d)"
The E-flat study chart contains chromatic minor-chord motion around Fm–F♯m–Gm and a contrasting A-flat area. Hear the chromatic movement as connected voices while keeping the long AABA form intact. The melody deserves slow study before the tune is taken at session speed. Check the video key before playing with the chart.
Chart & Form
The E-flat study chart contains chromatic minor-chord motion around Fm–F♯m–Gm and a contrasting A-flat area. Hear the chromatic movement as connected voices while keeping the long AABA form intact. The melody deserves slow study before the tune is taken at session speed.
Inherited chart and both recording rows preserved. No reliable Django-solo recreation was established; the gap remains.
NUITS DE ST GERMAIN DES PRÈS (SOLO - 200BPM) THE STEPHANE WREMBEL BAND - PLAY ALONG SERIES
Stephane Wrembel
Swing · 200 BPM · 3m18s · Video available when checked; creator-described attribution.
Creator-described gypsy-jazz play-along. Check the key and full arrangement before joining in; the guide chart may use another key. Tempo is the creator’s stated value.
Follow semitone motion between the minor-chord shapes without losing the top voice.
G defines E♭ major; C defines the A-flat area.
Hear the final dominant resolution as the return to the opening phrase.
Pitch choices
Begin with the named chord tones. Add passing notes only after the melody and cadence are secure.
Loop two bars of chromatic movement at half the intended tempo, keeping one fingering position. Then play the full melody slowly and name the bridge entry before increasing speed.
Comping & voicings
Use economical voicings and a light pulse; fast chromatic movement becomes muddy when every chord has six strings. Agree the key before counting in, since G-major versions also circulate.
Voicing note sets
E♭6: E♭–G–B♭–C; A♭6: A♭–C–E♭–F.
Fm: F–A♭–C; F♯m: F♯–A–C♯; Gm: G–B♭–D.
Keep the accompaniment clear
First establish an even pulse; add rhythmic variation only when the melody leaves space.
Starting in G when the rhythm section expects E-flat, or treating a general modern solo as Django's transcription.
Practice room
Start at 100–120; work toward the 200-bpm play-along
Your assignment
Loop two bars of chromatic movement at half the intended tempo, keeping one fingering position. Then play the full melody slowly and name the bridge entry before increasing speed.
Loop these changes
Fm → F♯m → Gm
Bridge in A♭ → final A in E♭
Metronome
Count quarter notes first. Then place the click on beats 2 and 4 at half the click rate, keeping the phrase length unchanged.
Transposition
Move one short cadence to a nearby key by naming its chord tones, then return to the chosen study key.
At the session
E♭ major (inherited chart and documented recording practice); 32-bar AABA study form. Agree the arrangement, pickup and ending before counting in.
Start together
Count a clear tempo and use the final cadence of the agreed arrangement.
Finish together
Cue the final tonic together; agree any tag before starting.
Starting in G when the rhythm section expects E-flat, or treating a general modern solo as Django's transcription.
Starting in G when the rhythm section expects E-flat, or treating a general modern solo as Django's transcription.
Arranging the tune
Solo guitar
Keep the melody uppermost and begin with a single bass note under each harmony. E♭6: E♭–G–B♭–C; A♭6: A♭–C–E♭–F.
Trio or larger group
Use economical voicings and a light pulse; fast chromatic movement becomes muddy when every chord has six strings. Agree the key before counting in, since G-major versions also circulate.
Vocal considerations
No vocal arrangement is prescribed; use the instrumental melody as the phrasing reference.
This player guide combines inherited recording evidence and editorial study notes. Musical study notes are editorial suggestions; compare them with the recording.
Original Djangopedia illustration · AI-assisted, 2026
Original AI-assisted editorial artwork inspired by the tune’s mood. It does not depict a documented historical event.
Generated with the native image-generation tool on 2026-10-15; original editorial artwork, not a historical photograph.
Prompt: Original Djangopedia jazz-guide illustration for Nuit de Saint-Germain-des-Prés. Landscape 1536x1024 3:2. Evocative 1950s Paris night street seen diagonally: angular tall buildings, glowing basement jazz-club windows with tiny musicians, a lone figure carrying a guitar case past an amber streetlamp, rainlike geometric reflections. Focus on architecture and atmosphere, not portraits. Broad Art Deco and mid-century modern print design, flat deep navy, soft violet, muted turquoise, mustard and warm cream, bold angular silhouettes, fine vintage paper grain. Lively but balanced spatial rhythm, no photographic realism, no documented-event claim. Original composition, no particular artist imitation, no text, lettering, logos, readable signs or watermark.
Research & rights notes
Composition date is not asserted; 1952 is the recorded evidence.
No sufficiently supported Django-solo study video found in this bounded search.
The alternate Saint-Germaine archive identity remains separate.
Original composition/recording rights not independently cleared. Video metadata and musical suitability are separate checks.
Angelo DeBarre - Nuit De Saint Germain Des Pres (Dutch TV)kapitanswingVideo available when checked; creator-described attribution.Performer attribution follows the video title and channel description. Proposed listening selection; no popularity ranking implied.✓ Featured
Nuits de St Germain des près // GYPSY GALAXYBob FeVideo available when checked; creator-described attribution.Performer attribution follows the video title and channel description. Proposed listening selection; no popularity ranking implied.Select video