{"id":123,"date":"2018-11-20T13:15:00","date_gmt":"2018-11-20T21:15:00","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2023-01-12T15:11:22","modified_gmt":"2023-01-12T23:11:22","slug":"reading-chord-charts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/reading-chord-charts\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Read Chord Charts On Piano"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Chord charts are an awesome tool for learning to play songs using chords and your ear. <\/span>They allow you to view the song with chords only, leaving the rest up to you. This is a great opportunity for you to play things YOUR way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s important to keep in mind that they won\u2019t tell you everything you need to know in order to be able to play a song. They just give you chord names and the rest is up to you!<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are some of the most common chord symbols you will find in chord charts. For the sake of this article we will use G for all the examples but you can encounter these symbols in any key.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

G Maj7  – <\/strong>This means to play a major 7th chord. Major triad with a major 7th on top. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

G min7 –<\/strong> This means to play a minor triad with the 7th of the minor scale on the top<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

G7 – <\/strong>This is a dominant 7th. It is a G triad with a flat 7 on the top<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gsus4 – <\/strong>Play a G chord but swap the 3rd for the 4th note of the scale<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gsus2 – <\/strong>Same as a sus4 but swap the 2nd for the 3rd this time<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

G+ – <\/strong>A stack of major 3rds<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

G dim – <\/strong>A stack of minor 3rds<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those are some of the most common chord symbols. Want to know more? Feel free to send us your questions. We always love to hear from you!<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lisa Witt<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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