I’ve been a fan and performer of gypsy jazz since 2007 when I got my first gypsy jazz gig with the band Jazz Mine in the San Francisco Bay Area. Although I’ve been playing the style off and on since then it is not my primary guitar style. Since this is not my area of expertise so to say, I get to experience how it feels like to explore the style like a beginner. It’s challenging and beautiful.
As part of preparing for performances with Canadian gypsy jazz guitarist Denis Chang this month, I decided to document part of my process. It’s also to benefit anyone curious about the style. If all goes well, there might be a few blog posts that I will write about the style and what I’ve discovered so far. Looking forward to get more into it when I attend the Taipei International Gypsy Jazz Festival next month. It will be the first time I’m attending a gypsy jazz camp! I’ve participated and taught at fingerstyle guitar camps and jazz camps so this is an exciting new experience for me.
This is part of my research and process to learn the song I’ll See You In My Dreams. This post contains a collection of various versions of the song, backing tracks and a transcription of the Django version. Enjoy!
Django’s Version:
Various Versions on YouTube:
Selected Versions on Spotify:
Backing Tracks
From Gonzalo Bergara:
From DC Music School:
Beginner Tempo:
Up Tempo Version:
Soundslice Transcription:
https://www.soundslice.com/scores/68433/
Discussion on Django’s Introduction Section:
https://www.djangobooks.com/forum/discussion/11567/ill-see-you-in-my-dreams-intro-analysis/p1
Cool Audio Lesson/Playalong + PDF from Frank Vignola via Truefire.com:
http://truefire.com/blog/guitar-lessons/frank-vignola-play-along-ill-dreams/
Other cool related resources:
A cool 2-hour gypsy jazz workshop by Denis Chang in Tokyo.
This is a really cool lesson on ornaments – lots of details and work. I’m trying out small parts of this.