In chord charts what does it mean when it says /c#. I know what slash chords are, but what if it doesn't show the first part. An example of what I'm talking about is here.

  • Have you ever seen an example where the right side of the slash is a chord (e.g. Em) instead of a single note? – Dekkadeci Jul 14 '19 at 6:56

My gut assumption given your example lead sheet is that the empty slash presumes that the base chord to the left of it will still be used. For example, in your example, the "A /C#" would mean "A A/C#".

  • Your assumption is correct. The chord stays A, but the bass starts a chromatic movement to E – PiedPiper Jul 14 '19 at 8:33
  • 1
    Spot on. That's really all it could be, but as an ink saving exercise..? +1. – Tim Jul 14 '19 at 9:57
  • It could also be a space-saving exercise. I've added chords to pieces that already exist by hand - and tricks like this can allow you to include the full detail you wanted without resorting to tiny unreadable compromises. – Shadow Jul 15 '19 at 1:04
  • I've also used it to indicate that the bass can move on its own, without resounding the chord above it. – trlkly Jul 15 '19 at 3:52

Your Answer

