I am new and have a question. The sheet music with the staves are shown below. I want to play the piano only part. Could someone tell me what chords (keys) to play for the attached piano part only?
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Usually 3 staves like this indicate (sung) melody+accompaniment, c.f. https://music.stackexchange.com/q/11463/2639 -- are there lyrics associated with the upper staff in other parts of the music? – Dave Aug 08 '17 at 16:07
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All 3 staves are the score, with the top staff (a solo) being assigned to a single instrument/voice, and the bottom 2 staves (accompaniment) being assigned to a keyboard.
The chord symbols written above the top staff describe the harmony occurring from the point where a chord symbol is written until the next chord symbol. The chord symbols are, apparently, for a guitar to play an accompaniment, either along with the keyboardist or as the only accompanying instrument.
The chord symbols could also assist the keyboardist in improvising additional notes in the accompaniment, if the keyboardist wanted to fill out the texture.
Alternatively, a keyboardist could ignore the bottom two staves and improvise an accompaniment based solely on the chord symbols, as a jazz pianist might in a jazz ensemble. By approaching the accompaniment in this way, you could play notes within the chord that are higher or lower than those written in the keyboard part. You could add more notes per beat (see how the first keyboard chord in the second measure is a half note; that could be two quarter notes or four eighth notes). If you are going to try improvising, I recommend you keep the bass notes as written, as they are the most important voice after the solo voice. The bass line and the solo are a duet. Improvise only the right hand based on the chord symbols.
The chord symbols are accurate for the two measures you show here, but do not take into account rhythms that appear in the keyboard part.
Gsus/B is a perfectly legitimate guitar chord and jazz chart or lead sheet chord. If you break down Gsus/B, reading from left to right, it means: [G] a G major chord, [sus] a 4th above the root (G) instead of a 3rd, so a C instead of a B; [/] over; [B] a B in the bass; the 5th above the root (G) is implied and is a D.
If you look at the keyboard part that's exactly what you have: a B in the left hand or the bass, and G-C-D in the right hand.
The [sus] literally means a suspended note from a previous chord, in this case the C which was in the previous C Major chord, and [sus] almost always means a 4th instead of 3rd in the chord. The C should resolve to a B in the next measure, which we do not see in your example.
SF Dave
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The chords are written above the music: Am7 F | C Gsus/B
Gsus/B is a very strange chord, so it should sound a little weird compared to the others. The notes for these chords are spelled out in the bottom two clefs.
Basstickler
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Don't play Gsus/B. I'm not sure there's any context in which that would be a nice-sounding thing. – Fugu Aug 07 '17 at 20:28
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@Fugu What? The written notes are a perfectly "nice-sounding thing". I suspect the problem is that Gsus/B is a silly name for the chord, though without seeing the next bar that is just a guess. C9/B might be a more sensible name for it - or even C11/B if the F in the vocal part is considered as belonging to the chord. The voice leading between the voice part and the bass (three consecutive 5ths A-E, F-C, C-G followed by a diminished 5th B-F) isn't "nice" though! – Aug 07 '17 at 20:32
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The way it's written there's a minor ninth between the B and the C, which will always exist in a chord spelled Gsus/B. This minor ninth, particularly in the key of C, is a combination of extremely dissonant and function-muddling since you are simultaneously playing the suspension from the dominant chord and the note that the suspension resolves to. Ultimately these things are subjective, but "very strange" is an accurate way to characterize this chord, without question. – Fugu Aug 07 '17 at 20:41
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Ultimately I was telling them what to play based on what is written in the music. Of course Gsus/B will be dissonant, particularly because of the minor 9, but that is what's written. With the notes written, I couldn't think of this as a C chord, since there is no 3, unless it were a Cmaj7sus4/B (add9), which seems to have the same strangeness about it. I say play what's on the page. – Basstickler Aug 07 '17 at 20:51
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I don't think "play what's on the page" is bad advice; I was just following up on you calling the chord "very strange". It is so strange that I, personally, wouldn't play it, and would consult the source material myself to make sure what's actually being played there because it's exceedingly unlikely that it's a suspension with the resolve for the suspension in the bass, since this is very strange. – Fugu Aug 07 '17 at 20:53
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@Fugu Of course "these things are subjective", but you can find minor 9ths between the bass and treble everywhere in music for the last 400 years at least. The name of the chord might be "strange" I really can't see why you think it sounds strange. If the next chord is Am or Am7, the bass and treble progression C-C, B-D, A-E is just a musical cliché! On the very first page of a well known harmony textbook the author shows a chord (from a piece by Gounod, in 1859) voiced Eb C Db Eb F - and the fistful of notes C Db Eb F doesn't sound strange or even dissonant, in its musical context. – Aug 07 '17 at 23:59
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There's no minor ninth in that chord. The minor ninth is a particularly dissonant interval and should be employed with care, especially if the chord isn't dominant functioning. Your cliche progression also doesn't include a C natural in the dominant part of the progression, because including both a B and a C (with a B in the bass and in the key of C) is very dissonant, and is therefore not analogous. This is a very strange chord. – Fugu Aug 08 '17 at 00:30
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1@Fugu - Your comments make sense. I'd also be skeptical of such a chord and listen to the actual song to confirm that the transcription is accurate. – Basstickler Aug 08 '17 at 13:06
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@alephzero - While I agree that a minor ninth can be used, I would argue that it has not been very present throughout the past 400 years, particularly in a harmonic context, ie, the minor 9 is a part of the chord. I'm sure it has appeared much more between the melody and the harmony, particularly in harmonic minor or playing the 4 against the I chord in major. Even in Jazz, where dissonance is much more acceptable, the minor 9 is really only to be used harmonically on a dominant functioning chord. In all my formal studies, particularly classical, the minor 9 is to be strongly avoided. – Basstickler Aug 08 '17 at 13:11
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Much of this seems to be based on one incorrect idea, which is that every note played must be "part of a chord." That leads both to over-complicated naming of chords and convoluted attempts to "analyse the harmony" accounting for every note. Non-chord tones have been used for a long as music has existed, I suspect. IMO the second half of bar 7 is just a C chord, with a non-chord B that happens to be in the bass. I would hesitate even to call it a C9 chord because of the D a the top of the voicing, without knowing what happens in bar 8. – Aug 09 '17 at 00:15
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Cmaj/B isn't that uncommon. The B resolves up to the root (C), which gives a really nice sound. I feel like I've heard this from Keith Jarrett, but I can't pinpoint which track. In this case, though, I doubt the mystery chord is Cmaj/B because I don't think it's resolving up to Cmaj given that it's already coming from Cmaj. My guess is that Amin is coming next, to complete the parallel 10th movement. I see the motivation for calling it Gsus/B (the mystery chord is replacing G/B). But I would label the harmony as Gmaj11/B, because I hear the same sound when I double the B an octave up. – jdjazz Aug 09 '17 at 03:46
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@alephzero - it can't be C9/B, as C9 will have Bb in it, as well. Cmaj9 may work. – Tim Aug 09 '17 at 06:55
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That Gsus/C is iffy at best anyway. A guitarist would be expected to play it - after all, that's why the chord symbol's there. But - sus needs qualifying. Sus 2 or sus 4? Obvious from the dots, sus4, but really that should be written in the chord on top. With B,G,C,D it's going to be more Gadd11/B. – Tim Aug 09 '17 at 06:59
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@jdjazz - Maybe not Gmaj11, as that implies F# and A as well. Gadd11 isn't bad as the basic name. – Tim Aug 09 '17 at 07:00
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@Tim, yes I was thinking Gmaj11 with no 7 but I see the issue you mention. – jdjazz Aug 09 '17 at 10:45
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@alephzero - I won't disagree that there is a tendency to overanalyze every note on a page, however, in this particular instance, it is written on the music. Without knowing where the transcription comes from, I assume that it is the composer's intent, so it's not really us placing the label on the chord. We could seek an alternate analysis and say the whole measure is some sort of C chord. I'd also note that it's not incorrect to analyze in any manner, as long as the analysis has meaning. This analysis could easily express the notes that are taking place for a player to replicate. – Basstickler Aug 10 '17 at 13:31
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Play the bottom two lines, which are the left and right hand piano parts. Above the whole lot, the chord symbols are written. So you have everything you need. Plus the top line, which is the lead vocal, usually.
Play the written parts, and they are exactly what's needed. They mirror the chord symbols above.
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What does it means they mirror the chords, Do I for instance on the F (top line) play the F chord per the 3 stave or just the F alone. – user6804473 Aug 09 '17 at 00:43
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The symbols are always supposed to tell exactly what chord will be needed in each bar. So, if the letter 'F' appears above the top staff, it means the chord of F. – Tim Aug 09 '17 at 12:21
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last question: Does it make sense to play the chords and the second line? – user6804473 Aug 09 '17 at 15:46
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Yes, chords and middle line is what I often do, when I've got fed up with playing what's actually written. Or even bass line and other inversions of the middle line chords. Or even top line with some vocalists, (if it's a vocal line) and make do with comping chords underneath. It gives some variety, but will depend on how you play those chords. There are so many different ways... – Tim Aug 09 '17 at 16:01
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Your question is a bit difficult to understand, but I think you're asking whether or not to play the chords written in above. Short answer: no. Just play the bottom two staves, the piano part. The chords above are mostly for guitar. Although if you want to, you can add some of the chord tones to the piano part.
Mary
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