Apr 15, 2010 figure 2 shows a list of a few symbols that you will eventually see in nashville number system charts. The four strings of a bass are g, d, a, and e, from the highest pitched to the lowest pitched. Nashville number system nns this project is the culmination of whatever is after coming home, having a meal with family and friends old and new. Would you mind translating a couple of lines from your example. The advantage is you can write a chart for a song without knowing what key it will be played in. While i could explain it here, there are quite a few resources that can do it much better. There is a better way to make music together as a band, and its called the nashville number system nns. The nashville number system by chad williams steel. It was made famous by nashville studio musicians whose backtoback studio sessions made it challenging to memorize a dozen or so songs every day they needed a better way necessity is the mother of invention. If you dont have a good grip on functional major key. About the nashville number system nashville numbers is an ingenious shorthand system for charting music that identifies chords by number relating to scale degree rather than letter, so charts are keyindependent.
There is a better way, and its called the nashville number system nns. An introduction youtube the nashville number system part 1 david isaacs tennessee state university duration. The nashville number system was developed by the jordanaires who were session musicians in nashville during the 60s. The nashville number system is chord shorthand based on the chords of the seven harmonic degrees tables 38 and 39 above. Apr 12, 2014 nashville number system explained guitar tricks duration. Its a printable pdf with the chromatic scale wheel, a scale interval list, all the caged chords, and the notes of the guitar neck in standard tuning. Figure 2 shows a list of a few symbols that you will eventually see in nashville number system charts. The nashville numbering system the nashville number system is a way of describing music chords by denoting the scale degree on which a chord is built. From wikipedia, so i guess take with a grain of salt.
Free the nashville number system nns chart for bands. Erich andreas has been playing and teaching guitar for nearly 30 years. A sign can go in front or behind the chord number,to denote min. If youve recorded in nashville, youve run into the nashville number system. The nashville number system by chad williams steel guitars. The numbers are organized in lines and rows so that the form and chords of a song can be easily played and quickly learned. This system is a way to classify chord progressions by number instead of by the name of each note. Yt070 how to understand the nashville number system. So instead, ive gathered up some online tools, books and videos to help you understand how the nashville number system works. The most important things you will learn about playing guitar will be chord progressions. The nashville number system is an invaluable tool for playing music and communicating with musicians.
I walk you through the details of each song and explain the number system. Imagine already being intimidated by being the new guy on a session an. With the nashville number system, you can change the key of any song, but the numbers stay exactly the same. By writing chords as numbers, music may be transposed into different keys easily. The roman numeral derivitive of nns is better, in my opinion, as lower case numerals will denote minors. Nashville number system helpful chart for playing chords.
Hand written charts are tedious to create and hard to read. The picture below represents the horizontal strings and vertical frets of a bass guitar neck. Yt070 how to understand the nashville number system bass. Nashville numbers is an ingenious system of music notation shorthand, named for its use of numbers rather than letters to identify chords. Ive created a very basic version of it for handing out to your teams to get you started here is the pdf download of the nns chart. As a professional session and touring musician, the nashville number system has been a huge part of my musical vocabulary for 25 years. Most musicians using this system play by ear so interpretations vary, sometimes greatly. Eventually, youll be able to read them without thinking so you can get down to just playing.
The nashville number system music theory for musicians, not. Use stampmanage software to catalog and value your stamp collection. Mastering chord progressions is an essential skill all guitar players have to have. The nashville number system is pages with a step by step method of how to write a nashville number chart for any song. The nashville number system is a simple way of naming chord functions as numbers rather than their formal letter name.
The nashville number system was originally written and published in 1988 by chas. Ive heard of the nashville number system but never committed it to memory. The nashville number system music theory for musicians. Hi there, this is erich andreas with yourguitarsage and i just wanted to let you know a few things about the ultimate guitar guide part 1. I learned the nashville number system while working in steve bivins writers nights bands and doing demo sessions. This custom font package enables users to create any sized professional nashville number system song charts in any windows or mac word processor. We start by taking the key the song is in and writing the scale. Or if you are looking at the guitar neck with the head to the. It is used to record hundreds of songs every day in studios all over the world. The nashville number system demystified premier guitar. Nov 16, 2016 the nashville number system is pages with a step by step method of how to write a nashville number chart for any song.
The nashville number system makes it possible for any player to play the correct chords of a song in any key, simply by numbering the chords according to their harmonic degrees. The nashville number system is the standard way for a professional country musician to notate a song. The nashville number system is 128 pages with a step by step method of how to write a nashville number chart for any song. Take your music to the next level by learning the nashville number system. The advantage of the nashville numbering system is that you can play a song in any key without changing your song sheet.
Body 2 1 open if we use the d scale below, then the 2nd string from the bottom would be d. After a couple of semesters at berklee college of music, in 1979, i moved to nashville. The nashville number system is a system professional studio musicians use to quickly and efficiently learn and record music. Nashville numbering system software free download nashville. The chord number system learn how to transpose anything. It resembles the roman numeral and figured bass systems traditionally used to transcribe a chord progression. The nashville number system is a trick that musicians use to figure out chord progressions on the fly. Jan 11, 2017 from wikipedia, so i guess take with a grain of salt. Nashville number system music theory guitar, music chords. The number system handles chord inversions a chord with the lowest note other than the root of the chord by displaying the number of the chord being played, then a followed by the scale number that is being played as the bass note. The ultimate guitar guide part 1 beginner guitar lessons. The table shows the chords of the c and g keys and their scale degree in roman numbers i,ii. Lyric chord charts lcc lead sheet ls piano vocal guitar pvg pro chart pc lyrics. Caged and the nashville number system download the music theory chart that goes with this lesson.
Here is a helpful pdf reference sheet with the chords for all the major and minor keys. The nashville number system chart for bands praisecharts. This 30page ebook explains the simple system that rules the world of music today. This way the song can be played in any key at any time with out rewriting it. Also, download nashville charts that mason used in a real session. In this video lesson, james talks about the nashville number system, and how this piece of music theory can be applied to your playing. The nashville number system ok, i first have to thank you for suffering through the last post. It is an easy tool to use if you understand how music works. The system has been around since the 1950s, and it rapidly became widespread within the country music community because of how efficiently it can represent music.
Included with each nns book in edition 7 is the cd, string of pearls. It was developed by neal matthews in the late 1950s as a simplified system for the jordanaires to use in the studio and further developed by charlie mccoy. They all differ in name but the chord function is always the same. Printer projects new york guitar diy musical instruments really good beginner guitar tips. I wanted to take a second to break it down for you so its easy for you to learn. The nashville number system was compiled and published in a book by chas williams in 1988. The nashville number system is a very easy reference tool, created in nashville duh. Nns is a method of transcribing music by denoting the scale degree on which a chord is built.
May 24, 2009 if youve recorded in nashville, youve run into the nashville number system. When youre smiling 20 steve kaufman taking it to the next level. The nashville number system an easy introduction youtube. In this guitar lesson, well teach you the nashville number system. The nashville number system download ebook pdf, epub. It requires that you know what the chords are in each key for the given numbers. Please practice handwashing and social distancing, and check out our resources for adapting to these times. Chas williams i play guitar, slide guitars and dobro. I was a little reluctant to deal with this subject because it brings back some painful memories of trying to remember what a 3 chord is in the key of b flat, so i.
The nashville number system is a method of transcribing music by denoting the scale degree on which a chord is built. May 03, 2010 with the nashville number system, the number chart represents the chord progression of the song. The nashville number system simply explained how music. The nashville numbering system nns is a method of using the numbers 1 through 7 instead of names to designate the chords of a song. I have recently been asked to address the issue of the number system, or as its sometimes called, the nashville number system note that in knoxville, its always referred to as the knoxville number system. If you dont have a good grip on functional major key harmony the. The nashville number system is a systematic organization of numbers that show the functional harmony of the chords in a song.
This is erich andreas with yourguitarsage and i just wanted to let you know a few things about the ultimate guitar guide part 1. Sep 07, 2012 sep 7, 2012 nashville number system chart for all keys. To teach my own bands the nns, i created a high quality, printable, easytolearn version of it for learning the system yourself, and for handing out to your fellow. Choose from our large inventory of steel guitars, accessories, and instructional materials from several pros at affordable prices in hendersonville, tennessee, home of johnny cash and conway twitty. Computergenerated charts can be archived, updated, emailed and have the same benefits of. Take a progression spelled with the chord letters, a, d, and e. At a writers night, the band backed up 20 to 30 songwriters. The nashville number system nns will soon become your best friend.
Or if you are looking at the guitar neck with the head to the right and body to the left, the bottom string is g and the top string is e. The nashville number system and chord progressions. In this lesson, well introduced the most common elements of the system. Download the free high quality, printable, easytouse pdf chart below. The nashville number system fake book by various softcover. The number system is pretty cool, coz so many singers want to change keys to fit their voice and you dont have to rewrite the charts. Crunching the nashville number system guitars harmony.
He has taught 100s of students for s of hours, has authored several books on the. Crunching the nashville number system when i moved to nashville in the 80s and had my first opportunity to participate in a recording session, i was abruptly introduced to a notation system called the nashville number system. The nashville number system online guitar lessons at. Im confused by the example and some of the terms, 46 b7, 67, 57, etc. Also, download nashville charts that mason used in a. Come along, jody 23 john carlini sharpening the axe. Get the circle of fifths and the nashville number system together and save 15% this file is in a downloadable pdf format. Next time youre recording or learning a song, write a number chart. The nashville number system learn how to play the guitar. This simple introduction will explain the basics in a format that is easy to understand. In the equal temperament tuning system their are 15 key signatures. Featured here is the 2005 printing and 7th edition of the nashville number system.
Included with each nns book in edition 10 is the cd download, string of pearls. Download the music theory chart that goes with this lesson. I constantly use it everyday on sessions from jon bon jovi to abcs nashville television show. Also, you can write charts quickly using the nashville number system. It may take you a while to wrap your head around the whole idea of the nashville number system, but when you get it, youll be happy you took the time to understand it. With the nashville number system, the number chart represents the chord progression of the song. He has rigorously updated and edited the book for each of 7 subsequent editions. Some songs refer to their key as specifically major or minor, but others use both the major and relative minor as key centers, in an even enough proportion where it can be hard to say whether the i chord or the.
Collected symbols crashaccent played on the on downbeat nns number or 1 nns. A number chart is valid no matter what key you choose to play it in. This is a 10 song cd of instrumentals, including, amazing grace. Also discussed are roman numeral chords, diatonic harmony and the major scale and how you can utilize these to learn songs quickly and effectively. Bass guitar now lets apply this to the bass guitar. Using a guitar capo effectively transposing into different keys duration.
For instance a guitar player might be teaching his band a new song and will yell out play. Sep 7, 2012 nashville number system chart for all keys. As you may already know, ive been a guitar teacher for over 25 years, have taught 100s of students and s of lessons in oneonone and class environments, as well as live and studio guitar work. Play the electric bass by the number system background there are 7 tones or notes in a major scale or key. Brent mason gives a bit of history on how the number system became the standard in nashville and explains the cryptic shorthand he uses to make the music happen. I imagine what occurred was, the need to try a number of different keys on any given song, in any given session, was the mother of invention here. Also discussed are roman numeral chords, diatonic harmony and the major scale and how you can. This is a 10 song album of instrumentals, including, amazing grace.
The nashville number system also just called the number system is a way of writing the chords to a song in a universal or neutral key using numbers instead of chord names. The nashville numbering system is a method of denoting chord letter symbols by using roman numerals, and its one of the most important concepts taught in guitar lessons, really useful when dealing with chord progressions here below you find a chart with the nashville numbers for the keys of c and g. The system dates to the 1950s, when charting technology consisted of pencil and paper. Nashville number system explained guitar tricks youtube.
Once you start playing guitar out more or if you are a songwriter, learning this system will be essential. The table shows the chords of the c and g keys and their scale degree in. Nashville number system and chart your guitar sage. Jun 03, 2018 in this video lesson, james talks about the nashville number system, and how this piece of music theory can be applied to your playing. Learn the essentials of this powerful system in just over 1 hour.