The
format I use for writing most of the music I teach is a variation on
what are commonly called "chord charts": Lyrics with the chord
names written above them at the approximate point the chord changes.
This
works fine for rhythmically simple songs. But when chords change at
unpredictable times, I include some more information.
Number
of Measures in Parentheses
In
the following example, from Norah Jones' "Be Here to Love
Me",
the "(2)" means "play A for two measures". If
there's no number in parentheses next to a chord, just play it for
one measure.
E D A (2)
Your eyes seek conclusion in all this confusion of mine
E
D A
(2)
Though you and I both know it's only the warm glow of wine
Dash
Away! Dash Away!
During
instrumental parts of a song, I'll often "dash it out".
This example is the intro to Green Day's "Boulevard of Broken
Dreams":
/
Em - - - / G - - - / D - - - / A - - - / x2
Each
slash mark "/" marks the beginning of a new measure of music.
A chord name represents the first beat of that chord, and dash marks
"-" represent more beats of the same chord. So in the example,
you play each of the chords for four beats. The "x2" means
you play the whole progression twice.
Here's
a slightly more complicated example, from the chorus of The Long Winters'
"Shapes":
/ G - - - / - - A - / G - - - / - - - - /
Here
the G chord is played for six beats (four in the first measure, and
two in the second), the A chord for two beats (the last two beats
in the second measure), and the G chord for eight beats.
Sometimes
you'll find chords in
parentheses. This is something I made up to show that you're anticipating. Anticipating
means playing something before you'd expect--usually
a quarter-note early. My simple way of dashing out music
simply isn't nuanced enough to show chord changes happening on
offbeats, hence the parentheses.
Strum Patterns
If
you're a beginner, I encourage you to check out the popular lesson
on my blog, Strumming
101: How to Strum the Guitar. It has videos showing each
step of the process, and it'll have you strumming correctly in
about 15 minutes. But here's a quick explanation of how I write
out strum patterns if you already know how to strum.
I
usually pencil strum patterns at the the top of my students' music
when I'm teaching them a song. But lately I've been typing them so
that all the rest of you can learn the strums too. Strum patterns
look something like this:
D
D U U D U
1 + 2 + 3 + 4 +
The
lower line shows the beats of a measure. The upper line shows
when
to strum: "D" means strum down, "U" means strum
up, and "B" means hit the bass note in the chord (the
lowest-pitched root note). Remember to keep that right
arm moving in a consistent up-down motion. Sometimes
you're
strumming
the strings,
sometimes
your pick is passing over them, but the arm keeps moving.
By
the way, that example is what I call the "Folk Strum". It's
used in tons of songs (not just folk songs), so if you just see "Folk
Strum" at the top of a sheet of music, now you know what to play.
You
also might encounter an "X", "M", or "d"
above the beats. "X" signifies the dreaded "scratch"
strum, which is hard to teach in person and harder to describe in
writing. Basically, the karate-chop part of your hand lands
solidly on the strings as your pick simultaneously rakes the strings,
creating a percussive "whack!" It helps if you make
an OK sign with your strumming hand. An "M" just
means mute--let your hand come down onto the strings instead of
strumming
them. A mute can be used instead of a "scratch" strum
if necessary. And
"d" means an unaccented (quiet)
down-strum.
Chord Guides
Many
of the songs I've posted on my website use what I call Nanocharts
(nano = small). They're the quickest, most compact chord chart
known to humanity...and I invented them. The royalties should
be rolling in any day now.
Here's
what a Nanochart looks like for the A chord:
123
A: x02220
The
bottom line shows you where you fret each string, 6th string through
1st when reading left to right. So in the example above, the
"x" means to mute or avoid the 6th string. "0"
means open, and those three "2's" mean to fret the fourth,
third, and second strings on the 2nd fret.
The
top line tells you which fingers to use--the finger number (1st is
index, 2nd is middle, T is thumb, etc.) is written above the string
it frets.
When
chords are up on the tenth fret and above, I type every other fret
number in bold for easier reading. I know, it's ugly....
T
321
C: 8x1098x
Tablature
Here's a good article on how to read tablature, the system of writing
guitar music using six lines to represent the six strings, and numbers
written on the lines to show you where to fret: How
to read tab
Got
it? Ok, Have fun.
Back to Chord Chart List
