How To Write a Nashville Number Chart
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 13 сен 2024
- Every time I lead a session, I write one of these for each song for the band to follow. It is easier to make sense of this than you might think, and writing the chart this way has benefits for a smooth sailing session.
==GEAR I use EVERY DAY==
PolyTune headstock tuner sweetwater.sjv...
D’Addario NYXL 10-46 sweetwater.sjv...
D’Addario NYXL 11-49 sweetwater.sjv...
D’Addario 10.5-48 (VERY COOL) sweetwater.sjv...
D’Addiaro Baritone 13-62 sweetwater.sjv...
Dunlop Large glass slide 213 sweetwater.sjv...
Revv Shawn Tubbs Tilt Overdrive sweetwater.sjv...
Line6 HX Effects sweetwater.sjv...
Eventide H9 MAX sweetwater.sjv...
Strymon Mobius Modulation sweetwater.sjv...
Strymon Timeline delay sweetwater.sjv...
Meris Mercury7 Reverb sweetwater.sjv...
Meris Polymoon Delay sweetwater.sjv...
Revv D20 sweetwater.sjv...
UA OX Amp Top Box sweetwater.sjv...
Thank you so much for showing your process. Great theme for a mini series: how to chart the song, dealing with complex changes or anomalies, exercises, how to keep the "feel" while transposing,etc.
I believe the NNS is way more Practical and Ear opening than all the classical and Jazz theory i've been force feeding myself.
You are the kind of musician that I want to emulate. Best wishes!!!
Great idea, and thanks for the kind words!
Can you please explain what the numbers mean to me
Is there any way you could "fly on a wall" a session from work tape to end of session to show how it goes down?
Absolutely amazing to watch how quickly you did that and how neat and accurate it is. Like a magic trick.
Can you please explain what the numbers mean to me
@@lucks8550 - He did, go to 10:40 and follow what he is saying. If that isn't enough, find one of many videos about intervals/degrees of a scale. Basically it's just the numbers of the notes in their order in the scale...... C,D,E,F,G,A,B,C - - 1234567 back to 1. Chords... C=1, F=4, G=5, A=6 and so on. There is more to it but you will have to do a little homework to get the rest of it.
It's great that you are interested enough to ask! :)
EDIT - look into getting yourself a good "Circle of Fifths" chart, it is all right there. Also this bass player has a pretty good description ruclips.net/video/FPZ67VEhS50/видео.html
@@78tag but I wonder how does he know what key to use, what I’m trying to ask here is he’s using the Key of C correct, what made him decide the Key of C was the best option and Not the Key of F for examples
@@lucks8550 - I can't speak for him on that but the point is that this all works no matter what the key is - you just have to determine the key of the song to build the chart. Once you have the chart you will know the chords in any key from that chart. I hope that helps. Maybe he will get back to you on this?
@@78tag by any chance do you know how to determine what key a song is in?
Great to see your process and to get an overview of the numbering format. I've heard about the NNS but this is the first detail that I've come across. It's a great video. Thanks
Very interesting to watch how this stuff works. Thanks, Justin for letting us inside. Blessings, bro.
Can you please explain what the numbers mean to me
I love how the Nashville music style is so practical and always sounding great
That was fascinating and informative. Thank you for giving insight to your world. As a amateur player this stuff is gold❤
This is exactly what I need to incorporate into my writing.
I really appreciate this video, makes me feel like you and I are in the room and you are talking to me. Thank you sir!
MAN that was helpful! Especially seeing you do it in real time. Thanks!
Hey Justin, Awesome!!🔥 You are AMAZING!! 🔥Thanks for sharing this great video!🙏
Been doing this for years BUT… The “phrase dot”: GOLD JERRY!! Thanks for this priceless tip!
NEVER stop learning folks! As Stravinsky said: “Good composers borrow. GREAT composers steal!” This goes in the bag Justin. MUCH obliged.
Right on!
Can you please explain what the numbers mean to me
@@lucks8550
Think of each member of the 7 note major scale being assigned a number. Ergo C = 1, D = 2 etc along with their associated chord qualities ( 1-major, 2-minor, 3-minor etc…)
With this method, the key change happens in your head and hands… NOT re-writing the entire chart.
@@THEItchybruddah we’ll I get that much but what I don’t understand is how he identifies the first chord, if he uses this method all the time will every music/beat he makes start with the C major chord?
@@lucks8550 No. He identifies the “Key” the song is in, then the “tonality” (maj/min) then starts applying notes and durations (full/half measure etc.)
Love that screen saver! Awesome to see believers in this space
Thanks for a great and useful video. I was always curious about this system. I will add to my practice routine charting albums. Great advice
This was really interesting, thanks!
THANK YOU SO MUCH! I have been trying to learn music theory and country music of course, though I am more a blues guy. But anyway, I learned more theory from you than anyone in the last year! It totally unlocked scales and making sense of intervals and chord progressions! I am a professor and I know an awesome teacher when I see one, you sir are EXCELLENT! You make these concepts easy to understand and you are entertaining too! Keep on rockin'!
More great stuff Justin. I've been learning tidbits from you for a lot of years. :-) Also, I too enjoy the fewest amount of repeats and to just read a page straight down. So many other things to focus on when working through a new chart. Not having to worry about repeats just makes things 1 simpler.
Haha! Hey man
Justin, you are the first pro I ever heard teach HOW TO PRACTICE this system. I have found that I get the concept easily, I understand the theory but needed someone to guide me how to actually practice this, so as to, be able to more rapidly find the number. Thanks
It'd be cool to have videos where you show an overhead camera view of you making Numbers charts. I understand the concepts, but would love to get used to understanding the speed and efficiency with which pro's like you go about it.
Thanks, man, this is awesome!
Jenee Fleenor - had the pleasure of her talent on one of my tracks, recently. Also, I've enjoyed having Mark Evitts play fiddle. Obviously, both are ridiculously talented - not only impeccable delivery, but contributing, adding to my songs.
Always love seeing both them!
Your videos are so informative… I’ve tried to explain this way of writing out music to others… they never seem to get it… maybe it’s me? I’m sharing this video with everyone I play with… Thanks!
Can you please explain what the numbers mean to me
Hunting and music are my passion as well! Cool to hear you’re getting into it! Thanks for doing these videos!
Absolute wisdom, thank you for sharing
Thank you. This was very informative.
Two things: 1 You could bump up the volume on your video renders just a little - Listening on the phone like most of us is not so hot. AND 2: the fact that you know to look at the camera and not the monitor like most noobs is wonderful. I come from a motion picture family and that mistake that most people make is rude to me. Thank you for caring.
I like to start out being perhaps overly creative over the basic "roadmap" and then upon cues by the singer's performance, begin reducing until only the most essential creativity remains. That process helps me "zone in" on what my parts may augment the arrangement without outshining the lead singer. Also, other experienced players help me to "fit into" the band.
Great video! Hope there are more to come. I joined a country/rock band on 2 weeks notice and had to learn about 50 songs for a summer's worth of gigs. I couldn't get everything memorized in time so the NNS came in super helpful.
Nice! Without knowing it, this is how I learned to chart songs and how I speak music to people. I didn't know what it was called. It just seemed easier than naming notes, and saying the fret number is confusing.
Song Sounds Like Gentle on My Mind
Sure does!
Great video, and couldn’t agree more about repeats. I gather that in Nashville the numbers are regular, not Roman numerals. Good to know. I’m a classically trained pianist who studied jazz post secondary school and love rock and country too, and have been gigging for decades as a sideline. I “cross train” on guitar. While I figured out the utility of a number chart decades ago on my own, I think I still prefer Roman because at a glance lower case is minor, upper major, and the jazz shorthand for other types of chords is useful to see at a glance. Principles are all the same otherwise, and I will definitely take a deeper dive into the Nashville system to know more about it. Sad day when you don’t learn something new, thanks for ensuring this is a good day!
Yay!!!!!!! No repeats. Praise the Lord.
This is great Justin, very insightful seeing you do this in real time.
I’ve been studying the Nashville Numbers book by Chas Williams which is super detailed and I think for anyone looking to get a deep dive on conventions and varying abbreviations used by players it’s excellent.
I've heard about that book, but never used it. This doesn't strike me as a system that requires a book. If you have a couple of charts to look at, you can get the hang of it really quickly. I'll do another video on some uncommon situations that may arise with charting this way...
@@JustinOstrander it’s very clearly outlined and makes it easy to transition from the traditional Roman numeral way that I learned when I was younger. The Nashville system isn’t common in the uk so it was a great way to get access to it for me.
There are certain things in it that I wouldn’t have even considered if I hadn’t read it tbh.
Although I 100% agree that it seems very intuitive to follow once you’ve seen a few charts.
I think for anyone wanting to get a very definitive view it’s excellent.
Hi Jim! I was considering buying that book if it includes multiple examples and situations beyond what Justin has kindly shown us here.
Chas Williams has another book (Gigbook) with charts for some popular songs....
The NNS and the possibilities it offers (organization, Discipline, Consistency & Flexibility) is getting me highly motivated to follow Justin's footsteps and start "transcribing" whole albums. This is the Path i want to follow.
@@CRP2426 Hey Carlos.
Yes it does, what’s also very useful is that it contains some original pieces, which have been recorded so you can download the tracks, and the book shows you the musicians (who are all names, Brent Mason etc) actual charts from the recording, so you get to see differing ways people present their charts with the various personal quirks etc.
I’ve read there’s another book by a different guy called charting made east or something that is less intense if the concept is new.
I think if you already have experience charting and writing out music and know basic theory you’d be ok to be honest though.
It is really cool how quickly that you can do that...
my band recorded at Sound Emporium about 20 yrs ago,,in Studio A...great place and goodtimes
Priceless and timely…thanks!
Awesome
Thanks For Showing Me How it's Done !!
Really enjoying your content 👍🏼 well presented and informative. Keep it up
I've been waiting for this. thanks man
Great channel, man! I'm devouring all the videos. Thanks a lot!
Awesome, thanks a ton!
you are right...thanks for the inspiration. we appreciate it!
MAN ! That guy IS "Channeling Kris Christopherson" ?? "Sunday Morning coming Around" ???? Ol West
Thanks for this window into your charting process. New subscriber here 👍
Sounds like Gentle On My Mind.
Fantastic video, subscribed!
That was the clearest explanation on the Nashville tuning I have seen. Thanks Justin, I don't understand why some people make it seem so mysterious.
Really instructive, thanks Justin!
Great video!! Thanks
Great video and really helpful with the NNS
Great stuff man. That seems so much easier.
Good explanation of numbers in song, now how do you know who plays when or how much ??
I dig the phrasing dot idea! Cool. And a 5 bar phrase made me sound like a fool (when it was the rest of the band who kept forgetting it) during a little “Houston vs Norwalk” jam at an annual company meeting several years ago. Home office in CT, our outpost in TX. Enough musicians at the company to always do a jam. I figured what’s more Houston than “Died & Gone to Houston”
By Mike Stinson? Well, it has 5 bar phrasing. I was singing & playing rhythm. It was an unmitigated disaster. LOL.
PS: is that “METZI(?) Houston” a burlap coffee bag over an acoustic panel?
This stuff is just great!
Great video!
Is your wallpaper the bible cross reference thing?
This is great and your part two is cool because you read the comments from this RUclips I have a question for a measure that has two cords in it the first chord on one and then the cord change on three do you just underline that?
Yep
Thank you for this! The gentle giant Ben Miller @ Corner Music gave me a Nashville Numbers book years ago, but I couldn’t crack the code until this video! Thanks again #Nashvillelovesyou #615boys
Can you please explain what the numbers mean to me
Holy shit. I understood it 😀
Great stuff Justin...thanks
Thanks!
Good Stuff! 😎👍
I have an idea!! You & @BrettPapa should get together & do a new instructional video ala "Tim Pierce Making the Song" 🙏
@brettpapa and I have some stuff we're cooking up...
@@JustinOstrander this makes me happy!! 😀
you guys ROCK!
Really good video!!!
How are chords in minor keys numbered? In the key of A Minor, is the Am chord notated as 6 or as -1? And how would the E7 be numbered? Thanks
An example: In key of Am, the progression Am C F E would be 1- b3 b6 5.
I would probably my just call it key of C at the top of the chart and write it as 6- 1 4 3 instead.
I'm trying to get better at charting. It's fascinating how you can pick out the 4's and 5's and even 1's (though I can catch that) without knowing the key. First thing I do is get the key down and then its a little easier. I'm a novice so any tips, just ear training...
I have pretty decent relative pitch. If I know what the 1 is, I can pick most everything else out because of how it relates to the 1. Time spent listening and ear training will help for sure.
As a jazz band/musical pit player and dealing with sheet music at all my gigs this is fascinating. Wonder if someone can explain that 5/7 split bar thing, I think it’s the walkdown.
I discuss how the split bars work in the video. There are a couple different types of splits in the song I’m charting.
Or if you’re asking what 5/7 means, that’s just a 5 chord with its 3rd (the 7 of the key) in the bass. In the key of G, that would be D/F#.
@@JustinOstrander oh, interesting way to write a slash chord.. Thanks!
Yeah Man
Thank you for this!
Please do more of theese. Recurring segment.
The mechanics are pretty simple but the experience of application takes work just like anything else,Experience wins.
Wow
Super helpful!
Hey Justin, what other albums did you chart? Curious to know
The Nashville ( 1-2-3....) is much more user friendly than the Roman I ii iii IV...AKA "Number System". What gets me is some music teachers will insist on the "Circle of 5ths" as a teaching tool. Often bad mouthing the NNS. But will communicate in a # system. When they could just do the NNS to begin with. A straight line 1-7 across and the Key's going down is much easier to remember and teach, (Chart) than a Circle. You know exactly what the 6m is in every key. The Circle has 3 minors to choose in any Key. Or at least that's the way I see it. LOL
I have another question I know a diamond represents a hold or a whole note what if you have break on the first beat of the measure? I've been putting an ! Next to the cord number...so 5!
I would write a quarter note rest and then the diamond and underline them together
Sunday Morning Comin Down much?
P.S. need to see that Jazzmaster in action.
It is one of my main guitars and featured in lots of my videos 🤠
@@JustinOstrander I’ve since found lovely examples. Sounds fantastic!
What are some other albums you enjoyed learning?
Jackson Browne, Tom Petty, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, James Taylor, India.Arie (I had to learn her Acoustic Soul record top to bottom for a gig), Skynyrd, etc... Lots of the usual suspects. I wore out SRV and Hendrix, too
When he does that walk down from E flat to B flat 1st inversion to C minor, he says that's a "five over seven six minor." I get the "five" and the "6 minor" part, but can someone explain to me why he calls the 1 to 5 walk down a "five over seven"? Thanks
In numbers, it’s 1 5/7 6-. In chord symbols, it’s Eb Bb/D Cm.
5/7 is an inverted 5 chord with the 7 in the bass. It’s just a Bb with the D as the lowest note. It’s a very common way to walk from the 1 down to the 6-
@@JustinOstrander awesome. Thank you
How would you write it if there is a borrowed chord, Ie: E G A B. Thanks Would the G be a 3 flat? Key of E
Yep, exactly. 1 b3 4 5
Thank you, your show is awesome@@JustinOstrander
When you lead the session, do you provide this chart for the other musicians or are they expected to have listened and charted and already have ideas to try out? (You answered it after I typed). Follow up: What does the time split look like for this session for doing these 3 songs? Roughly how much time do you as a group listen and talk before jamming and how long is the playing music part?
The band almost never hears the work tapes before the session. Leader writes charts for everyone so we're all on the same page. It's always good to know what the pace is. For this session, we had 3 songs in a 3-hour session. Roughly an hour per song. Listening down and asking questions usually takes 10 min or so. It can be longer if the producer or artist want to rearrange before we go in and cut.
And the lack of imagination is what shines through in the all its dullness…..
when you are reading a chart and adding lead parts - do you think of the chord changes in numbers relative to the root or the names of the notes/chords in the actual key?
At this point, I'm just listening. Not really thinking of theory or chords or anything. For me, learning all that and then getting past it all is key to being creative in the moment.
How do you notate non diatonic chords?
All relative to the 1. So if the song is in E, and the bridge departs to a Cmaj7 D thing, I would write that as b6maj7 b7.
If the song mods, I call the new key and write everything relative to the new 1.
Does the Nashville notation possibly push Nashville into simpler music, where everything sounds like a simple diatonic tune with a modulation, a hook, a steel solo, back to a verse...145 rearranged a million times? This tune sounds like a Glen Campbell tune. Not to insult...I like some Country.
Roughly around how many charts did it take for you to be able to just hear the changes like that? I’ve been practicing by listening to songs with charts, and following along, but I have to have the guitar with me for certain stuff. I should also clarify, if just listening to backing tracks it’s easier for me to hear the basic stuff like I IV V and ii V I but with more complex melodies I get a little more thrown off, if that makes sense. Curious if you have any tips 👍🙏
Ear training takes time for sure. I would try writing the chart before touching your guitar. Hum the pitches as you go and try to find their relationship without using the fretboard. Then check your work with the guitar.
@@JustinOstrander perfect! I’ll start implementing those things now! Can’t wait to practice this more. Thanks for the tips, really appreciate it 🙏🙏
Do you like the tg2 for guitars? Vs the BAE?
I love the TG2, but I haven’t used really anything else in my home setup, so I don’t know. I know a lot of people dig the BAE. Maybe I’ll switch it up one of these days. Cheers!
Turtles all the way down
Eb
When all else fails key of G...