Django Reinhardt (1910-1953) was one of the most innovative guitarists of all time. At 18, he was injured in a fire, leaving his third and fourth fingers heavily burnt and paralyzed. Years later, he became an amazing player, using only two fingers for soloing (he reportedly managed to use his third and fourth digits for chords).
1. Rhythm
In Gypsy Jazz, a rhythm called "La Pompe" is commonly used. Using a pick, play a Up-Down-Down pattern. The Up-Down part is done in very quick succession, almost like a grace note, but with a whole chord.
2. Chords
Due to the fact Django could only easily use two fingers, he often would use triads. He also rarely used barre chords, with a few exceptions. A good example would be the chords to Djangology.
Djangology:
Amaj 9x79xx
Cm6 8x78xx
Gmaj 7x57xx
Bbm6 6x56xx
Am6 5x45xx
D7 x545xx
G6/9 x55455
Ab6/9 x66566
A6/9 x77677
Amaj Cm6 Gmaj Bbm6 Am6 D7 G6/9
/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / / /
Ab6/9 A6/9 Amaj Cm6 Gmaj Bbm6 Am6 D7 G6/9
/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / /
3. Arpeggios
Arpeggios are the bases for many Gypsy Jazz solos. In this section, I'll show some common Arpeggio pattern that can be moved all over the fretboard.
Sixth String Root Am arpeggio:
e|-------------------------------------------------------------------------|
B|-----------------8-------------------------------------------------------|
G|---------------7---------------------------------------------------------|
D|---------5-7-8-----------------------------------------------------------|
A|-------5-----------------------------------------------------------------|
E|-5-7-8-------------------------------------------------------------------|
Cmaj Arpeggio:
e|-------------8-----------------------------------------------------------|
B|---------5-8-------------------------------------------------------------|
G|-------5-----------------------------------------------------------------|
D|-----5-------------------------------------------------------------------|
A|---7---------------------------------------------------------------------|
E|-8-----------------------------------------------------------------------|
Fifth String Root Dm Arpeggio:
e|-------------------10----------------------------------------------------|
B|----------------10-------------------------------------------------------|
G|---------7-9-10----------------------------------------------------------|
D|-------7-----------------------------------------------------------------|
A|-5-7-8-------------------------------------------------------------------|
E|-------------------------------------------------------------------------|
4. Diminished Runs/Chords/Arpeggios
Diminished Runs, Chords, and Arpeggios are common part of Gypsy Jazz. Diminished runs consist of playing diminished chords every three semitones, i.e.:
e|-3-----3-6-----6-9------9-12-------12-15-------15------------------------|
B|-----2-------5-------8----------11----------14--------etc.---------------|
G|---3-------6-------9---------12----------15------------------------------|
D|-------------------------------------------------------------------------|
A|-------------------------------------------------------------------------|
E|-------------------------------------------------------------------------|
Diminished Arpeggio:
e|-----------------------8-11----------------------------------------------|
B|------------------7-10---------------------------------------------------|
G|--------------5-8--------------------------------------------------------|
D|----------4-7------------------------------------------------------------|
A|------3-6----------------------------------------------------------------|
E|--2-5--------------------------------------------------------------------|
Here, we started the arpeggio on an F. Then, on the B string, we jump two frets to F, instead of Fb.
5. Chromatic Runs
Chromatic Runs are used quite often in Gypsy Jazz. A good example would be the chromatic run from Minor Swing:
e|-3-2-1-0---------------------------------------1/4-7-7-5-----------------|
B|---------4-3-2-1-0---------------------------3----------5----------------|
G|-------------------3-2-1-0-----------------1-------------5---------------|
D|---------------------------4-3-2-1-0-1-2-3----------------7--------------|
A|-------------------------------------------------------------------------|
E|-------------------------------------------------------------------------|
Here's another example:
e|-------------------------------------------------0-1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10--|
B|---------------------------------------0-1-2-3-4-------------------------|
G|-------------------------------0-1-2-3-----------------------------------|
D|---------------------0-1-2-3-4-------------------------------------------|
A|-----------0-1-2-3-4-----------------------------------------------------|
E|-0-1-2-3-4---------------------------------------------------------------|
Keep practicing those until you can play it as sixteenth notes at a tempo of around 200.
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