A lively standard whose opening waits on the dominant before releasing into the tonic. Long harmonic spans reward rhythmic invention; the contrasting later phrases need a clear sense of direction.
If you study one thing
Let the long dominant create expectation before the tonic answer.
Form32-bar chorus; two opening eight-bar phrases and a contrasting second half
FeelSwing
Meter4/4
MusicVincent Rose, Al Jolson (credited co-writer)
Guide coverage12 / 12 sections present
Owner content reviewed — 2026-10-04T11:50:35Z 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
1935
Avalon, 2/3/35, OLA 347-1 ,"Fremeaux FA 302, JSP 344, Conifer CDHD 230, EMI JazzTime 251277-2"," - Paris - Coleman Hawkins (ts), Michel Warlop & Orchestra featuring Django Reinhardt (g)."
—
02
1935
Avalon, July 1935, P 77434 ,"Fremeaux FA 303, Classics 727, JSP 341, Vogue 668003-1, Conifer HD 165"," - QHCF+ - Arthur Briggs, Alphonse Cox, Pierre Allier (tpt), Eugene d'Hellemes (tbn), Stephane Grappelly (v), Django Reinhardt (g), Joseph Reinhardt, Roger Chaput (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
Avalon was published in 1920 with credits associated with Vincent Rose, Al Jolson and Buddy DeSylva. Djangopedia’s first listed Django session is 2 March 1935 with Coleman Hawkins and Michel Warlop’s orchestra. It is the early jazz standard, not the later Roxy Music song.
Tune details
Music: Vincent Rose, Al Jolson (credited co-writer)
Words: Buddy DeSylva
Published / composed: 1920
Original key: Not established
Study level: Intermediate harmony; advanced at fast tempos
Melody & head
Place the melody’s pickup before increasing tempo.
Preserve the phrase endings when simplifying fast passages.
Compare the tempo, key, introduction and final cadence with the first entry. Let the long dominant create expectation before the tonic answer.
Session evidence
Avalon, July 1935, P 77434 ,"Fremeaux FA 303, Classics 727, JSP 341, Vogue 668003-1, Conifer HD 165"," - QHCF+ - Arthur Briggs, Alphonse Cox, Pierre Allier (tpt), Eugene d'Hellemes (tbn), Stephane Grappelly (v), Django Reinhardt (g), Joseph Reinhardt, Roger Chaput (g), Louis Vola (b)."
Count its form and check its key before joining in. C7 opens the first two phrases before F answers. D7 then leads toward G minor; B♭ minor supplies a darker colour before the final return through Gm–C7–F.
Chart & Form
C7 opens the first two phrases before F answers. D7 then leads toward G minor; B♭ minor supplies a darker colour before the final return through Gm–C7–F.
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.
Highest displayed view count among matching backing-track videos returned by relevance and view-count YouTube searches. Not a complete platform-wide ranking.
Performed studies, transcriptions, TAB, notation and lessons for studying Django’s solo. Resources are described by their creator; inclusion does not certify note-for-note accuracy.
Alex Wirtz · 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.
Checked 2026-10-02
Similar tunes
Follow a shared key, a harmonic idea or a familiar form. Keys refer to this site’s chart editions; other recordings may use a different key.
Related chord movement
No sufficiently supported harmonic comparison has been added yet.
An imaginary island harbour opens beyond a long shaded pier; a distant guitarist stands at the pier end while bright open water answers the long dark approach. The island is a title metaphor and the approach/release expresses dominant-to-tonic expectancy.
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
Local minor chord tones over Gm and B♭m; avoid a continuous F-major scale through D7.
Use one rhythmic figure for four bars of C7, answer it on F, then repeat the process with fewer notes at a faster tempo.
Comping & voicings
Keep long C7 spans even and relaxed. A small change of inversion can provide motion without making the soloist hear a new chord every beat.
Voicing note sets
C7: C–E–B♭; F6: F–A–D.
D7: D–F♯–C; Gm6: G–B♭–E; B♭m: B♭–D♭–F.
Keep the accompaniment clear
Start with a quiet, even pulse. Leave an entire phrase unfilled and listen to how the melody breathes.
Mistaking the opening C7 for the tonic or losing the long chord durations at speed.
Adding dense extensions that obscure the melody or duplicate the pianist’s register.
Practice room
Start at 110–140; build toward 200–260 bpm
Your assignment
Use one rhythmic figure for four bars of C7, answer it on F, then repeat the process with fewer notes at a faster tempo.
Loop these changes
C7 → F
D7 → Gm
B♭m → F → D7
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 C7 → F up one whole step by naming each chord’s function before finding a guitar shape.
Return to F major and play the original melody without the chart.
At the session
Avalon — F major; 32-bar chorus; two opening eight-bar phrases and a contrasting second half. Agree the tempo, pickup, solo order and ending before the count.
Start together
Count directly into C7 or agree on a short dominant introduction.
Finish together
Replace the final turnaround with a settled F6 when the head ends.
Choose a tempo all players can articulate; the fastest backing track need not be your starting tempo.
Mistaking the opening C7 for the tonic or losing the long chord durations at speed.
Arranging the tune
Solo guitar
Keep bass notes at harmonic landmarks and allow the melody to carry the drive.
Trio or larger group
Choose a tempo all players can articulate; the fastest backing track need not be your starting tempo.
Vocal considerations
Choose the singer’s comfortable key, then transpose the whole arrangement, including the introduction. Use the original lyric phrasing to shape breathing.
Further study
Try a static dominant pedal beneath varied melodic rhythms, then contrast it with changing inversions. Hear which version supports the head better.
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. Avalon was published in 1920 with credits associated with Vincent Rose, Al Jolson and Buddy DeSylva. Djangopedia’s first listed Django session is 2 March 1935 with Coleman Hawkins and Michel Warlop’s orchestra. It is the early jazz standard, not the later Roxy Music song.
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
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 “Avalon”. Landscape 1536 × 1024, opaque background.
Scene: An imaginary island harbour opens beyond a long shaded pier; a distant guitarist stands at the pier end while bright open water answers the long dark approach. The island is a title metaphor and the approach/release expresses dominant-to-tonic expectancy.
Musical basis from the guide: A lively standard whose opening waits on the dominant before releasing into the tonic. Long harmonic spans reward rhythmic invention; the contrasting later phrases need a clear sense of direction. The supplied chart is F major; form: 32-bar chorus; two opening eight-bar phrases and a contrasting second half; feel: Swing. These describe musical inspiration, not visible writing. Historical context: Avalon was published in 1920 with credits associated with Vincent Rose, Al Jolson and Buddy DeSylva. Djangopedia’s first listed Django session is 2 March 1935 with Coleman Hawkins and Michel Warlop’s orchestra. It is the early jazz standard, not the later Roxy Music song. Do not illustrate disputed historical claims or suggest this imagined scene is an archival session.
Medium: travel-poster gouache. Dominant palette: teal and bright daylight yellow. Composition: deep bay with offset horizon. Human presence: tiny distant figure. 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: large solo figure; diagonals of instrument; close framing. Independently invent every pose, perspective, clothing, setting and lighting.
Avoid: No seated portrait, famous island view, photographic marina. 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
Exact original composition date and registered credits where not independently sourced
Legacy date/matrix extraction and personnel spelling
Chart variants and specialist review of editorial music analysis
Photograph rights are documented separately in its credit. They do not establish the rights status of the composition or recording.
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