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need help reading piano sheets

T

theGlove

Senior member
hi all, I'm trying to learn how to read piano music. I have been reading various websites and learning alot but one thing I don't understand
is that on top of each measure/bar, there is something like

E7
----
G#


what does that mean? I'm guessing the E7 means something for the treble notes and the G# means to use G# on bass notes for that measure?
 
Originally posted by: lil buttercup
I think those are guitar cords, I may be wrong though?!
Click to expand...

Uh, they're musical chords... they can be played on guitar, piano, by a series of trumpets...
 
Those are just the chords that can be played instead of the actual notes in the Stanza. E7/G# is just the Chord in use.
 
E7/G# means to play an E major minor-seventh chord in first inversion. That means that you should play a chord consisting of G#, with a B above that, with a D above that, with an E at the top. Basically the tonic of the chord goes to the top and the third stays on the bottom.

Edit: Also, the lead sheet symbol doesn't specify which octave you should play it in, it's up to you to choose one that goes well with the main melodic line. For a standard composition on piano you'd probably be using a root note of a G#3, which is the top G in the bass cleff staff, or perhaps a G#2 an octave lower.
 
Ugh... what the hell was I doing for 10 years learning piano. I can read sheet music great, but have no idea what G7, Dsus, etc. are.
 
Originally posted by: irishScott
Originally posted by: Imp
Ugh... what the hell was I doing for 10 years learning piano. I can read sheet music great, but have no idea what G7, Dsus, etc. are.
Click to expand...

lol same.
Click to expand...

What the hell? IVe been practicing guitar for 2 months and I already know that LOL Its one of the basic things... Learning how chords and scales work so you can improvise solos on the fly 😛 (ok, I love soloing and thought Id learn it quickly LOL)

Figuring out all notes on the fretboard is the most boring part... Not hard, but just plain boring.. Then again I just hate studying
 
as mentioned before, you just play an E major 7th chord in the first inversion.

The E7 is generally E, G#, B, D natural. 1st inversion is G#, B, D natural, E


Most piano players do not use these until they get more indepth with jazz, figured bass, and improvisation/composition, however, they are taught in music theory and is generally part of the "lesson" when studying privately... (At least for me, I had a theory book, technique book, literature books prior to moving to real music)
 
Originally posted by: ShadowOfMyself
Originally posted by: irishScott
Originally posted by: Imp
Ugh... what the hell was I doing for 10 years learning piano. I can read sheet music great, but have no idea what G7, Dsus, etc. are.
Click to expand...

lol same.
Click to expand...

What the hell? IVe been practicing guitar for 2 months and I already know that LOL Its one of the basic things... Learning how chords and scales work so you can improvise solos on the fly 😛 (ok, I love soloing and thought Id learn it quickly LOL)

Figuring out all notes on the fretboard is the most boring part... Not hard, but just plain boring.. Then again I just hate studying
Click to expand...

Don't get me wrong, I can play pretty much every scale by heart. I know the techniques to get all the sharps and flats right. For piano chords, I know the finger positions and how to progress, but never bothered to learn the names. I'm learning guitar (2 years and counting and still suck), and have no idea how chords progress on it. As for figuring out the notes on the board, it's boring so I have a lot of trouble🙁.
 
Originally posted by: ShadowOfMyself
Originally posted by: irishScott
Originally posted by: Imp
Ugh... what the hell was I doing for 10 years learning piano. I can read sheet music great, but have no idea what G7, Dsus, etc. are.
Click to expand...

lol same.
Click to expand...

What the hell? IVe been practicing guitar for 2 months and I already know that LOL Its one of the basic things... Learning how chords and scales work so you can improvise solos on the fly 😛 (ok, I love soloing and thought Id learn it quickly LOL)

Figuring out all notes on the fretboard is the most boring part... Not hard, but just plain boring.. Then again I just hate studying
Click to expand...

It's much more relevant on the guitar. On the piano you are generally playing music that is spelled out for you note for note, at least with classical music (unless you're playing authentic scores in which figured bass is use, that comes later though). On guitar you are often called on to play backing harmony or to improvise solos, but only certain types of pianists do that.
 
Also, the chords look like they're for guitar, since everything you need to know to play that same chord (E7/G#) is written out for you. :/
 
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