Lead sheet
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A lead sheet (also known as fake music) is a type of condensed musical notation which can be easier to sightread than conventional sheet music. A simplified form of sheet music, it consists of the tempo, key signature, melody and lyrics to a song, and also the chords to the song as they appear. It is used predominantly but not exclusively by jazz musicians.
A pianist reading from a leadsheet must refer to the chord symbols printed above the staff to construct a left-hand sequence and provide harmonic accompaniment. The chord symbols also provide a structure for an ensemble to improvise upon. In addition to chord symbols, a leadsheet may contain additional symbols to indicate rhythmic devices (known as hits or kicks) that an ensemble might be required to play in unison. If a piano part is given, then it's no longer a lead sheet but standard sheet music for a song. But even collections of songs are called 'fake books' by musicians.
Collections of fake music are known as fakebooks, the most famous of which is called The Real Book.
Lead sheets are often used by a musician or group of musicians to create instant arrangements of music on demand.
Fake books usually consist of lead sheets, as do occasional musical songbooks.
[edit] External links
- Gospel Lead Sheet Examples - Gospel lead sheets typically include the lyrics with the chords written above them.
- Real Book/Lead Sheet Directory - Searchable database of Real Book Songs and Lead Sheets.
- Wikifonia - A wiki for Pop/Rock/Jazz/... Lead Sheets in high quality pdf.
- Leadsheet Notation Textual notation for creating, communicating, and playing leadsheets.
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