Ultrafox: chords & grille (gypsy jazz)
Ultrafox by Django Reinhardt, key of F (swing), form A. Below is the full chord grid; on Haute Gitanerie you can play along with a scrolling chord ribbon, transpose to any key, set the tempo, and switch on a rhythm backing (la pompe) to practise your solos over the changes.
About
Ultrafox is an early Django Reinhardt composition, cut by the newly formed Quintette du Hot Club de France in 1934–35 for the Ultraphon label, its name a nod to the label and one of the group's founding recordings.
The sound: an upbeat F major swing rich in chromatic movement: diminished passing chords, secondary dominants and quick key shifts that keep the changes bright and busy.
Practising it: this rewards clean arpeggios. Map the F major scale, arpeggiate the dominant chain (A7, D7, G7, C7) and thread the diminished chords chromatically. Build the swing feel at a moderate tempo before opening it up.
Ultrafox chords: the grille
A : | F F7/E♭ | B♭/D B♭m/C# | F F7/E♭ | B♭/D B♭m/C# | F Dm | Gm C7 | A7 D7 | G7 C7 | F F7/E♭ | B♭/D B♭m/C# | F F7/E♭ | B♭/D B♭m/C# | F Dm | Gm C7 | F C7 | F E7 | A B♭° | Bm C° | A/C# C° | Bm G7 | C C#° | Dm E♭° | C/E G7 | C7 | F F7/E♭ | B♭/D B♭m/C# | F F7/E♭ | B♭/D B♭m/C# | F Dm | Gm C7 | F B♭ | F |
Chords used
F · F7/E♭ · B♭/D · B♭m/C# · Dm · Gm · C7 · A7 · D7 · G7 · E7 · A · B♭° · Bm · C° · C · C#° · E♭°
Play along
Open the interactive grille for Ultrafox: loop any section, transpose to any key, set the tempo, and play over a rhythm accompaniment, with a real recorded pompe on featured tunes. In the browser, free.