What are Lead Sheets?

Definition:

A Lead Sheet is a song with a one-note melody written in the treble clef and a chord symbol above the melody. You can think of a lead sheet as a “skeleton” of the song. It shows the melody and the basic chord structure. The more you understand chords and harmonic substitutions, fills etc.. the more you can fill in this “ skeleton” .

The chord symbol written above the melody line indicates the chord to play in the left hand. The lead sheet is a very important tool for playing quickly. The 2 main advantages to playing songs in the form of a lead sheet are:

1. You are using , in a very practical way, the chords that you have been taught, ( I never teach chord drills with out a practical application ).

2. The student is getting a very big sound within the first month of lessons. Think of the months and years it takes to play 4 notes simultaneously when studying piano the “ traditional way”. With a Lead Sheet, the student is playing songs they know and love and getting a full, rich sound without having to “ read “ a bass clef, full of 3 seemingly arbitrary notes.

Piano Learning Resource Center

Learn About...

Chords

Learning Triads

Learning Leadsheets

4 – Note Chords (Close Position)

5 + Note Chords (Open Position)

Advanced chord voicings

Harmonic Patterns

True Circle Of 5ths

7 Diatonic Chords

" ii V7 I " Chord Progression

" I, vi ii V7 I " Chord Progression