Any tips or tricks for reading/analyzing chord notation quickly?

[seagullc]

I'm having a pretty hard time in my theory course, mainly with harmonic analysis. While I understand how to analyze chords and how they work, my trouble is in quickly reading notation. I find that in order to determine a chord's quality (major, minor, etc.) I need to look at each note individually and slowly I piece together the intervals between each note of the chord. Sometimes I need to even imagine it on my guitar or else I can quickly get lost. While I know that chords are usually created by stacking thirds, this is only a little helpful as key signatures and the half steps between b-c and e-f make two chords of the same quality look different in notation if they are in a different key or register. Another problem in my harmonic analysis is inversions. It takes me a long time to determine which inversion a chord is in when I'm just looking at notation.

Does anyone have any tips or tricks to reading chordal notation quickly? I feel that my method must be wrong, as most if not all people in my classes are much quicker at analyzing chords. I'm able to do harmonic analysis if I take the time, but my lack of speed in reading chords is really affecting my performance on tests and exams.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Cole

[Stackabones]

Not really a tip or a trick, but you've just got to keep doing it. However much time you're spending each day on doing it now, double it.

[ksjazzguitar]

First you need to learn your keys and be able to identify the chords in them. If I'm in the key of Eb and I see a triad built on an F without accidentals, then I know that it is an Fm. If there is a natural on the A, then I know that the 3rd has been raised so I know that it is an F. You need to be able to do this.

Another drill that helped me was just to learn to spell all my major triads. My teacher used to have us chant around the circle of 5ths, spelling the triads of the I, IV, and V chord. We would go: C E G, F A C, G B D; G B D, C E G, D F# A; D F# A, ... Once we got to C#, we'd go back to C and go the other direction. We couldn't pass the class until we could do this at a good clip. I found that once I could build by major triads the rest was easier.

There's no real trick. These are just drills. As stack says, it just takes practice. But make sure you are strong on your fundamentals, it will make it a lot easier. Then you just need lots of practice.

Peace,
Kevin

[M-ster]

Originally Posted by Stackabones

... However much time you're spending each day on doing it now, double it.

At first I laughed, but this is really the secret to everything, isn't it? Too true.

seagullc, I'm guessing you're not a good reader? Maybe a guitarist who grew up on tab? You need to practice reading and analyzing written music to get better at this (see Stackabones' comment). It's a combination of being able to quickly identify the pitches on the staves and being able to "spell" your chords (as Kevin touched upon).

[stratcat33511]

I'd start to learn the row of sharps and flats:
FCGDAEB
BEADGCF
This will help you memorize key signatures
Once you have them committed to memory, figuring the flavor of the intervals should start to come more naturally to you
Start with major and minor,
Then dominant Diminished and Augmented.
Like stated above = sight reading is a constant
You Just need to do it - no one can do it for you

[Stackabones]

Originally Posted by stratcat33511

I'd start to learn the row of sharps and flats:
FCGDAEB
BEADGCF

I learned using this mnemonic for sharps:
Fat Cats Go Down Alleys Eating Birds.

A student came up with this one for flats, and I pass it on to my students:
Barney's Elephants Are Dangerously Gifted Crime Fighters.

[stratcat33511]

Originally Posted by Stackabones

I learned using this mnemonic for sharps:
Fat Cats Go Down Alleys Eating Birds.

A student came up with this one for flats, and I pass it on to my students:
Barney's Elephants Are Dangerously Gifted Crime Fighters.

Haha
Good Ones !~

[Moonray]

How about the palindrome version ?

....for sharps..Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle

.....for flats..Battle Ends And Down Goes Charles' Father

[not a very pretty thought at this time;or any other in living memory]

But..as a mnemonic...it certainly works....only one "chunk" to thunk.

[cosmic gumbo]

Outside of classical guitar music, I don't find a lot of charts relevant to the guitar using chord notation. Lead sheets, pit charts, big band, etc,. use chord symbols instead.

While it's good to be able to recognize notated chords when they present themselves, I find guitarist's fluency in this area is lacking, compared to a pianist, because so few charts for guitar make regular use of it.

You need a source of material to use often to stay fluent, and in the real world, I just don't encounter it that often . Grand staff for piano doesn't translate directly to the guitar, so that is not a valid source. Am I the only one who notices this?

[ksjazzguitar]

Originally Posted by cosmic gumbo

Outside of classical guitar music, I don't find a lot of charts relevant to the guitar using chord notation. Lead sheets, pit charts, big band, etc,. use chord symbols instead.

I do find somechord stuff written out in theater work and occasionally in Big Band stuff, especially more modern stuff. Not much, but you will run into it.

Originally Posted by cosmic gumbo

Grand staff for piano doesn't translate directly to the guitar, so that is not a valid source. Am I the only one who notices this?

Of course it doesn't translate directly, but I do think it is a good idea to practice. I don't know how many times I've been on a gig with some singer and the piano player doesn't show up and they throw the piano book in front on me, and expect me to play all the piano intros, some of them verbatim. Being able to read the piano part and convert it to a good guitar part on the spot is a good skill. It's different than reading fro the the guitar, but it is still a good skill and good exercise for the brain. There are other situations where reading a piano chart comes in handy - but I would agree that reading guitar chords is a higher priority. And being able to read a lead sheet is even higher priority.

Peace,
Kevin

[M-ster]

seagullc's OP was describing difficulty in an educational setting, not a sight reading setting.

cosmic gumbo notes that most music intended for guitarists uses chord symbols rather than notation (I believe because guitarists, in general, are notoriously poor readers - but it's also a great convenience). But, in a classroom setting, you're going to be analyzing notated stuff. No way around working at more quickly identifying the notes.

[timscarey]

Memorize... in this order,

Key signatures (spelling the key)

Triad Spellings...

(CEG FAC BDF EGB ACE DFA GBD)

Really work on your note recognition on the staff, honestly, when it comes to academic music, there are no short cuts, you really need to spend a lot of time memorizing and working on your reading. It sounds like you're problem is that you haven't yet realized that sharps and flats ALWAYS occur in a certain order and what that really means.....

remember, the spacing will help, if there is a 4th in the chord, the root is the top note of the 4th, if there in a 2nd in the chord the root is the top note of the 2nd. once you know the root, the spelling is already memorized, apply accidentals, you got it.

Key first, then chord, then note names.

and read from the bottom up, it helps.

Good luck, this stuff is hard.