Slash Chords
The following examples make use of another important piano technique, i.e., playing a chord with the right hand over a bass note which is different to the notes contained within the chord. In the following example, the symbol F/C occurs. This indicates an F chord played over a C bass note. This is called a slash chord. Slash chords can create many different harmonic effects. Each combination has a specific name and often creates an entirely new chord. These will be discussed in detail in Progressive Funk and R&B Piano Technique. Basically you can play any chord over any bass note as long as it sounds good. Experiment with playing all the chords you have learned over various bass notes from the C major scale or the C Blues scale.
Slash chords do not always have to be written above the music for you to play them. E.g., the following example has a Cm chord symbol above it, but the right hand plays an F chord on the second half of the first beat. Because the part immediately returns to Cm, it is not necessary to writ F/C for half a beat. This is common in piano playing.
