OK, folks, I "lurk," and sometimes for years. But, as a "sort of professional" Bass player (String Bass for a 16 piece "Big Band," and Eb Tuba for a Dixieland Band) this topic of how to "write" chord symbols sure hits nerves. (Sort of professional means I make about $1.500 a year, playing those 3 hour gigs.) And, I arrange and compose with Finale. From the point of view of a musicologist, saying "how you arrive at the chord" may be something that can get different "names" for the same [EMAIL PROTECTED] chord just does not cut it in my world. I play an individual piece perhaps once or twice a YEAR, and I am often sight reading that Bass line, and the dratted different names for what are "identical" chords drives me up the wall. There just is not either brain enough to know four or five different "names" for a specific chord, and certainly not enough brain to instantly "know" where the piece is going! Often, we find that only ONE instrument out of 16 is playing the "#13" or "b5" in that chord. And often I am that instrument. I have learned just by hours and hours of playing that some notes "sound right" at a specific point in the piece, and others may sound "advanced," or "cute" or "quite modern" but are simply not necessary, either for artistic effect, or for the Dancers, who are the folks who PAY for a 16 piece Big Band. So I Comp and Fake, and frankly often I play a much more musically interesting and "smooth sounding" progression than the one on the chart.
However, my point is that WHY can't y'all agree on ONE name for each chord? Why several names, regardless of your "musical point of view?" There are a lot more part time old geezer musicians like me than ALL of the musicians in ALL of the orchestras in the world, and we buy and play a lot of music. Not symphonies, that is certain, but LIVE music. Just hoping somehow, some way, the folks who arrange and publish and sell arrangements for the more mundane music could make life on the stage a lot easier if they could manage to AGREE on ONE name for ONE chord. Thanks for listening, and back to lurking. Jean 72 year old Bass player in Iowa. Been using Finale since Version 3. In a message dated 1/12/07 6:44:20 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > Subject: Re: [Finale] Chord definition > To: [email protected] > Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; format=flowed > > A-NO-NE Music wrote: > > > Carl Dershem / 2007/01/11 / 12:17 AM wrote: > > > > > >>These make sense. I really wish more people could/would agree pon > >>standard ways to notate chords! > > > > > > Jazz theory is still young, and you will see a few different ways. > > However, there is always one best explanation. Only one, which > > explanation is most logical. I have spent years to establish so I can > > give that best explanation consistently in my classes (boy I miss > > teaching classes :-). > > > > But in the end, when we stand on stage, who grooves harder wins :-) > > Very true. But as copyists/engravers, it's up to those of us who use > Finale (or other software) to make that groove easier to find. > > _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list [email protected] http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
