learning the chords

I gave "FlyMe to theMoon" a try yesterday evening. Biggest problem where finding the 7th chords, and how to finger them. Maybe I can gather a few tips here.
Are there any good apps to quickly look up chords and its inversions? Or any other ways to learn the chords and find them easily. Maybe it's not a question for an app-forum, but as all people are musicians post here...
How to see at what octave do I have to take the chord?
Another question: How do I see from the letters on a leadsheet if I have to play the plain chord or an inversion - or may it is always be allowed to have easier fingering?


edit:
OK, I found the "display chords - 1 hand" function in iReal Pro, but sometimes he chooses to play an inversion, and sometimes the root chord. Nevertheless. The letter in the leadsheet always indicate the root chord.

Selecting chord diagrams
http://www.irealb.com/forums/showthr...1791#post31791

Quote:

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Originally Posted by johand

How to see at what octave do I have to take the chord?
Another question: How do I see from the letters on a leadsheet if I have to play the plain chord or an inversion - or may it is always be allowed to have easier fingering?

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In most lead-sheets, those choices are left up to the musician instead of as in sheet music defining the accompaniment note for note.

Not every note in every chord needs to be played every time...

Freedom and individual interpretation are hallmarks of jazz.

Listen....


:))BOB

Thanks, but I don't understand why not alway the root chord is displayed. Ex if you choose to show chord G7, it shows the 2nd inverion, right?
edit1: I did find the possibility to swap right/left on the chord to display other possible ways to get a G7.
edit2: OK, this should get me started.
Attachment 378

Small chord diagrams in every measure are selected by changing the font.
(Kind of hard to read on a small screen)
Select the large diagrams (icon lower right)
Tap play
Tap the large chord diagram to pause play.
Swipe the large diagram to see other inversions.
G7=G,B,D,F...1,3,5,b7
That's true however you rearrange the notes.
The root doesn't always have to be the lowest note.
Sometimes you choose the inversion for fingering convenience or efficiency, sometimes for its musical quality.
Listen.....
:))BOB

ok Thanks, no need for extra "chords" app.
Listening...:cool:

If a Am7 is played in 2nd inversion, shouldn't there be "Am7/E" in the leadsheet instead of just Am7?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by johand

If a Am7 is played in 2nd inversion, shouldn't there be "Am7/E" in the leadsheet instead of just Am7?

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The "slash" chord is usually only specified for musical reasons, like where the moving bass note is important to the flow of the progression.
Like the B-sections in these
Hey Jude - The Beatles (Lennon, McCartney)
Imagine - John Lennon

Or where a pedal-tone is desired.
(End of the B-section)
La Mer dfb - Charles Trenet

Otherwise, every chord without the root on the bottom would be written with a "/".
:))BOB

is it possible that when I erase the 1300 Jazz standard playlist and re-import it, the song "FlyMe to TheMoon" has the same chord progression, but other inversions that I had it the first time?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by johand

is it possible that when I erase the 1300 Jazz standard playlist and re-import it, the song "Fly Me to The Moon" has the same chord progression, but other inversions that I had it the first time?

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The chord charts will be the same. Each time you restart the player differences may occur.
More:
http://www.irealb.com/forums/showthr...7160#post27160
:))BOB

Is there a good JPG or PDF matrix with all major and minor 7th and dominants to put on my piano as reference? Which notes and maybe a keyboard view...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by johand

If a Am7 is played in 2nd inversion, shouldn't there be "Am7/E" in the leadsheet instead of just Am7?

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by johand

Thanks, but I don't understand why not alway the root chord is displayed...

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You might want to talk to your teacher about all this. You will be paying for your teaching sessions. There is so much to learn as you know (endless!) and your teacher will be able to guide you efficiently in your learning. Using the tools in iReal Pro are very helpful but do not get so side-tracked that you are not getting the most out of your teacher’s lessons and recommended practicing.
:)

As a general rule, it is good to be able to move your left hand fingers so they move nearby to the next chord’s notes. For example A C E (bottom to top) would go to A D F (the A note staying the same). Or if you start the Am with first inversion, C E A, then the Dm would be D F A. Minimal movement of hand and fingers (and notes to the next group of notes).

Although you can loop in iReal Pro, you might find it helpful to make a new song just with perhaps two chords you are practicing (one per measure at least). Once you choose a diagram (root or a specific inversion), each time that measure is played, it will show for you. Choose a slow tempo. You need to know the notes in your mind, but your fingers will need to develop their own muscle memory in order to do this automatically. You can slowly work through different chord progressions of the song over a number of weeks. You need fluency at slow tempos before you can play through these exercises gradually faster, and this can take time practicing regularly (frequently throughout the day for a few minutes is better than a long session every couple of weeks).
Your teacher might recommend just learning one voicing of each chord as a starting point just so your fingers get used to the movements (shapes) they need to make to execute the chord progressions. Learning a complete song such as Fly me to the Moon at once is quite ambitious (but I do not know your exact skills).
Moving on from a couple of chords, try the first four bars (or the next two). Again, a practice song of just the first four chords only would be useful for practice. And slow tempos so your fingers learn where to go, and only one way of voicing the chord, until your fingers learn it automatically.
Save the song so when you need to learn different voicings of the same chords, you do not need to set it up again.

There are many chord qualities, inversions for each and keys. Your fingers can get a little confused if you learn too many at once and the muscle memory you require will not develop quickly.

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When you read notation, the exact notes for the chord are specified (whether they have the root at the bottom or inversions). With chord symbols, the inversions are not usually specified, the voicings are up to you. (Sometimes a pianist will play the inversions if they are indicated, but if there is a bass player, you usually do not need to).
Do not play them too low because it sounds muddy. Learning to play the voicing just below middle C (perhaps a little above that for a few notes of the voicing) is where I would recommend as a starting point (and not too much lower than the C below that). This means it is out of the way of the melody or solo in the right hand and not sounding muddy. When I do this, I need to know the inversions of each chord as it comes along so my hand does not jump around much. If I played every chord at root position, my hand would be jumping around a lot, whereas it has a nice aural and physical flow if I move my fingers minimally to get the next notes near where my hand already is so it does not disturb anything sonically to distract from what the right hand is doing. (Obviously this is not done all the time once you are proficient, but I would recommend it as a goal - going towards this in your practice sessions). You cannot learn all inversions for all the chords at once, so your teacher will be able to guide you how to approach this.

I hope something here helps what you are thinking about.

Thx a lot for all help dflat

Johand, you might look at a copy of The Jazz Piano Book by Mark Levine. The early chapters go over chord voicing. I think you would benefit from this book. Later chapters cover jazz theory and lots of other jazz piano topics. When I was beginning my jazz piano journey, I found this book to be a very valuable source of jazz knowledge.

http://www.amazon.com/Jazz-Piano-Boo...6920096&sr=1-1

I have Tim Richards, Improvising Blues Piano, as I was told Mark Levine's book is too difficult for beginners. Once this is finnished (when?) I have his Improvins Jazz piano.
http://www.timrichards.ndo.co.uk/bluespianobook.html
thx for the tip anyway, Johan

Shell voicing chords 1/7 (I didn't know they existed till now) are maybe an easier way to get into jazz and playing from a fake book?

Johan, it depends of the context. Shell voicings (http://www.thejazzresource.com/shell_voicings.html for example) in the left hand are useful when you are playing by yourself. They provide the harmonic foundation for the melody played by the right hand, and eventually, for improvisations. Being able to play a tune out of a fake book by yourself is a basic skill for you to learn, and developing ease in using shell voicings is part of this skill. Rootless voicings, which are used both in solo and ensemble playing, are usually learned after one develops facility with shell voicings. I recommended The Jazz Piano Book because both are covered there. Improvising Jazz Piano by Richards is a more basic book that develops important skills and knowledge. I don't think you could go wrong by going through both volumes of Improvising Jazz Piano and using The Jazz Piano Book somewhere along the way.

I also suggest you check out a series of solo piano books of arrangements by Brent Edstrom. These contain sophisticated but very playable solo piano arrangements which provide great examples of what solo piano should sound like. See http://www.amazon.com/Jazz-Lovers-Pi...9SV5BZMP5WF3FN.