# G/f#, C/E, etc....



## rcacs (May 4, 2011)

Here's hoping a member can explain this to me....(newbie). Often on tabs/charts I see things like G/f#, C/E etc. I can see what they mean because it shows the finger placements on some of the charts, but not all do. How do I determine what they really mean when it does not give placements, and where the extra note (or loose a note) comes from?

Thanks in advance!

cheers,


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## jeremy_green (Nov 10, 2010)

Those are called slash chords So G/F# would be a G chord - with an F# in the bass.
Typically the bass note is a voiced note in the chord... This chord is actually usually just an inversion of the chord but not always. You can put any note in the bass but they are usually something diatonic or "of the key" - meaning a scale tone.

You can read about them here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slash_chord


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## Budda (May 29, 2007)

I've never heard of this! I also don't look up tabs haha. Interesting!


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## hummingway (Aug 4, 2011)

I read them as G over F#, C over E. It's a simplified notation that works very well. You can usually determine the voicing by the context.


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## mrmatt1972 (Apr 3, 2008)

Slash chords are all over country music and folk, the voicings work especially well with acoustic guitar.


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## Woof (Jan 13, 2010)

I use this style to represent chord/bass. Generally a walking bass line.
Mostly when playing acoustic alone, otherwise I let the bass player pick up the bass line  

something like C C/B Am Am/G

would be C, C with low B, A minor, A minor with low G
Gives a nice bass walkdown of C/B/A/G


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## hummingway (Aug 4, 2011)

mrmatt1972 said:


> Slash chords are all over country music and folk, the voicings work especially well with acoustic guitar.


I might be worng but I believe it's even part of what they call Nashville notation.


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## Jim DaddyO (Mar 20, 2009)

Am, Am/G, D/F#, Fmaj7...While my guitar gently weeps. Change the Fmaj7 to F and it's Coming into Los Angeles by Arlo Guthrie. 

I think the Nashville Notation may be referring to the Nashville Numbering system where a song would be laid out with the cord changes as the numbers ( ei 1 4 5) instead of the actual chords (C F G). This facilitates multiple players each playing capo'd at differing frets. Which sounds great! (ie no capo playing C F G, capo 2 and play A D E shapes, capo 4 plays G C D shapes, etc, also related to the "caged" system, but my theory gets limited there). Try it with some friends some day.


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## hummingway (Aug 4, 2011)

Jim DaddyO said:


> Am, Am/G, D/F#, Fmaj7...While my guitar gently weeps. Change the Fmaj7 to F and it's Coming into Los Angeles by Arlo Guthrie.
> 
> I think the Nashville Notation may be referring to the Nashville Numbering system where a song would be laid out with the cord changes as the numbers ( ei 1 4 5) instead of the actual chords (C F G). This facilitates multiple players each playing capo'd at differing frets. Which sounds great! (ie no capo playing C F G, capo 2 and play A D E shapes, capo 4 plays G C D shapes, etc, also related to the "caged" system, but my theory gets limited there). Try it with some friends some day.


The nashville system I learned involved usoing different symbols eg Amaj7 would be A followed by a triangle and a 7. Amin7 would be A-7. Triads over bass notes instead of the more complicated dim. notations etc. Very easy to read.


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## Jim DaddyO (Mar 20, 2009)

I think I may have indicated the capos at the wrong fret.....everyone is playing the same chords but with different shapes and different positions up the neck. Sorry for any confusion. For the example I gave (key of C) the 2nd guitar would be capo 3 (for an A shape to make a C chord) and the 3rd guitar would be capo 5 I think (for a G shape to make a C chord). Still, it is a great experiment and sounds awesome.


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## jeremy_green (Nov 10, 2010)

hummingway said:


> The nashville system I learned involved usoing different symbols eg Amaj7 would be A followed by a triangle and a 7. Amin7 would be A-7. Triads over bass notes instead of the more complicated dim. notations etc. Very easy to read.


This system isn't Nashville really... I mean it is used there, but it is not what I have ever heard of as the Nashville system. The famous Nashvillle system is the numbering system Jim DaddyO referred to. The triangles and all that are common of most college or university teachings. Your point is well taken though. Slash chords certainly are great for presenting clarity on the inversion required.


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## Guest (Oct 21, 2012)

jeremy_green said:


> This system isn't Nashville really... I mean it is used there, but it is not what I have ever heard of as the Nashville system. The famous Nashvillle system is the numbering system Jim DaddyO referred to. The triangles and all that are common of most college or university teachings. Your point is well taken though. Slash chords certainly are great for presenting clarity on the inversion required.


Yea, that's the "Nashville System" I was taught -- everything is represented as numbered chord positions so key changes are effortless. II - IV - V - I means the same thing in any key and it's easy to sort it out on the fly, quickl.


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## SaviArt (Mar 1, 2012)

Slash chord ir when you play typical open or standard chord and odd new note in the bass (the one after slash). This makes chord sound very interesting. It changes the sound a little bit and adds new move in chord playing. You can play it in mostly in 4 beat section (if you know what it means)


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